Electric Wiring?

Question

Hey,

I have a double switch In one of my home rooms, now a while ago the switch broke, and it controls 2 lights (as far as i know) now when this switch broke, My security lights out the front of my house stopped working, well I brought a switch today, and decided to wire it back in, My main light still doesnt work, and im not sure of my other light, But my security lights came on! and they work fine, this I am confused about,
Now when I was wiring my switch I noticed there was a kinda loop wire between the 2 poles or switches, Im not sure if i have wired it on properly or whether i have, but the fault is in the other wiring (which i have not done)

Any help would be appreciated,

Thanks in advance,
Schultzy

hey thanks for the reply,

Well its like this

3 Wires come into the double switch,
1 wire goes to top switch
1 goes to bottom switch
another goes to top switch which is also connected through a loop wire too the second switch,

Now im confused about the wiring that was done orginally because the switches were the same, just the holes were swapped around, I think it was all done by an ametuar cause it looked crap to start off with, and my shed is done worse (its got no power of course)

Hope that helps u understand my problem a bit more,

Thanks,
Schultzy

Thanks, Its all good information,
I will try to explain abit better,

3 Wires in.
2 wires to 1 switch
1 to another
loop wire joining the 2 switches
1 wire is in the same hole as the loop wire
Im going to try a few variations today, Power will be turned off, So dont worry ;)

If not im gonna ask an old friend, who knows abit and get him when he comes back from holiday,

Thanks again,
Schultzy

Answer 1

1- Hope you have the original switch.
2- The replacement should match (same number of screws).
3- You didn't say whether the loop wire was used on the new switch or came from the other switch.
4- If it comes from the other switch, it is bringing power in.
5- The new switch should have only 2 screws as well as the old.
6- If this is the case then you have to identify the 2 remaining wires.
7- One of these should go to the light you want to turn on and off.
8- The other should take power to the other circuit and be connected together on the same screw as the loop wire (called the jumper).
9- Finally, if you have a 3 screw switch you need different instructions. Good Luck ! ! !

Answer 2

Very good answers so far. I would just add that electricity kills and take great care if you haven't the confidence or knowledge. A tip I use when dismantling anything unfamiliar is not to be too optimistic about your own memory. When the cover is off (doesn't matter what it is) take a photo with a good digital camera, or draw a diagram on paper. Even a well lit phone photo is better than nothing, because you will forget how it all goes back. And if you are replacing a switch, do your level best to get an identical one to replace it, and then you won't need to chop and cross the wires. It's amazing how much variation there can be with different makes of just a simple thing like a switch. But do be careful! Good luck.

Answer 3

Norman gave you good info. I hope you took a good look at the wires before you removed the old switch
. The side that has a loop on it is your power side......... That side has to have the power to make everything work the right way. If you have the power wire and one of the light wires on the wrong screws then your main light might not work.
...... The other 2 screws, The first screw is for one set of lights the second screw is for the second set of lights.

Some security lights are controlled by a switch, If it is a double flood light with motion control, there is a good chance that it is on a switch.

Silly question are you sure the bulbs are good in your main light?

Answer 4

wow, you've got me confused already. But let's see what we can come up with.
This double switch, is it a three way switch? A 3 way switch has 3 poles. One is for the hot wire and the other 2 are called runners. The switches are used in pairs, on one switch you will have a hot wire and the other switch will have the common terminal going to the load. That way you can turn the light on or off at either switch. With a switch in one position one of the runners will be hot and the other not and when you flip that switch then the other runner is hot and the one that was hot is not.
Did somebody wire that switch to 2 loads? So that one is always hot, and by changing the switch position one goes off and the other one on?
You may need to get an electrician out there to straighten it out. Good luck.