So I'm trying to add recessed lighting to a ceiling fan with light.. I have an older home so my switch only has a black and white wire to the switch.. how would I wire the can lights to come on with the fan/light.. I want to be able to run the fan and fan light with the recessed lighting all at once or be able to turn off the fan light off and still have recessed lighting work with fan on..
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You have to get power for the new lights at the fan location.
Your switch only has hot and switched hot (it's an old-fashioned, grandfathered arrangement called a switch loop.) Can't be installed in new work, but is acceptable if already installed when it was still a "to code" arrangement. {Which is what "grandfathered" means in this context.}
Your lights need to be connected to switched hot and neutral, and you'll only find the neutral at the fan location.
White at your switch is not neutral. (It should be "always hot", and it should be "re-marked" with tape or paint in any color other than white, gray, or green - and at the light, it should be connected to a black always-hot feed wire, which tends to freak out people who think that's "wrong." Things get worse when they "correct" it...)
Ecnerwal
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