In typical DC circuits, Red = Positive, Black = Negative.
It means that the wires has different colors on it. I have an awkward family
Hot wires in home are normally colored black. And ground wires in computers are normally colored black as well.
You would have to provide more info to be certain what your problem is. Typically a black and white wire would connect to the two wires on the light fixture. The fixture should also be controlled by a switch that "breaks" the black (Hot Wire) to turn off the fixture. If you have a volt meter you can see if there is 120Volts between the black and white wires with switch on. If there is a single white wire going to fixture (Neutral), where is the "black wires tied" to. Maybe one of the black wires has broken off the fixture.
I am guessing that your 3 wires are black (hot), white (neutral) and bare or green wire (ground). Connect black to black, white to white and ground wire to the metal case of swag kit.
It is normal to measure 120 volts from black (hot) to white (neutral), and it is normal to also measure 120 volts from black (hot) to bare (ground). While the hot wire stands alone, the neutral and ground wires are tied together at the service entrance -- so either one can serve as reference for making a measurement to the hot wire.
More than likely they connect to the positive and negative polarities of the power source.
black wires
It means that the wires has different colors on it. I have an awkward family
Hot wires in home are normally colored black. And ground wires in computers are normally colored black as well.
Just the plain black wires.
hot wires are black, white wires are ground
red is positive and black is neutral...if the wires are red and black.
Ground wires are typically bare wire or green covered. Common wires are white and hot wires are black. If you have black wires that are grounds or commons you should contact an electrician to ensure you don't have a problem on your hands. Sounds like someone who didn't know what they were doing has been mucking around in your panel.
You would have to provide more info to be certain what your problem is. Typically a black and white wire would connect to the two wires on the light fixture. The fixture should also be controlled by a switch that "breaks" the black (Hot Wire) to turn off the fixture. If you have a volt meter you can see if there is 120Volts between the black and white wires with switch on. If there is a single white wire going to fixture (Neutral), where is the "black wires tied" to. Maybe one of the black wires has broken off the fixture.
I am guessing that your 3 wires are black (hot), white (neutral) and bare or green wire (ground). Connect black to black, white to white and ground wire to the metal case of swag kit.
On mine, there are a pair of horns. The push in connector goes into the first horn has a black and a greeen pair of wires. Wiring goes from the first horn to the second with two black wires.
Red= 12v Hot & Black is ground.