Dimmer switch problem

[Jason west]

Hope someone can help, i have a two switch dimmer and which controls the lights for my living room one for each end. the problem is that i'm replacing the switch and the current switch has no marking on the connectors and all the wires going into these connectors are red, meaning i don't know which are neutral and live.

anyone have any ideas, thanks

 

[breezer]

the answer is none of the wires are neutral that is why they are all red.

Get an indelable pen (or similar) put numbers or rings on each cable that you have, make a note as to which one goes to where on your existing switch i.e. number 1 = c (or common) 2 = L1 3=L2, as it is a double dimmer , perhaps you could mark up say the first L1, L2 &c in one colour and the others in a differnt colour

Then somewhere on your new switch (maybe in a drawing that came with it) will be c L1 &L2 put the wires into the same terminals as they were before.

One other thing, often one set of terminals is upside down from the other, but C is at the top of the triangle of c L1 & L2

 

[Jason west]

the set up on the exsisting switch is two wires in the top and two in the bottom (red), not a triangle, the new switch has L1,L2,C, on the top and bottom should i just wire the switch up using L1 and C on top and bottom.
i.e copying the lay out on the exsisting switch

 

[breezer]

yes, sorry i misunderstood your post, i thought you had a switch at each end

 

[Jason west]

thanks for you help, the switch has been changed is working fine.

thanks again