Q: Wiring

A job was abandoned by an electrician (long story) and the owner asked me to look into it. The electrician was installing some pot lights, and wired everything except the controls. There are five unconnected

14-2 Romex ending at a terminal box. A bit of work with a multimeter found the source from the breaker box, as well as the lights, and everything hooked up okay to the dimmer.

What remains is to hook up the outlets, since they were disconnected at the box as well. I was busy working out which wires were which but then I found one set that confused me - there was no voltage between white and black, but 120V between white and ground.

My first guess was that they were two lines from a three-way switch, but the owner was very sure there weren't any in the house. The owner indicated that there were two switches in the box before the electrician took them out, but that she had never used them, because they didn't do anything.

Any ideas as to what I might be looking at?

Thanks,

Leo

Reply to
Leo
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Could indeed be a switch leg. White is permitted to be used as the "hot" feeding a switch. That way the Blk wire becomes switched "hot" at the load (fixture/recept).

Jim

Reply to
Speedy Jim

Thanks for the confirmation. I can't seem to find where the other switch is, I have the feeling it's behind some drywall! /Leo

Reply to
Leo

L > > Could indeed be a switch leg. White is permitted to be used L > > as the "hot" feeding a switch. That way the Blk wire becomes L > > switched "hot" at the load (fixture/recept). L > L > Thanks for the confirmation. I can't seem to find where the other L > switch is, I have the feeling it's behind some drywall! /Leo

That's about as 'bad' as what I noticed during Thanksgiving dinner at a friend's house: there's a switch plate in the ceiling about a foot in from the wall. The rectangular switch opening was closed somehow.

- ¯ barry.martinþATþthesafebbs.zeppole.com ®

  • Hyperactive Confederate: rebel without a pause.
Reply to
barry martin

I had several solid switch plates in my ceiling, it was the prewire for the smoke detectors which are now part of my security system.

Reply to
C G

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