What does a sheep's ass taste like? :scotty:

 

Kinda like your sister

 

 

When in Rome

 

 

Alright guys help me out. This is probably simple for someone more informed.

In our entry way we have a 30 foot ceiling with a chandelier that is controlled from 3 separate locations. Two upstairs and one at the bottom of the stairs. A year or so ago I switched out the lower switch because we painted and wanted white. Well, I installed the wrong switch. All switches work but you have to turn it off at the same switch or it won't do anything.

What kind of switch do I need? I figured it was a 3 way switch but that doesn't work either. Now I'm reading one 4 way and two 2 ways are needed? Sounds off to me.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

 

Lets clear up some basic info.

Before you messed with it: the light would turn on at any switch and then could be turned off at any switch. Is that correct?

After you replaced the switch: the light can be turned on from how many switches? Any of them?

But once on, the other 2 switches will NOT turn it off? It can only be turned off from the switch that turned it on?

Normally a light with 3 switches requires 2 3-ways with a 4-way in between the 2 3-ways.

Do you still have the old switch?

Without counting the ground, how many terminal screws does the new switch have?

 

The bolded part is incorrect.

Any light controlled by three different switches will need two 3-ways and one 4-way between them (you can put as many 4-ways between two 3-ways as you want, but that doesn't apply here).

So you either removed a 3-way or a 4-way, and now you have to determine which it was. You can pull the other two switches to see what they are, or pull the switch you originally pulled out and try to determine it from there.

A 4-way will have nothing but travelers on the screws: if wired correctly, you will have a white (possibly painted black with marker) and red from the same wire on the two bottom screws. You will then have a white and red from a different wire on the two top screws. The black wires from each will be wire nutted together (possibly along with other wires).

A 3-way will have two travelers and either a line or a load: A red and a white (possibly painted black with marker) from the same wire on the top two gold screws of the switch are the travelers, and a black from either that wire or a different wire on the bottom black screw will be your line or load.

What kind of switch did you install? Did you leave any wires from the previous switch loose in the box or try to tie them in somewhere else?

You should be able to figure it out just by pulling the original switch you installed.

 

 

Some other advice/disclaimers:

- When I say "if wired correctly", in my mind I am picturing it how I would have wired it, like I was trained (very strictly). Most people go by their own methods, which can be confusing and frowned upon but still work the exact same way. I stick to the same methods every time so I don't confuse and inconvenience myself or others in the future if I have to work on it again.

- For example of what I'm talking about, in the post above, I could change the traveler colors to red and black and use the white as the line and/or load. Or use the black and white as travelers and the red as the line and/or load. It doesn't matter...only where the ends of the wires are connected to. So if it turns out the travelers in maharajamd's circuit are not the same colors I said, it doesn't mean I'm incorrect or giving bad advice. Look at any diagram of how to wire a 3-way or 4-way circuit on google and the wire colors will vary.

- If people use a white wire as a line/load/traveler instead of a neutral, to mark it they might paint it black with a marker (like I do), they might put a piece of black tape on it, or they might leave it white. Just remember, if either end is on a switch screw (single pole, 3-way, 4-way), it's not being used as a neutral anymore. This confuses a lot of people. You will see this a lot when a circuit is fed through a light and you have no need for the neutral to come out of the light box.

- The best advice I can give is to never trust the colors of the wires or let them confuse you...always trust your multi-meter.

- Keep in mind that there are a million different ways to wire the same house, and a million other variables involved. Don't get discouraged if you can't figure something out. Electric in general and troubleshooting aren't easy to master, and you won't be able to picture certain things in your mind without a few years of experience, so draw it out if needed.

- If anyone has questions in the future, post in this thread and then PM me so I see it.

 

Did I turn you on?

 

Thanks for the help.

 

Ok, we'll start with the assumption that your light was originally wired with a 3-way switch at each end of the parallel travelers and a 4-way switch in between the 3-ways.

Our little Chevy Volt leaves the garage and the first 3-way switch it encounters is an on-ramp choosing only A or B of 2 parallel roads (travelers). Farther down the road, it drives across the 4-way, either staying on the same road or switching to the other road (doesn't matter for now). When our Volt reaches the other 3-way switch at the end of the road, if the off ramp is there, it goes to the light. If the off ramp is switched to the other road, our Chevy Volt putters to a stop....no off ramp to the light.

Let's focus on the switch you put in. A 3-way switch does not have an "on" and "off" because it simply switches between parallel travelers A and B. So up would be position A (connected to traveler A) and down would be position B (connected to traveler B). If the Chevy Volt is driving in on A, then A would be light on. If the Volt is driving in on B, then B would be light on.

From your description, the 3-way switch you installed is not acting like a 3-way anymore. Now only one position is always on and the other position is always off. Is that correct?

 

Pretty sure, right now, the 3 way switch I just installed acts like a normal switch. Off and on. The other two switches (both upstairs) don't work at all.

 

Ok, 3-way switch acting a 2-way -- that is helpful.

My understanding was that all 3 switches would turn the light on, but then only that same switch would turn it off. In other words, all 3 switches are acting as 2-way on/off switches. It's possible that you sometimes are getting power on both of the travelers; they are crossed or touching. But then this is confusing::

Upper hall switches do not turn the light on or off? Is this a recent change?