Wiring in ceiling light

powerful_Rogue

Wondering if anyone can advise please.

My current ceiling light has these for wire:



My new fitting has the below setup:



Fine with the earth and neutral, however can anyone assist with the other two wire?

Le_Kirk

A ceiling rose will usually have a permanent live normally consisting of two (or more cables) plus a neutral and a switched live. These go from room to room. You need to determine which is the switched live by using a multi-meter. The green sleeved cable is earth. The blue cable is standard colour for Neutral (and that has been wrapped with black tape as that was the old standard) and the brown cable is standard colour for live (and that has been wrapped with red tape as that was the old standard). It is not clear from your picture where the cables go for the bayonet fitting nor what happens above the terminal blocks as the red-wrapped brown seems to go to another terminal block.

powerful_Rogue

Le_Kirk wrote: »

A ceiling rose will usually have a permanent live normally consisting of two (or more cables) plus a neutral and a switched live. These go from room to room. You need to determine which is the switched live by using a multi-meter. The green sleeved cable is earth. The blue cable is standard colour for Neutral (and that has been wrapped with black tape as that was the old standard) and the brown cable is standard colour for live (and that has been wrapped with red tape as that was the old standard). It is not clear from your picture where the cables go for the bayonet fitting nor what happens above the terminal blocks as the red-wrapped brown seems to go to another terminal block.

Hi, Thanks for your reply.

Here's another couple of photos I just took.





Do these help at all?

molerat

Does the brown taped in red connect to anything, I doubt it, it is a red herring by whoever bodged that wiring, remove it and tape up the connector as it is just the loop through live. So black taped in red to L, brown taped in black to N , and green to earth.

Ectophile

Whatever you do, please don't do it like that. It's horrid.

You need to work out which are the permanent lives. There will be two or three. One incoming, one to the switch, then maybe another to the next light in the house. Connect them together using a terminal block.

The switched live coming back from the switch needs to go to the "L" on the light fitting. It will be the only wire going to the live terminal of the existing lamp.

If you can't tell which is which by studying it, call an electrician.

powerful_Rogue

Ectophile wrote: »

Whatever you do, please don't do it like that. It's horrid.

You need to work out which are the permanent lives. There will be two or three. One incoming, one to the switch, then maybe another to the next light in the house. Connect them together using a terminal block.

The switched live coming back from the switch needs to go to the "L" on the light fitting. It will be the only wire going to the live terminal of the existing lamp.

If you can't tell which is which by studying it, call an electrician.

Do you mean don't do it like molerat suggested?

molerat

Ectophile wrote: »

Whatever you do, please don't do it like that. It's horrid.

You need to work out which are the permanent lives. There will be two or three. One incoming, one to the switch, then maybe another to the next light in the house. Connect them together using a terminal block.

The switched live coming back from the switch needs to go to the "L" on the light fitting. It will be the only wire going to the live terminal of the existing lamp.

If you can't tell which is which by studying it, call an electrician.

From the second pictures it is obvious what the wires do and as I have stated, the switch live is the black with red tape.. I would personally tidy it all up from the bodge job it is with a junction box or strip of 4 connectors and a piece of 1mm TWE down to the fitting.

powerful_Rogue

molerat wrote: »

Does the brown taped in red connect to anything, I doubt it, it is a red herring by whoever bodged that wiring, remove it and tape up the connector as it is just the loop through live. So black taped in red to L, brown taped in black to N , and green to earth.

This lightis controlled by 2 light switches. If I was to tape up the brown taped in red, would that cause any issues to the 2 switches?

molerat

powerful_Rogue wrote: »

This lightis controlled by 2 light switches. If I was to tape up the brown taped in red, would that cause any issues to the 2 switches?

The 2 switches are connected by another wire. Is anything in the old fitting connected to that wire ? Remove that little bit of wire altogether, it is not needed. The only reason for that wire to be connected to anything is if it was a ceiling fan that could be operated independently of the light switch. http://www.lightwiring.co.uk/two-way-switching-3-wire-system-old-cable-colours/
(although they have the red taped switch drop wire in fig2, cable C, connected the other way round to the norm and the way yours is connected)

powerful_Rogue

molerat wrote: »

The 2 switches are connected by another wire. Is anything in the old fitting connected to that wire ? Remove that little bit of wire altogether, it is not needed. The only reason for that wire to be connected to anything is if it was a ceiling fan that could be operated independently of the light switch.

Brilliant, thank you. Will have a look tomorrow during daylight.

TheCyclingProgrammer

Whatever you do OP, don't just tape up a potentially live wire and leave it as you seemed to suggest doing a few posts up.

Can you confirm if there is anything in the light fitting connected to the same terminal as the brown with red taped wire?