Arizona Desert

EASY THREE WAY SWITCHES

WHEN YOU INSTALL THREE WAY SWITCHES, THIS ENABLES YOU TO TURN SOMETHING ON, (LIGHT, FAN, MOTOR, ETC.) FROM TWO DIFFERENT LOCATIONS. FOR EXAMPLE, AND I WILL USE THIS, EXTERIOR LIGHTING FROM INSIDE THE FRONT DOOR OR A HOME, AND INSIDE THE GARAGE.

THIS IS QUICK, AND EASY. LET US ASSUME YOU HAVE RUN 12/3 ROMEX FROM ONE SWITCH BOX TO THE OTHER, AFTER NEATLY AND SMOOTHLY STAPLING OFF THE WIRE ALONG THE FRAMING OF THE HOUSE. YOU HAVE LEFT ABOUT A FOOT OF EXTRA WIRE HANGING OUT OF THE FACE OF EACH BOX. BOTH BOXES ARE SINGLE GANG, MEANING ROOM FOR ONLY ONE DEVICE (SWITCH).

EITHER OF THESE CAN BE YOUR DEAD END, AND I DON'T MEAN YOUR ASS. (CONSTRUCTION HUMOR, SCUSI)

IN THE BOX YOU HAVE CHOSEN TO BE YOUR DEAD END, AFTER STRIPING THE OUTER LAYER OF THE INSULATION, YOU WILL HAVE A BLACK, A RED AND A WHITE WIRE, WITH A BARE COPPER.

IN THE OTHER BOX, RUN 12/2, FROM POWER SOURCE, AND ANOTHER 12/2 FROM YOUR FIXTURE WHICH IS CALLED A SWITCH LEG. THIS WILL BE THE BOX WHERE ALL MAKE-UP IS DONE, SO THERE IS NO POSSIBILITY OF MIXING UP POWER AND SWITCH LEG, AND NEUTRALS WITH RUNNERS.

RUNNERS ARE THE TWO WIRES YOU ARE GOING TO USE BETWEEN THREE WAY SWITCHES, THE OTHER IS WHAT I LIKE TO CALL THE COMMON, OR HOT.

PAY ATTENTION PLEASE. STRIP THE ROMEX SHEATHING OFF THE SWITCH LEG WIRE, AND FOLD THE BLACK ONE UP AND BACK OUT OF THE WAY FOR NOW. LET THE NEUTRAL (WHITE) AND GROUND HANG DOWN. THEN STRIP THE ROMEX FROM THE POWER SOURCE AND LET ALL THOSE HANG DOWN WITH THE OTHERS. THE ROMEX THAT IS LEFT UNSTRIPPED AT THIS POINT IS THE 12/3 FROM THE OTHER SWITCH BOX. STRIP THAT LAST AND PULL THE RED AND WHITE WIRES UP AND BACK OUT OF THE WAY WITH THE SWITCH LEG. GATHER ALL THE GROUNDS, (BARE COPPER) AND PIGTAIL THOSE TOGETHER. YOU NEED A PIGTAIL ON THE GROUND BECAUSE IF YOU DO NOT GROUND TO THE GREEN SCREW ON THE SWITCH, LIGHTNING WILL SPARK YOUR CIRCUIT AND THE SWITCH CAN SHOCK YOU WHEN YOU TOUCH IT. IF YOUR HOUSE BURNS DOWN, YOUR INSURANCE WILL NOT PAY IF SWITCHES ARE FOUND TO BE UNGROUNDED.

MANY PROFESSIONAL ELECTRICIANS WILL NOT GROUND SWITCHES. IF YOU ARE HAVING WORK DONE, YOU MUST LET THEM KNOW YOU WANT ALL SWITCHES GROUNDED. THE REASON THEY WILL NOT, IS BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO FEAR OF ELECTRIC SHOCK, NOR OF HOUSE FIRES. IT ALSO SAVES TIME IF YOU SKIP IT, WHICH IN TURN SAVES MONEY, HOWEVER, IT IS NOT GOOD PRACTICE.

SWITCHES DO NOT NEED A NEUTRAL, BUT THE LIGHT DOES. SO, THE NEUTRAL FROM POWER SOURCE, (WHITE WIRE) AND THE NEUTRAL FROM THE LIGHT (SWITCH LEG) (WHITE WIRE) MUST BE CUT TO SIX INCHES STRIPPED ABOUT 3/8 INCHES FROM THE END, EXPOSING BARE COPPER, AND WIRENUTTED TOGETHER WITHOUT A PIGTAIL.

A GOOD SIZE WIRENUT FOR HOUSING PURPOSES IS CALLED TAN. THERE ARE ALSO YELLOW, FOR TWO WIRES, AND RED, FOR THREE OR MORE. TAN CAN DO TWO, AND CAN ALSO DO THREE OR MORE UP TO FIVE.

MOST ELECTRICIANS WILL USE WHATEVER THEY FIND IN THEIR TOOLBAGS, THAT THEY CAN JAM ON, BUT MANY OF THEM ALSO END UP WITH LOOSE NEUTRALS AND LIGHTS WON'T COME ON, IN THE FINISHED PRODUCT, UNTIL SWITCHES ARE TAKEN APARTS AND NEUTRALS REDONE. CARE SHOULD ALWAYS BE TAKEN WITH NEUTRALS IN LIGHTING SYSTEMS, BECAUSE IT IS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE OF FAILURE OF LIGHTS TO OPERATE, AND USUALLY THEY ARE HIGH, AND REQUIRE LADDERS TO BE PUT UP ON FINISHED FLOORS TO TROUBLESHOOT, WHICH IS NOT A GOOD PRACTICE.

IN YOUR SWITCH YOU NOW HAVE THE GROUNDS DONE, AND THE NEUTRALS. FOLD BACK NEATLY.
STRIP AND WIRE NUT THE REMAINING BLACK WIRES, NO PIGTAIL. FOLD BACK NEATLY.

AT THIS POINT YOU HAVE A BLACK, A WHITE AND A RED, FOLDED BACK OVER THE TOP OF THE BOX. THERE ARE THREE SCREWS OF ATTACHMENT ON THE SIDES OF THE SWITCH. AND ONE GREEN, WHICH IS THE GROUND. I ALWAYS WRAP THE GROUND FIRST, TWEAK WITH NEEDLE NOSE PLIERS AND TIGHTEN SNUGLY WITH A SCREWDRIVER. IF YOU ARE A GUY AND TWIST THE SCREWDRIVER TOO HARD, IT WILL WARP THE SWITCH FRAME AND WON'T LOOK RIGHT AS A FINISHED PRODUCT.

OF THE THREE SCREWS, ONE WILL BE BLACK AND TWO WILL BE BRASS. THE BLACK WIRE GOES TO THE BLACK SCREW. THIS IS THE COMMON. THE TWO RUNNERS, THE RED AND WHITE WIRES, ATTACH TO EITHER OF THE BRASS SCREWS, EITHER OR, WILL WORK.

PROFESSIONAL ELECTRICIANS WILL FOR THE MOST PART, KEEP THEIR WIRES UNIFORM THROUGHOUT A HOUSE SO THE WHITE WILL ALWAYS BE ON THE SAME POSITION SCREW, AND RED WILL BE ON THE OTHER. YOUR WORK WILL LOOK MORE PROFESSIONAL IF YOU DO THIS.

IN THE DEAD END SIDE OF THE THREE WAY, ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS ATTACH THE BARE WIRE TO THE GROUND SCREW AND FOLLOW THE SAME PROCEDURE USED IN THE OTHER SWITCH. BLACK WIRE TO BLACK SCREW, AND THE RUNNERS TO EITHER OF THE BRASS SCREWS.

YOU NOW ARE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING MOST PROFESSIONAL ELECTRICIANS MESS UP, 80% OF THE TIME IN COMMERICAL INSTALLATION AND ABOUT 50% OF THE TIME IN RESIDENTIAL INSTALLATION.

AT THIS POINT YOU MAY ASK, WHAT IF I CANNOT DEAD END??? THERE ARE CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE IT IS IMPOSSIBLE, OR TOO EXPENSIVE. IF YOU HAVE THE SWITCH LEG IN ONE BOX AND POWER IN THE OTHER, THE MAIN TWO THINGS TO REMEMBER IS THAT THE SWITCH DOES NOT NEED A NEUTRAL, ONLY THE LIGHT, AND, TO KEEP YOUR SWITCH LEG SEPERATED FROM POWER.

IF YOU NEED THREE OR MORE LOCATIONS TO SWITCH ON OR OFF THE SAME LIGHT, OR STRING OF LIGHTS, OR MOTOR, OR WHATEVER, THIS CAN ALSO BE DONE BY INSERTING FOURWAYS, BETWEEN THE TWO THREEWAYS, AND AS MANY AS YOU WANT CAN BE PUT BETWEEN THE THREEWAYS. MORE ABOUT THAT, IN THE NEXT BLOG.

how to wire a single pole switch

No matter what other insanity I may blog on about here, I will always give away deeply dark secrets of the professisonal electrician. Today is the single pole switch. One may ask, what is a switch? To answer, that thing on the wall that flips up and down and makes the lights go on and off. Single pole means, one switch turns one or more lights on and off. And now for the deep dark secret.

NO MATTER WHAT ELSE YOU DO, FIRST TURN OFF YOUR BREAKER.

The breaker is in the panel. The panel is where the utility company attaches power to your house. The breakers distribute that power into the circuits hiding silently all over your house. The good electrician always labels the panel so you can tell from the note adjacent to the breakers, what thing they turn off. Electricians however, sometimes have less than legible notation. And, of all horrors, some do not label accurately. AAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKK.

STOP NOW. GO TO THE STORE. GET A TESTER.

WHEN IN DOUBT, TURN OFF ALL, AND I MEAN ALL, THE BREAKERS.

In new construction, or an add-on, you will need, one nail-on, plastic box. They are blue, black or sometimes yellow or gray. Don't worry. The switch will work in all color choices. Measure the height where you want the switch. It's a good idea to match them with the rest of the house, or use 44-46" to the top of the box. Nail the box to the side of the stud. Allow for finished surface material. You will not want the box face to stick out further than the finished wall.

Using what we call romex, out here in the wild wild west, wire that encases a bare copper wire, a black and a white wire in insulation, pull one in for power. This one must eventually lead to the OFF breaker, or the hot in another box. Pull in one for what is called the switch leg. This one comes from the light or first light in a series of lights that you want to turn on. In some areas you can use #14/2. In other areas you have to use 12/2. The 12 is the size of the wire, and the 2 indicates two wires with the bare one, which is the ground. Stop panting.

In the back of the box are tabs or breakouts, so punch one out like you mean it as needed and shove the ends of the romex through those holes into the box. They will then hang out the face of the box, or the opening, about a foot.

At this point you will need special staples and I recommend 9/16. Staple the romex that runs along the studs, one from the light and one from power, within six inches of the box, and every 8 to 10 feet (or every four feet if you are on an Indian Reservation) along all other lengths.

After stapling neatly, take a utility knife and split the sheath of the romex that hangs out of the box, and strip as far back into the box as you can. Do not forget which one is the switch leg. It won't matter at this switch but is a good habit to form. Tear off the paper you will find around the ground, or bare, wire.

The rest is the easy part. Now that all the wires are seperated, and hanging out of the box, you should have two bare ones, two white ones, and two black ones. Pigtail the grounds. That means cut both the ground wires at equal lengths, about a hands width from the face of the box, unless you have very skinny hands, then go a little longer. Twist those neatly with lineman's pliers, and cut another length about six inches long. Lay that one back along the twisted ones, matching ends and then put the wire nut around all three. Cut the two white wires to equal lengths, then using a wire stripper, take about 1/2 inch of insulation off the ends. Put a wirenut on those without a pigtail. Fold all these wires into the box with a rolling motion.

At this point you will have two black wires and a bare wire. One of those black wires is power, one is a switch leg and one is the ground. Now you must connect the device, or switch. You have chosen a single pole switch and will have two screws on either end and one on one end of the silver bracket that is green.

After you have stripped another 1/2 inch of insulation off the ends of the black wires, needle nose pliers are great for rolling the ends of the wires around the appropriate screws at this point. The switch will not know which black wire goes to which screw for this application.

One to six lights will only need a 15 amp circuit, which takes 14/3 romex.
More I've than that, or more than 50 feet from the panel, would require a 20 amp circuit which takes 12/2 romex. Both of these circuits require single pole breakers.

Oh yeah. One more thing. When you attach the switch device to the box, with screws on either end, which come with it, There are prefabricated holes for those screws in the box, it's a good idea to put the little off word to the top and the on word to the bottom. After drywall, and paint, then you put on the plate. Manufacturers have been nice enough to imprint the amperage of the breakers on the front, usually in the switch tab.

Insanity for the day: If men were as interested in sex as they claim to be, there would be no military, no wars, no bars and no pro sports.

Questions? Ask.