Wiring of ceiling light-help please!
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The three T&E's in the rose are the old black and red colours... if you've got blue and brown in the switch then something fishy is going on. It could just be the old switch wire has been partially replaced, but given the different colours and apparent lack of continuity, I'd want to do some more investigation.
Was the switch (not the original dimmer) known to be working before you wired it in? It's a long shot, but you may have a faulty switch?
Thanks for the reply... I wondered about the wiring situation as well.. But anyway yes new switch, which when I still couldn't get any continuity I tested it in an other room and works ok...0 -
I know what I would do now but that involves working with live wires so not recommended if you are unsure and without the correct test equipment. It looks like you need to get someone in.0
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I know what I would do now but that involves working with live wires so not recommended if you are unsure and without the correct test equipment. It looks like you need to get someone in.
Agreed. There are ways of solving the puzzle, but you need the equipment and experience to do it safely.
The only other question that occurs to me is whether the light is controlled by a single switch or if it is part of a 2-way (or more) setup. 2-way lighting might be one reason why the switch wire appears to be different colours at either end, but it doesn't sound like this is the case from the OP's comments."In the future, everyone will be rich for 15 minutes"0 -
Afternoon folks, so today I took the day of work and decided to get to the bottom of this. After Eachpenny's comment about the wiring I decided that the only safe way of doing this was to trace the wires from the floor above.. Up at dawn to lift the upstairs carpet and floorboards and finally found the wire leading to the switch. It seems that at some point in the past a partial rewire has been done as approx 3ft from the ceiling rose the wires entered a circular junction box & from there the wires exited as the new brown/blue/green-yellow. And here is where the problem lay, after removing the cover I noticed the on the ceiling rose side the red wire was not inserted into the terminal and was just hanging loose. I can only imagine that the terminal screw had not been fully tightened and when I removed the ceiling rose and pulled the wires free that that extra two or three inches pull was enough to unseat it from the block. Re-connected that and went downstairs to check for continuity and yep continuity was there. Hurrah.. So have marked the cable and tidied up. 6 hours work but so satisfying.
So thanks for the help folks it was great being able to have the input. I really appreciate all the advice offered.0 -
So thanks for the help folks it was great being able to have the input. I really appreciate all the advice offered.
You're welcome, really glad to hear you managed to get it sorted out. The change in colour from one end of the switch wire to the other was a clue that something funny was going on... and the 'funny' thing is what you managed to find
It seems a bit odd not to have taken the new wire back to the rose and use a junction box instead... possibly a sign of a lazy workman. Although I wouldn't panic about it, you might want to think about lifting floorboards in other rooms as and when you decorate/spring clean and just check there are no more similar surprises lurking there. Checking connections are properly tightened is one of the most important things to do to avoid future problems. Obviously making sure the supply is isolated before you do any checking!"In the future, everyone will be rich for 15 minutes"0 -
You're welcome, really glad to hear you managed to get it sorted out. The change in colour from one end of the switch wire to the other was a clue that something funny was going on... and the 'funny' thing is what you managed to find
It seems a bit odd not to have taken the new wire back to the rose and use a junction box instead... possibly a sign of a lazy workman. Although I wouldn't panic about it, you might want to think about lifting floorboards in other rooms as and when you decorate/spring clean and just check there are no more similar surprises lurking there. Checking connections are properly tightened is one of the most important things to do to avoid future problems. Obviously making sure the supply is isolated before you do any checking!
Yeh I admit I wondered why he hadn't just taken it to the ceiling rose and think your'e right, just laziness or he was working on a fixed price and cut corners where he could... A to do job for me now is to take the ceiling rose cover plate of in each room as well as the wall switches and check the colours match... Cynical me says they won't :-)
Anyway cheers again.0 -
Wiring of ceiling light-help please!
i have the same problem0
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