Red House Wire

[Brad Smith]

On another forum, I posted a question about finding a red wire when trying to hang ceiling fans in a 50's house.

That's helpful but I'm finding current on the red/white wires, not the black/ground.  There is no ground in this house.

BTW, [RANT] I deleted my link to that website.  People on forums can be such D _ _ _ _ S!  I have been criticized before for posting a new thread when the question has been asked before.  This time, I got hit for "hijacking" a similar thread with my question.  Sheez... this forum is so much more user friendly!!!  

[Bob H.]

Both red and black are used as hot conductors. White ordinarily is used for neutral. Typically a three-conductor cable (black, red and white, plus a bare ground not included in this wire count) is used when you need alternate paths for the hot voltage to reach a device. One common case is when you have a lighted fan and a switch that lets you separately control the fan and light. Another common case is a set of "three-way" switches at opposite ends of a hall or staircase, allowing a person at either end to turn the light on or off.