Electrical – Why won’t the ceiling light turn off with the wall switch disconnected

electricallightingswitchwiring

I want to install a ceiling light where previously only a box cover existed, no fixture. I connected the black wire to the black fixture wire, white to white, ground to ground. No other wires are present. I turned the breaker on and the light only stays on. I disconnected the wall switch completely but left the wall wires unconnected (black, white, ground). I think it could be a possible faulty switch. I turned the breaker on and the ceiling light remained on with no switch connection.

What is going on?

Best Answer

It sounds like you're poking around in the wrong hole. The circuit you describe looks something like this...

Circuit

Which obviously is not possible, since you say the light is on. More likely, the switch does not control the light at all, and the circuit looks more like this...

Circuits

It's possible (as previously mentioned) that the switch actually controls a receptacle, or some other device. In which case the ceiling box is probably wired directly to the circuit, and is intended for a fixture with a built-in switch (pull chain).