What Happens If You Wire Live And Neutral Wrong? (Answered!) -

A fully functional electrical circuit is solely dependent on its wiring being in the right spot. If there are any issues with the connection, it will ruin the flow of electricity.

Keeping this in mind, what happens if you wire live and neutral wrong?

If you wire live and neutral wrong, it will cause the setup to short circuit. In most cases, the circuit will break and one of the wires may burn. Once the wire is replaced and connected in the right spot, the circuit will work again.

This is why it’s important to connect each wire in the right spot. Any mistakes in this regard can lead to the entire circuit going down.

Unfortunately, this mistake does happen more often than it should.

Here is a look at what happens if you wire live and neutral wrong in an electrical circuit.

Table of Contents

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Main Effects Of Wiring Live And Neutral Incorrectly

1. Short Circuit

When you swap live and neutral wires, it will have a direct impact on the electrical circuit.

This includes damaging the circuit and/or causing it to stop working. The short-circuiting will be managed by the circuit breaker but it will require you to then fix the problem.

The correct placement of both wires is essential.

Any issues in this regard will ensure the electrical circuit doesn’t work at all. This can lead to frustrating results that are inefficient and will likely damage the wires.

Your best course of action is to shut off the electrical power and then assess the circuit. This includes seeing whether or not the breaker tripped.

In a lot of cases, the circuit is not going to work until the wires are fixed. The connection is going to be gone, which is why testing the wires is essential. You want to ensure electricity does go through the wires once the power is turned back on.

2. Cuts the Flow of Electricity

A noticeable impact is going to be made on the electricity coming from the circuit.

It will stop.

This is a common reaction to the wires being in the wrong spot. You have to make sure both the neutral and live wires are in the right spot.

If you don’t take the time to do this, the flow of electricity is going to come to a halt. This is one of the main concerns associated with having the wires incorrectly connected. You have to be careful to test where the wires are and then put them back where they need to be.

What happens if you wire live and neutral wrong

3. Can Burn One of the Wires

Depending on how much electricity is going through the circuit and where the wire was connected, it can cause the live wire to die.

This happens when the live wire burns because it was in the wrong spot.

In most situations, the neutral wire is going to be fine and can be put in a different spot. The goal is to fix the live wire as that is where the main problem lies.

A live wire getting burned can be frustrating but it is replaceable. The goal should be to spot where the live wire has burned and then replace it as soon as possible.

This should get the electrical circuit working as you want it to.

4. Requires Replacement Wire

One of the main effects that you will have to prep for will be what happens to the replacement wire. This is one of the biggest hurdles a person has to deal with when it comes to a situation such as this because the live wire is likely to burn.

This is due to the surge of electricity that goes through the circuit and the incorrectly connected live wire.

You have to be careful and turn off the power before touching the wire.

Once you have done this, the live wire will need to be replaced, It’s best to consult with a certified electrician to learn more about your options in a situation such as this.

Final Thoughts

What happens if you wire live and neutral wrong?

If you wire live and neutral wrong, the most common effect is going to involve short-circuiting. This will mean the circuit stops working. You will also notice the live wire is going to be burned depending on how much electricity went through.

The best course of action in a situation such as this is to simply replace the live wire and re-test the electrical circuit.

For most scenarios, the electrical circuit will start working as you hope for it to.

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