Older wires to change light switches
- Thread starter mark845
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The black is the switched live and the blue is one of the wires with the yellow and red from the same cable that go to the other switch of the two-way system.
They will of course still be together on the new switch.
If there is no adequate earth, then it would be dangerous to replace a plastic faced switch, with a metal faced one.
Just looked at the photo again while at work. Is that thick green at the back the earth wire?
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The dark green, at the very back - possibly, the dark green was the predecessor to green/yellow. It might go to a terminal on the back box.
Yeah I'm on about that one. I'll check when I get home later.
Thanks everyone. Learning loads here.
Yeah they is a green wire going to the earth point on the back box.
Been looking at how all this works. So the live wore goes to the com. Then that feeds the the L1 and L2, L2 and L2 stands for light 1 and light 2?, is that correct?
Any recommendations for you tube tutorials for this?
Been looking at how all this works. So the live wore goes to the com. Then that feeds the the L1 and L2, L2 and L2 stands for light 1 and light 2?, is that correct?
Any recommendations for you tube tutorials for this?
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The live wire feeds common while the L1 and L2 will form part of the two way switching circuit.
GSH electrical has a lot of videos explaining lighting circuits.
COM is common, flipping the switch up and down, moves the connection to L1, or L2. Draw a line between the two switches, and it becomes more obvious - three terminals on one side, three on the other.
Which is a "problem",
where the UK (and North America) has not eliminated this "necessity" with their designs of such devices.
Unlike, in certain other Countries,
which, by the better design of "double insulating",
such "necessities" have been eliminated.
OR...
Just don't make/use metal ones.
Just don't make/use metal ones.
It's not wrong, but it's also not really relevant to the task at hand.
Switch drops are usually wired with twin and earth cable, red/black on older installs or brown/blue on newer installs, but that DOES NOT mean the wires in a switch drop are live and neutral, they are live and switched live. The black or blue wire in a switch drop should be marked with red or brown tape/sleeving to indicate that it is a live wire (usually the switched live) but in the real world this is often missing.
Similarly the three core and earth used for multiway switching is colored red, yellow and blue on older installs or brown, black and grey on newer installs, but that DOES NOT mean you are dealing with a three phase system. Unfortunately there is no standard for which wire is which in a multiway switching system. Again the wires should be marked with red or brown tape or sleeving to indicate that they are live wires on a single phase system, but they rarely are.
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