Brown and Brown cable?

[bothyhead]

Hi Guys,

In a previous post i was asking about three core and earth cable and that I was having trouble getting it.

//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=31062

I have since asked an electrician and another electrical shop and the reply has been the same "You mean twin and earth?"

3c&e is obviously something that they don't use in Ireland (even though it's available on the Radionics website.) I then asked them what they use to for two way light switching and in all three cases the answer was "brown and brown"

Just out of curiosity, what is "brown and brown"?, and how can it be used for two way switching?

Thanks,
Bothy

 

[plugwash]

brown and brown sounds like two brown wires and earth soemtimes used for switch drops but it doesn't help you with your two way switching problem.

i see 3 possibile soloutions
1: get some 3 and earth from an online supplier
2: use two runs of twin and earth
3: borrow a live from another switch, this should only be done if the two lights are on the same cuircuit.

 

[bothyhead]

but it doesn't help you with your two way switching problem

Plugwash thanks for the reply. It was not a two way switching problem that I had, but wiring of a central heating thermostat. I solved the problem by using t&e for the feed, and a single cable for the switched live.

You're right thought - it does sound like standard switch drop cable.

Tnx

 

[plugwash]

a single cable for the switched live.

i hope that single cable was double insulated...

 

[bothyhead]

i hope that single cable was double insulated...

It was - brown inner / grey outer I could only get 1.5 mm thought But this should be ok as the circut is protected with a 10A fuse. There is only a boiler and pump running off this circut.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I have since asked an electrician and another electrical shop and the reply has been the same "You mean twin and earth?"

Did you show them the photos?

 

[bothyhead]

Did you show them the photos?

No I didn't. Actually the guy in my local shop is quite rude and I try to get out as quickly as possible. The same thing happened before when I asked for a UHF/VHF masthead diplexer. He told me that they didn't exist (even though I tried to explain that I bought one in his shop about two years previously.)

I'm not an electrician, he knows this, which therefore means that he is correct ...

 

[plugwash]

i hope that single cable was double insulated...

It was - brown inner / grey outer I could only get 1.5 mm thought But this should be ok as the circut is protected with a 10A fuse. There is only a boiler and pump running off this circut.

yeah 1.5mm in a 10A cuircuit is fine (i've never seen 3&E in sizes larger than that btw) though 10A seems unnessacerally high for a boiler/pump cuircuit.

 

[bothyhead]

Plugwash, when the boiler was installed about 10 years ago, the electrician wired the pump circut into the bell circut (two radials at the fuse point). Could this explain the 10 amp fuse? I am about to get a new CU installed so it could be put on it's own dedicated 6a mcb if required.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

No I didn't. Actually the guy in my local shop is quite rude and I try to get out as quickly as possible. The same thing happened before when I asked for a UHF/VHF masthead diplexer. He told me that they didn't exist (even though I tried to explain that I bought one in his shop about two years previously.)

I'm not an electrician, he knows this, which therefore means that he is correct ...

Oh I love people like that - they can be great fun.

 

[bothyhead]

 

[Stoday]

brown and brown sounds like two brown wires and earth soemtimes used for switch drops but it doesn't help you with your two way switching problem.

You can have two or three wire control of 2-way switching.

Look it up on page 16 of MK's technical handbook:
http://www.mkelectric.co.uk/PDF/technical/LOGIC_PLUS_tech.pdf

 

[Spark123]

Am I going insane or was this topic something to do with a thermostat, not 2 way lighting?

 

[plugwash]

both, he originally wan'ted 3 and earth for his thermostat and couldn't get it and was asking what "brown and brown" was as he was told they used that instead of 3 and earth for two way lighting.

 

[bothyhead]

Thanks for all the replies. Stoday thanks for the link to the pdf it's a handy reference.

Bothy