HAll & landing light switch puzzle.

[EricP]

[Jak]

In my house, I have ceiling lights in the hall and landing. I have removed the 2 switches because they were connected as 1-way switches and I want to set up 2-way switching.

I think the necessary cables are already in place, because there are two T&E cables protruding from the wall in both the hall and the landing. But I'm not sure how to connect the switches such that the

2-way switching will occur. I have identified the T&E cable that acts as a normal switch for the landing light when the red and black are touched together, and I have identified the one in the hall that does the same for the hall light. For clarity, let's refer to these below as the "1-way cables".

I can't figure out how the other T&E cable should be used. I assume (though I'm not sure) that it goes from the landing light switch location down to the hall light switch location. I can't think why else there would be an extra cable protruding at each location.

My volt meter reads no voltage across the red + black of the extra cable protruding from the hall wall. Nor for the extra T&E protruding from the landing wall. I concluded that this may be the same cable. So I trieed using the black wire to connect the 'common' terminals on each 2-way switch, and connect the red and the black of each "1-way cable" to L1 and L2, on its respective switch. But that didn't work.

Can anyone provide a link to a likely wiring diagram I can try using - or simply explain, in words, how I should connect the 2 T&E cables at each switch?

Many thanks,

Jak

[frffrf]

Hi, the common on one switch is connected to the mains supply the common on the other switch is connected to the lampholder. the other two terminals in the switches link to each other. hope this helps frank

[Jak]

Hi Frank, Thank you for that. Does your method use single gang switches? Now you've got me curious...

I have done something like what you describe, but with a dual gang switch on the landing and a single gang in the hall. That way it works out very well for my purposes. The live feed to the hall switch is unused and made safe. The exact instructions were kindly offered by Lurch in u.d. on 18/05/07. The only change I made to his instructions was that I put the dual gang on the landing.

Jak

[frffrf]

Hi Jak, think of it this way the term gang relates to the number of seperate switches ie a 2 gang unit consists of 2 seperate switches. the term poles relalte to the connections within the switches ie 3 pole has one common ,then flip flops between the other two poles, that way one pole is always live thus providing two way switching the switch for hall has no relation to the landing switch. two way switching requires 2 x 3 pole switches to work these could be part of multi gang units. frank

[Palindrome]

Erm,no.

The number of poles is the number of lines the switch (or relay) operates concurrently. The number of ways is the number of possible switch positions. Thus:

A one pole 12 way switch can connect one input terminal to one of 12 possible output terminals.

A three pole 4 way switch can connect each of three input terminals to one of four sets of three output terminals.

and so on.

Two way switching usually involves one pole, two way switches.

Three pole switches are often associated with 3 phase supplies - as each phase wire has to be switched concurrently.