Outside Lighting Help
- Thread starter breen77
- Start date
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That is from the cable which is going outside to my lights!
Then apart from this all I can see from the picture is live and switch live with cpcs in the background - as fireman22 said you will not be able to get these outside lights working without a neutral.
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Make very sure you make a note of where each and every one of those wires goes before you remove them...
That loose blue is worrying, as is that screw that's lying there - where's that from?
As others have said, you'll need a neutral for the lights to work - you should click these before doing any more work:
- http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=electrical+circuits+101
- http://web.archive.org/web/20080213151445/http://www.kevinboone.com/electricity.html
- http://web.archive.org/web/20080213151445/http://www.kevinboone.com/domesticinstallations.html
- //www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics:books
- //www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics:lighting[/list]
What sort of cable are you going to use for the outside lights, and where will it run?
Is the length OK re voltage drop and fault-loop impedance?- //www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics:mcbtocable
- http://web.archive.org/web/20080213151445/http://www.kevinboone.com/cableselection_web.pdf
- http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Book/5.3.1.htm
- http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Book/4.3.11.htm
- http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Technical/Charts/VoltageDrop.html
- //www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics:mcbtocable
is there a socket nearby
I think that would be a good idea because...
What you need is to get an incoming live and incoming neutral to the switch. This would probably be drawn from the appropriate terminals in your ceiling rose - so you may need an extra T&E cable from the ceiling rose to the switch.
To simplify matters leave aside the other connections for the moment - the incoming live would go into the Common Terminal on the switch you wanted to use for the outside lights. The incoming neutral would go to another terminal strip. Your outgoing live (brown) would be connected to the L1 Terminal and you outgoing neutral (blue) would be connected to the neutral terminal block. Don't forget your earths.
You could use the incoming live that is already in situ but you would have to see if this had a blue conductor (it may have been cut back) then you would have to trace it back to the ceiling rose or power source etc etc...
Alternate option might be to find a socket and use an FCU to get fused down and get the required live and neutral.
Perhaps you can see why getting a spark in would probably be the better option.
this is a pic of the inside of my switch, you can see the black cable to the left hand side which is going outside for the external lights!
Can't see a black 'wire', assume you mean the unconnected blue.
Are you certain there's not a neutral block hidden away there, probably consisting of a bunch of blue wires? EDIT just seen you said there isn't.
Whoever wired that switch up went to a lot of trouble to do it badly.
How is this wired?
There seems to be only one permanent live coming in (far right).
The other three switches are linked to this.
Only brown wires are visible.
Has someone used twin brown & earth and so could that connector be Neutrals? If not what is it?
Can we have a clearer picture and show what is coming out of the grey sheath?
There seems to be only one permanent live coming in (far right).
The other three switches are linked to this.
Only brown wires are visible.
Has someone used twin brown & earth and so could that connector be Neutrals? If not what is it?
Can we have a clearer picture and show what is coming out of the grey sheath?
It looks like some of the cables may be insulated and sheathed singles.
Perhaps there are twin and earth cables which have the blue core cut out. If so, there may be a way to get a neutral.
Are there any spare/unused/cut out wires there?
Bearing in mind the cables are relatively new, and that there are so many of them, it's a little odd there isn't a neutral there.
Perhaps there are twin and earth cables which have the blue core cut out. If so, there may be a way to get a neutral.
Are there any spare/unused/cut out wires there?
Bearing in mind the cables are relatively new, and that there are so many of them, it's a little odd there isn't a neutral there.
A
Alarm
I can see at least 3 T&E in there with no neutrals showing.
Whatever it is its a mess.
Whatever it is its a mess.
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Quelle rat's nest!
You need an electrician to do the work for 2 reasons,
firstly with the lighting being outside it should be certificated under part p
secondly you clearly are not competent for the task so are breaking the law,
if anyone was to be hurt you would be sued.
you have probably wasted more effort getting this sorted so far than its worth, but a good electrician would have done this job in about a day
firstly with the lighting being outside it should be certificated under part p
secondly you clearly are not competent for the task so are breaking the law,
if anyone was to be hurt you would be sued.
you have probably wasted more effort getting this sorted so far than its worth, but a good electrician would have done this job in about a day
Thanks for all replies.
Had a spark look at it and yes he said it was a mess not the worst he had seen but a mess.
We got a neutral as the outside lights could not work without a neutral!! The original so called spark had left a twin brown cable with a brown cable not connected to anything but the other end was one of the brown cables in the terminal block you can see in the picture so, we connected the end of that brown cable to the neutral in the outside connection and split the terminal block to have the other end in the switch as the neutral connection.
The spark had put blue tape over it to distinguish it. The only thing now is that I have a neutral and the spark never returned to me for some reason as the lights and pir just need wired now??? I have all the ducting in for the cabling etc... and it's ready to go!!
Is it only a matter now of changing the switch over keeping the same wiring as before and connecting the neutral to the neutral earth to earth and live to the switch??
Had a spark look at it and yes he said it was a mess not the worst he had seen but a mess.
We got a neutral as the outside lights could not work without a neutral!! The original so called spark had left a twin brown cable with a brown cable not connected to anything but the other end was one of the brown cables in the terminal block you can see in the picture so, we connected the end of that brown cable to the neutral in the outside connection and split the terminal block to have the other end in the switch as the neutral connection.
The spark had put blue tape over it to distinguish it. The only thing now is that I have a neutral and the spark never returned to me for some reason as the lights and pir just need wired now??? I have all the ducting in for the cabling etc... and it's ready to go!!
Is it only a matter now of changing the switch over keeping the same wiring as before and connecting the neutral to the neutral earth to earth and live to the switch??
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