oh boy, why did i start this?

[Andy01]

Hi All, this has been covered before but i have looked at the other posts on here and am still lost
i am trying to sort out my switching on the hall stairs and landing, but have got really stuck

i have wired the 2 gang 2 way down stairs as described in the post from Dingbat here , so far so good, i have got a new switch for upstairs 1 gang 2 way. there are 2 feeds to the switch, both have yellow red and blue plus earth, (however from one feed red blue and green go into the bedroom switch on the other side if the wall. also a red comes back from the switch in the bedroom to the one on the landing. leaving two yelow one blue and two red left over for the switch in the landing.
I have changed the way they are located so many times today i am now confused as to where they went in the first place.
Before i started all lights worked but were not switching correctly, you could only switch the landing light on from downstairs if the swith was in the on postion on the landing.

Please help

Thanks

Andy

 

[Andy01]

 

[IanDB]

Confused - you could be and certainly are!!

Can you confirm exactly what you are hoping to end up with? From what you write, you want the landing light to be switched from both upstairs and downstairs but the hall light downstairs only.

Next get a piece of paper and draw all the switches, terminals and lights that you want to be switched and we'll start to put the colours against each one.

How competent are you? Do you now how to, or have the facility to, measure continuity? Just asking, as it might come down to this at the end of the day.

 

[IanDB]

Have you had a look at this

 

[Andy01]

Hi IanDB,

well thanks for your info, and i have had another go this morning.
i can now switch the landing lights on and off from downstairs if the switch on the landing is in the "off" position. I can also swithch the landing light on and off from the landing, But if the landing light is in the "ON" position i can not swtch it from down stairs.

the one thing that gets me is why do i have a black cable downstairs and Yellow upstairs?

Cheers

Andy

 

[IanDB]

You're getting there. However you have wired up one of the switches wrongly. You should have the same colours going to L1 and L2 on each switch.

If it is possible, have a look in the ceiling rose on the landing light. You should be able to work out from there what colour the live wire and switched return wires are. If it is wired as Breezer's diagrams it could be red and black and the switch should be wired up as shown. If it isn't then it gets more interesting!

Unfortunately there are different ways that these can be wired up (and people have been known to do strange things now and then) so I can't be definitive on colours.

You should have the same colours at each end!! I have just been reading your original post again.

also a red comes back from the switch in the bedroom to the one on the landing

If this is the live feed to the switch then this should go to L1 with one of the other colours. You need to identify the switched return colour (look at the ceiling rose on the "live" terminal). This colour needs to go to L2. The red of the four core goes to COM on both switches. Yellow goes between L1 on one switch and L1 on the other, Blue between L2 and L2. If it is wired up like this (i.e. from the bedroom switch) then it's not very clever as it is not standard and will confuse the hell out of those who follow - as you know!

You will see time and again on this site the maxim "make a note before starting" however if it wasn't working in the first place that won't help a lot!!

As you have two lots of four core cable it is probable that you'll end up with some spare cores.

In summary, find out which wire is live, which wire is the return to the light and then identify the wires to run between L1 and L2 and COM on the switches. It should be as easy as that - honest.

 

[Andy01]

OK IanDB,

I am going in

 

[Andy01]

Now the cat is amongst the pigeons,

I have 3 black and 3 red cablesand 1 yellow.

The Yellow goes to the switched live and to the rose I.e when i operate the switch the power is evident at the yellow cable. Black to neutral and to the rose and red to loop.

I think

 

[IanDB]

If you're now talking about the ceiling rose then that sounds almost(!) right. Go back and have look at Breezer's diagrams.

The ceiling rose, under normal conditions, has a live feed in and a feed out to the next light in the circuit (that takes care of two pairs of red and black wires) The remaining pair of red and black is the run to the switch i.e red is live and black the switched live return. Now you don't appear to have this configuration. Oh joy . You really need to find out what is going on before continuing to swap wires around. Go up into the loft and have a look at what wires are going to the rose. You need to identify the cable that's going to your switch and what cores are wired up. It's also worth trying to find out where the other wires are going as this might start to explain things.

I'll bet you wish you'd never started this. I haven't yet said get an electrician in but depending what you come back with, that might be the next step.

 

[Big_Spark]

The easiest way may be to turn the power off and then using a multimeter with a audible continuity setting on it to discover which cable goes where.

Once they have been identified the process isn't that complicated.

 

[Andy01]

You know i was thinking the same thing

as for going in the loft, it's a no go i have a flat roof

and before you ask i am not trying to be awkward honest

tell you what i have sold the house and it was not picked up on the survey, only reason i was doing it was to be kind to the new owner.

As the topic heading implies i wish i never started

Cheers

Andy

 

[breezer]

Go back and have look at Breezer's diagrams.

you can use any of my drawings in any of your posts, just link to the one you want

not sure how? see this