Outdoor light has 3 wires but the house has 4

[redslayed]

Hi,

So i recently decided to help my grandma install a new outdoor light however i realised that the house has 4 wires coming out of the wall meanwhile the light itself only accepts 3 cables, i decided to ask my neighbour for help (he's not an electrician but has some knowledge) and i managed to get the light to work and there seems to be no issues. However my worry is whether there is a possibility of fire or anything due to the fact i used 3 wires and ignored the other wire. Another thing is the wire is kind of snagged due to the holes weren't exactly aligned so i had to squish the wire against the wall and tighten the backplate against the wire, i decided to put some tape sticky double end tape around the small gaps to prevent water from seeping through.

So would it be ok to leave it as it is or get an actual electrician to set it up for me.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Just put the spare wire in a terminal block so that it can't touch anything else as you don't know what it is connected to at the other end.

It could be useful if you had a PIR sensor on the light.

 

[redslayed]

Just put the spare wire in a terminal block so that it can't touch anything else as you don't know what it is connected to at the other end.

It could be useful if you had a PIR sensor on the light.

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. Yes the light does have a built in PIR sensor on it, i think the spare wire did have a terminal block on it and didn't have anything else connect to, but at the moment it's just the wire by itself. Also does my actions so far blow and whistle that may cause an electrical fire? Because that's my biggest concern at the moment.

Thanks

 

[terryplumb]

The loose wire must be terminated in an insulated terminal block. If it isn't ,then you must do so.
Sticky tape isn't likely to provide the light fitting with protection from water ingress ,if that is what your intention was ??