light switch wiring

[diydann]

looking for a little help with a switch.

10 x spotlights in ceiling
3 x t&e coming down into switch

as they are there are 2 x 2gang2way switches

connected as the diagram below shows.

I would prefer to have a 3g switch on a single backbox if possible

but when doing so the lights are permanently on and can not be switched off.

View media item 84740
thats how it was wired originally.

that one 'neutral' cable was left loose in the backbox - as shown

 

[AndyPRK]

Not sure why you have a difficulty.

How did you wire the new 3G switch up ?

 

[diydann]

treated it as three separate switches:


View media item 84745
but only 1 switch did anything at all
and only turned 1 of the fittings on/off

the rest remained off no matter what.

 

[eveares]

Your saying your diagram represents the way it was wired originally right?

Your 3 T&E cables, assuming that you have 3 switchable circuits in the room would normally likely to be for each lighting circuit in that room (each brown being a permanent live, and each blue being a switched live).

Can you identify what each t&e cable is?

Also your diagrams wiring is a bit unusual, you seem to have a live wire going to all the common terminals, and have a switched lives on the two left L1 terminals.

Why you have got two brown live wires going from the right L1's I don't exactly know, all I can guess is some one has incorrectly used the brown wires of the two left most T&E cables as a switched lives also.

And for the spare neutral, that could be neutral or an unused switched live.

How many switched lighting circuits do you have in the room?

Regards: Elliott.

 

[AndyPRK]

Arh well that explains it, and is very different from what you first said "but when doing so the lights are permanently on and can not be switched off"


That brown wire that is connected and linked to all the C terminals needs repeating on the new switch. This is the live power IN.

All the other 3 wires are the OUTPUTS to the lights (and should be connected to L1 of each switch)

Make sure you use the correct / same brown wire to connect to all the COM terminals.

I think you can see that you wired it nothing like the old wiring. You should have just copied the wiring across

 

[eveares]

I suspect you only have one true permanent live (brown wire from the right most T&E cable in your original diagram), and all the others wires are switched lives, even the some of the brown wires.

 

[diydann2]

I missed out the comm links in my diagram if the 3g switch.

But I did put them as the original was.

I'm out now so turned the power to that circuit off at the CU
Until tomorrow

What's the easiest way of now identifying the incoming live?

Can't log back in on my account, says my emails not on the Database?!

So had to make this account to reply

 

[diydann2]

Deleted .. Double post

 

[eveares]

What's the easiest way of now identifying the incoming live?

With a multi-meter/approved voltage tester.

Test between all the wires/cores methodically and until you find the brown core/wire what tests live when tested against all the other wires used.

 

[EFLImpudence]

treated it as three separate switches:

Well, that is what they are.

I am not being facetious but a lot of DIYers appear to think that three(or two or whatever)-gang switches are an entity rather than what they are
- three (or two or whatever) separate switches.