Two lights, double switch, spare wire!

[Dackers]

Hi all,

I've just had the ceiling plastered in my living room and had to take down the two cieling lights. Now I'm putting them back up again but have found that I've got a spare wire coming out of the ceiling (like a wally I didn't take any notice of where the wires went when I took the olights down)! Out of the first hole in the ceiling I have live, neutral and earth. Out of the second hole I have live, neutral, earth and a yellow wire. The lights are operated by a double swtich. One of the switches does nothing and the other turns on both lights. So clearly the yellow wire is something to do with that but I don't know what. Could anyone tell me what I should do with this yeallow wire please?

Thanks for your help.

 

[mfarrow]

Yellow really isn't recognised as a standard colour in single phase circuits. It doesn't appear as if the circuits been wired up conventionally either, so proper testing may be required. Or, just connect the yellow wire to a spare terminal in the rose and see what happens ??

 

[sparkwright]

firstly, would you like the two lights to be separately switched, ie so both switches are in use?

it sounds like it was originally wired to do that.

can you send pictures of the wiring at both lights and the switch?

 

[sparkwright]

Yellow really isn't recognised as a standard colour in single phase circuits. It doesn't appear as if the circuits been wired up conventionally either, so proper testing may be required. Or, just connect the yellow wire to a spare terminal in the rose and see what happens ??

it is a standard colour if in a 3 core and earth cable where you have red, yellow, blue.

 

[Aragorn84]

Yes but the yellow wire is undefined.

It could be doing anything.

If its a switched live it should be labelled as such with some brown (or red if its old) tape.

 

[sparkwright]

Yes but the yellow wire is undefined.

It could be doing anything.

If its a switched live it should be labelled as such with some brown (or red if its old) tape.

exactly.

 

[Taylortwocities]

All of the conductors are undefined.

I do not believe that the OP means live and neutral.
I think he has one cable red and black and a second with red, yellow and blue conductors.

Could be a typical two-way switching arrangement usind the old cable colours, or could be something else...

We need photos of the cables and the backs of all switches involved.

 

[electronicsuk]

Photos would help, but it seems a fair guess that the yellow would simply be a connection to the previously unused switch. Put the yellow wire into a separate terminal block to make it safe, wire the fittings up as you would normally ignoring the extra wire, and see whether or not it works! If it does, great, if not, come back here with photos.