Timeline for 3 way switch four wires
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
8 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Apr 20, 2017 at 2:25 | comment | added | larry pinsky | Your right--thank u again for a thorough explanation. | |
| Apr 18, 2017 at 22:11 | comment | added | Harper - Reinstate Monica | By "common" I mean the terminal on the 3-way which is not a messenger. The common in the house 3-way is always hot, it controls which messenger is hot. When this switch matches, the common on this switch is hot, so it is "switched hot". That feeds the two lamps, and they return via neutral. | |
| Apr 17, 2017 at 21:46 | comment | added | larry pinsky | Didnt know that you can have two power sources for a common on a three way switch. The garage common came from the garage lights. The neutrals were in the middle conduit as ed explained. Inside the house he had the travlers connected to the three way switch with the orange wire as the common coming directly from the panel box. I understand that in the garage there were two switches (one three way and one for the inside garage light. In order to make both switches work in the garage, you had to use power from the outside two lights. Is this unusual or the way it is usually done? | |
| Apr 16, 2017 at 19:05 | vote | accept | larry pinsky | ||
| Apr 16, 2017 at 15:25 | comment | added | Harper - Reinstate Monica | @larrypinsky Interesting. Edited. | |
| Apr 16, 2017 at 15:25 | history | edited | Harper - Reinstate Monica | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
Correcting based on data from OP
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| Apr 16, 2017 at 15:07 | comment | added | larry pinsky | Harper the 1st and 3rd conduit goes to the outside two garage lights which explains the fourth wire. The middle conduit has two wires leads to the house. Your right this was the way he did it forty years ago and didn't use a different color common. The black or common should be the power which comes to the middle conduit. Not sure why he didn't have longer wires inside the box originally. | |
| Apr 16, 2017 at 5:31 | history | answered | Harper - Reinstate Monica | CC BY-SA 3.0 |