Extractor fan fitting - comes on when light switched off!

kjrbetts

Hi all.

I'm hoping there is a really simple explanation to this, as it's driving me crazy.

I have a basic extractor fan that I have fitted to in my bathroom. It is switched on by either the bathroom light, or the light in the loo right next door.

However, it comes on when I switch OFF the loo light, rather than coming on when it is switched on.

Note that the light in the loo over rides the light in the bathroom - so the bathroom light will only switch on the fan when the loo light is ON (and therefore extractor is off...).

Any help is much appreciated.
Kev

fluffpot

Did you fit it yourself? It sounds like it from your post....

The wiring is wrong(to both the light and the fan by the sounds of it) - so unless you can post some pics of what you have done, I would suggest getting an electrician in to sort it out - shouldn't be too big a job

muckybutt

Sounds very much like its been wired with a 2 way pull switch, only way one or the other will work.

Have a look inside the pull switch and describe the terminal markings and where the wires go or take a photo and post the link.

kjrbetts

Hi both. Thanks for getting back to me. I can't attach the photos as it says I am not able to post with links (even direct photos). Hopefully those below work...

First is the lightswitch (sorry for bad contrast and the direct link. I couldn't embed it...). Top (red wire) says COM at the top.
Second (blue) says 1 Way.
Third (yellow) says 2 Way.
I pulled the earth out so I could take the photo. That attaches far right.
photobucket.com/albums/ac86/kjrbetts/DSCF0284.jpg

Then on to the extractor fan. Currently, red wire goes into L1, blue into N and yellow into L.
photobucket.com/albums/ac86/kjrbetts/DSCF0285.jpg
Convention would think that red should go into L, but when this is the case (and yellow is placed into L1), the fan runs continuously, whether lights are on or off. It is only switch activated with this configuration.

So - does that mean it must be something to do with the light switch? Are the red and the yellow the wrong way around there? I daren't start toying with configurations...

Your help is much appreciated. Any ideas would be great.

Many thanks

You'll need to copy and paste those links, obviously.

rrf494g

please think twice - safety is the important thing - sounds like the lights were not wired correctly, so that when you added the fan things got worse. Who wired the lights? "The light in the Loo over-rides the light in the bathroom" - not sure how this fits into the wiring regs.

If you can't re-wire the lot confidently get an electrician in. Following posts on a thread may not be the safest route.
regards