There is a complete article up on the files page pertaining to this very subject. I always refer to it when I need to wire a 3 way switch myself. David Ferrin personal email address [EMAIL PROTECTED] Consciousness is that annoying time between naps. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dale Leavens" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, December 11, 2006 6:35 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] hello and 3-way switches
There is no way I know of to have both switches the same way all of the time. Maybe someone can explain it to me. Let us just walk this through. Assuming both switches are in the down position to begin with the lights off: Enter at door a and flip the switch up to turn on the light. now switch a is up and switch b is down and the light is on. Leave through door b and turn off the light. That switch be will now be up with the light off. Now you have both switches in the up position but the light is off. If you then enter from A again you will have to push the switch down to turn the light on. The position of the switches will be random according to the sequence of their use. The post below is the second referring to synchronizing the switch positions as if there is some way to do this by the wiring. I must be missing something but I can't figure it. None of my double switches here and I have wired six double switches and one four switch circuit are marked top or bottom or on or off. I always assumed this was why, there is no guarantee about which state they will be in at any time. Dale Leavens, Cochrane Ontario Canada [EMAIL PROTECTED] Skype DaleLeavens Come and meet Aurora, Nakita and Nanook at our polar bear habitat. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Michael Baldwin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, December 11, 2006 8:06 AM Subject: RE: [BlindHandyMan] hello and 3-way switches > Scott, > If power is coming in to your switch now, and the doors are on opposite > sides of the room, I would wire it power, switch 1, light, switch 2. > 14-2 coming in to switch one for power > 14-3 to light from switch 1 > 14-3 from light to switch 2 > > at switch 1: > connect grounds together with a pig tail so you can connect them to the > switch > connect the white from the power to the black going to the light > connect the black from the power to the common screw on the switch (which > is > the dark colored screw) > connect the red and white from the 14-3 to the remaining traveler screws, > don't matter which goes where > > switch 2: > connect ground to ground screw on switch. > connect the black to the common screw of the switch > connect the red and white to the traveler screws. If you want both > switches > to be the same direction when the light is on or off, connect them the > opposite way you did on switch 1. > > light: > connect the reds together. > connect the whites together > connect the grounds together with a pig tail. > connect black from switch to to black on light > connect black from switch 1 to white on light. > connect ground to light. > > turn on power and test. > If your power is coming to your light fixture first, let me know, and I > will > give you instructions for that. > Let us know how it goes. > > Michael > > > > _____ > > From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > On Behalf Of Scott Howell > Sent: Sunday, December 10, 2006 18:26 > To: [email protected] > Subject: [BlindHandyMan] hello and 3-way switches > > > > Hello all, > > My name as the e-mail header indicates is Scott Howell. I live in > Mount AIry Maryland and have been blind since birth. I have learned a > lot of my handyman activities just by figuring out things on my own > and with a few questions. Can't say everything I've done was pretty, > but I got the job done. I've done lots of plumbing, electrical, and > some other repairs like hanging doors and the like. > I however have a few projects of the electrical variety and one of > those I have to admit I'm not overly sure of. > I have a need to install a 3-way switch arrangement. What I have is a > bathroom where the fools that built this place put the switch clear > on the otherside of the room near a secondary door and not near the > main door off the hall. > So, my understanding is that I would remove the old switch, I'd need > two 3-way switches, and 3 conductor cable with ground so that makes > four wires total. Now what I'm not overly clear on is how to rig this > up. I understand basic switches to a light fixture in that power > comes into the switch and I'm essentually making a loop from the > fixture back to the switch. Now, I do know a 3-way switch has one > common terminal and two traveler terminals as well as a ground. Now I > also understand that I need to rig things up so that when one switch > is closed, the other is able to break the circuit. > At this point I'm getting fuzzy and not clear how to physically wire > this up. Here's what I think and please any advise would be > greatfully appreciated. > > 1. The light fixture is still wired in a loop configuration like it > would with a regular switch were there, I would hook the hot wire to > the common terminal on the the switch, connect the black wire we'll > call it, now I'd hook a white to the traveler, and maybe the other's > red can't recall, but that would go to the other traveler, and at the > other end of this I'd be hooking up the same wires, black to common, > white to another traveler, and red to the other traveler. Of course > ground to ground throughout. > Now I'm probably wrong on this, but I figure someone here has done > this and would have some answers and I'd sure appreciate the help. > Now I've been listening to the Blind Handyman show and its just great > and a valuable service. > > Thanks to all in advance. > > Scott > [EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:s.howell%40verizon.net> net > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > To listen to the show archives go to link > http://acbradio.org/handyman.html > or > ftp://ftp.acbradio.org/acbradio-archives/handyman/ > > The Pod Cast address for the Blind Handy Man Show is. > http://www.acbradio.org/news/xml/podcast.php?pgm=saturday > > The Pod Cast address for the Cooking In The Dark Show is. > http://www.gcast.com/u/cookingindark/main.xml > > Visit the new archives page at the following address > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the Blind Handy Man > list just send a blank message to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.1.409 / Virus Database: 268.15.15/581 - Release Date: 9/12/2006 > > To listen to the show archives go to link http://acbradio.org/handyman.html or ftp://ftp.acbradio.org/acbradio-archives/handyman/ The Pod Cast address for the Blind Handy Man Show is. http://www.acbradio.org/news/xml/podcast.php?pgm=saturday The Pod Cast address for the Cooking In The Dark Show is. http://www.gcast.com/u/cookingindark/main.xml Visit the new archives page at the following address http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the Blind Handy Man list just send a blank message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! 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