Fitting an exterior light

[steve2005]

Hi, i'm new on this forum so go easy with me!

I would like to fit (missus really) an outside light at front of house. The hallway downstairs has 1 plate with 2 switches, one for the hall and one for the living room. These are the only switches to operate the rooms.

I am hoping i could fit a switch with 3 switches, with the 3rd operating the outside light.....if you know what i'm getting at

I'm pretty decent at home DIY so tackling this wont be a prob for me......obviously if its too big a job i'll get an expert in.

So can this be done, would I have to run the wires from maybe the ceiling rose?


Any help much appreciated


Steve

 

[Big_Spark]

Steve, yes it can be done, but if you want to save yourself a lot of time, hassle and possibly heartache, why not take a LN feed from the nearest cieling rose out to the position you want the light mounted and simply fit a unit incorporating a PIR? Anyone comes to your front door the light will come on, if you open the door, the light somes on....and you don't waste electricity having it on unecessarilly.

I would advise that whateve light you go for, install on using a compact fluorescent, they are largely uneffected by temperature variations and the lamps will last for years..GLS lamps will last months if your lucky and they always blow when you need them most..

 

[steve2005]

thanks for the info and the quick reply....problem is the missus has already gone and bought the outside light, which is typical of her

it doesn't have a PIR with it so its going to have to be turned on and off using a switch, which I think she prefers anyway.

How would I go about fitting it with a switch?

 

[Adam_151]

There is a few ways, the way I'd probably do it is to take a cable from a rose on the same circuit as the hall and lounge lights, take it to the switch, fit a 3 switch plate, two switches wired the same as the existing switches, the third switch, red in common, take another cable to the light, red from that into L1, terminal block to connect the blacks together, take both earths to the earthing point in the switch back box (or on the switch if its a brass/chrome one)

Unless there is already a neutral in the switch (remember black wire in switch does not necessarily mean its a neutral, most times its a switched live) then you don't need to bring a cable in from a roase

 

[plugwash]

something else you could do if you have traditional loop in wiring and the hall and lounge lights are on the same cuircuit

bring the permanent live from one light and the neutral from the other. then use the other core in each of those wires to take the switched lives back

that way you have both live and neutral availible to power your new light.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

In a way, elegant, but unusual, and possibly likely to confuse people in the future, as it would look so much like a conventional system. At the rose where you've got a T/E cable with one core taking a neutral to the switch, and the other bringing a switched live back it could all go pear shaped if some future occupant works on it. Imagine a situation where it's obvious which is the "switch cable" and the guy knows how loop-in systems are wired, and removes all the cores without noticing the subtle differences, as he knows how to reconnect it all afterwards.

As fas as I can tell from a quick scribble he'd probably end up with that light's switch not working, and that light and the porch one in series controlled by the porch switch.

Not good.

Do it the proper way.

 

[steve2005]

thanks for the detailed info, much appreciated

steve