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I'm replacing on old bathroom ceiling fan/light, and the conduit comes to it from the left side, with only a short length of wires sticking out - but the hole into which the conduit wires should go is on the the other side of the fan box (which can't change as that's where the vent line is).

Here’s a picture showing the space and wires from the conduit. The hole meant for conduit would be on far right of screen - conduit wires won’t reach it, but what I meant before was that the fan’s attached wires stick out far enough that they could connect to the conduit externally.

enter image description here

The install manual/video says to run the conduit/wires into the fan box and then connect inside it, but since that doesn't seem possible as is, would I be better off to (a) just connect them outside of the box, with wire nuts, tape over, etc. (there's no insulation in that ceiling space, as it's between floors), or (b) get some extra pieces of wire and extend each of the wires coming out of the conduit (with wire nuts, tape over) to make them long enough to reach into the fan box, and then connect them to the fan wires inside the box as intended? Or, some other approach? Thanks!

isherwood
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JRDinIL
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2 Answers2

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There are two primary strategies available. Which is best depends on the nuances of the situation.

  • Extend the conduit and pull new longer wires from the closest upstream junction box.
  • Add a junction box at the end of the conduit and extend with additional conduit and new wires from that box.

Note that any junction box must remain accessible, but this can include attic space with an access port.

isherwood
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What you have there is Flexible Metal Conduit, which terminates in a standard round knockout hole for 1/2" trade size pipe. (the hole being 7/8" diameter). In fact you can see a standard knockout on the side facing us in the photo. Now you see why it's called a "knockout".

You're saying "where is this knockout hole? I see an L-shaped metal plate."

The L-shaped plate is a "door", it is part of your old fan. It's provided as a convenience for assembly and replacement. Your new fan may have a door similar to it. I've seen installations where the door was identical (same manufacturer?) which worked out nicely for the installer lol.

If your new fan does not have that exact door, you will need to loosen the "conduit nut" from the old door. (it's not in view in the picture, but it's there.)

enter image description here

These things are meant to be turned by putting a flat screwdriver onto one of the "tangs" around the outside, and then bap the end of the screwdriver with the side of your pliers or a small mallet. However if you can get square-on to it with a pliers that should work too. They are not usually overly tight.

Harper - Reinstate Monica
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