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It’s an early 1900s house but the electrical was probably updated over a decade or so ago. I have a new light fixture which states to wrap the bare copper ground wire around the green ground screw on the included cross bar which then connects to the copper ground wire from the outlet box.

The outlet box is plastic and the bare copper wire from the outlet box is wrapped around what appears to be a grounding screw (See picture. Box has bare copper wire, white wire, and black wire).

So how do I connect the two copper wires given this? Do I leave the copper wire from the outlet box on the outlet box’s grounded screw, and ALSO ground the copper wire from the fixture to the ground screw on the included cross bar? And THEN connect the two copper wires? Outlet Box

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  • the light colored area to the right of the grounding screw ... is it metal under the paint? Commented Feb 8, 2023 at 0:25
  • if you're referring to the area where the two threaded holes are, it looks like the top hole is covered by metal which then wraps up the left side of the plastic and connects with the ground screw Commented Feb 8, 2023 at 1:24

1 Answer 1

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I would use a wire nut or a WAGO to connect the two grounds together.

That ground screw might not hold two wires together enough--one might come off.

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  • Would you leave the ground wire from the box connected to the box's ground screw AND also attach the ground wire from the fixture to the cross bar BEFORE connecting the two grounds together? Commented Feb 8, 2023 at 19:03
  • Yes that screw in a plastic box does not do except to hold the ground wire. There might be a piece of metal that also connects to the screw from the light/cross bar which would add to ground connection. Commented Feb 8, 2023 at 19:13
  • There doesn't appear to be a piece of metal that does so. The cross bar (AA) just has the ground screw (BB). I added a picture of the fixture's instructions for reference. Commented Feb 8, 2023 at 20:14

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