RE: FN-FORUM: OT any electricians?

date posted 25th January 2004 16:15

Tony,

If you're not confident to work this out yourself then get hold of any
electrician to sort it for you. Please don't switch the Neutral, it =
"could"
end in tears when you change the lamp thinking it's switched off when in
fact it's live, waiting to return to the generator via neutral or earth
(which could be you!).

Craig
(Electrical Engineer Rtd.)

> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL REMOVED] [EMAIL REMOVED] On=20
> Behalf Of Tony Crockford
> Sent: 25 January 2004 16:42
> To: FN-FORUM / [EMAIL REMOVED]
> Subject: FN-FORUM: OT any electricians?
>=20
>=20
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> I just spent three hours in the cold putting up a security=20
> light and now=20
> have no idea how to connect it to the light switch.
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> Background:
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> when we had our kitchen remodelled/wired I got the=20
> electrician to put in=20
> an extra light switch by the back door.
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> It's a 3 way switch - the kitchen light (secondary switch point) an=20
> exterior side light and a spare wire switch for my security light.
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> the security light has LNE connections.
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> the switch has L1 L2 and COM (three times - 1 for each switch)
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> There are three cables coming in - 1 is my LNE the other two=20
> are four wire=20
> cables Red Blue Yellow and Earth.
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> 1 of the 4 wire cables has a spare Blue wire, which seems to=20
> be a live or=20
> a neutral (depending on which two wires I stick my trusty=20
> Voltmeter on)=20
> the spare wire and a switched wire show 240v.
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> So how do I connect my LNE into this muddle?
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> Assuming that I should be switching on neutral? then I could=20
> connect the=20
> live to the spare blue? and the neutral to the L1. would it=20
> be safe then=20
> to bridge between two of the COM terminals? E obviously goes=20
> into the box=20
> connector with the others.
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> The only thing that worries me is that this switch is fed from two=20
> different trips on the consumer board - a hazard I only=20
> discovered when=20
> showing GF that it *was* all switched off -
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> me: "of course I switched it of at the mains - look - " click=20
> click click
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> GF "oh yeah?, why has the outside light come on then....."
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> Anyone want to hazard a guess or should I track down the original=20
> electrician and hope he remembers what he did....
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> TIA
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> Tony
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