Thank you for your response. Again being a complete idiot when it comes to electricity and circuits, here is in essence what i am doing and what I would like to do. Currently I am using a spring lever style micro-switch to activate an actuator. The actuator needs to remain "on" for a specific "time". I am currently using 120v AC power source. I would like to use a similar process but replace the mechanical switch with one that can be controlled elecronically so the timing of the "switch" can me precisely controlled. So... are you recommending that I use the tail to convert to DC control the "switching" with the Arduino and then reconvert to AC. Sorry about my electrical ignorance, I am very new to this. Thank you!