Old type wiring to new light fitting problems

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Just bought a new light fitting for downstairs toilet, it has the usual live,nuetral and earth and is the screw in bulb type, The wiring from the old ceiling rose was 3 earth wire and 3 red wires connected to the base and 3 black wires which went to the bulb holder, one was connected to one of the pins at the bottom of the bulb holder and the other two were connected to the other pin at the bottom of the bulb holder, can anybody give me any clues on how to wire this up i am presuming that one of the black wires is actually connected to the light switch
 
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If you are removing the old rose/lpholder the 3 red wires need to be connected together as do the earth wires which you should connect to earth on the new fitting. The 3 blacks should be treated as live & neutral, the single one is the switch wire(becomes live with the switch on) goes to the live on your fitting & should really be marked with brown sleeving, the 2 blacks that are together should go to the neutral on your new fitting.
 
I'm having a similar problem. I've attached a couple of images at photobucket.com and I'd really appreciate if someone could tell me what to do with the wires.

I've already done the fitting in the bathroom which just thad one red wire and one black wire to connect - simple. Upon taking off the old rose-fitting in the downstairs toilet, I was confronted by a lot more wires.


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Looking at your second picture (and it appears you have not separated the wires from the way they were twisted together in your old rose, which is good)

It looks to me like:

the three reds twisted together will phase supply in; supply going off to next lamp, supply to switch.

The two blacks together will be neutral in; neutral out to next lamp.

The single red will be switched live.

The G&Ys will be earth in, earth to next and earth to switch.

In which case:

The two blacks go to the neutral connection of your lamp

The single red goes to the phase connection of your lamp

The G&Ys go to the earth of your new lamp.

You will need a bigger connector block with four terminals to put the wires into; or a junction box or ceiling rose if convenient.

For next time, it can be handy to identify the Switched Live with a bit of tape. Very often they are run in black cores, which should be sleeved red (or brown) to identify them.
 
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hi, im having the same issue as solved above (wiring same as johnd's)... the advice is perfect for me. however one silly thing.. where does the extra junction box go and doesit have a specific rating
 
Modern ceiling roses are quite roomy and have plenty of terminals.

If you can't avoid using a junction box, use a 20A one (5A ones are available but so small you have no room) and take the cable sheaths into the enclosure. For lighting circuits, the round JBs are usual. You can get big square ones for higher amperages. You can also use a plastic connector block (choc-block) but must put it in an enclosure. Enclosed light fittings often have room for a connector block inside.

Junction boxes have screw-terminals and must be readily accessible for inspection and retightening, not hidden away.
 
well. its a ceiling rose that im replacing with a 'chrome bar' with 3 spots on(bathroom approved :D ). theres not a great deal of room inside the light. it has a base to fix to teh ceiling and the light itself fit to the bar. would i be able to use a junction box in the loft space and run a single 3 core into the fitting?

thanks again in advance
 
If it's a loft above the ceiling, a JB is OK because you can leave it visible and accessible. You can connect the bathroom fan there too.

An alternative would be to use a ceiling rose beside the spot bar.
 
Or fit a round dry lining box in the ceiling which will be covered by the fitting. ;)
 
i think the jbox in the loft will be the best idea... is there any rating for the 3 core or is that standard.... i understand the basics of wiring (corgi eng but repair only no install) but want to be as spot on as poss. cheers
 
well thanks alot.. ill give this a go ..hopefully my hair will be no more on end than usual. :LOL:
 

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