creating a light system with three toggle switches controlling three lights twenty feet away. any ideas?

Answer 1

It sounds like you are wanting to install a 4-way light switch system using a 4-way switch with a 3-way switch on each side of it so that you can control the lights from any one of the three switches. This site, http://www.askthebuilder.com/B141_3_Way_Switch_4_Way_Switch.shtml , has some videos, instructions and diagrams for wiring this type of a switch arrangement. With this setup all the lights would go on and off together.

If you have something different in mind, like controlling the lights independently of each other or with remote controls or something else then you may want to describe it further.

Answer 2

if you are trying to turn all 3 lights off and on simultaneously from any one of three separate locations you will need two 3-way switches and one 4-way switch. You will also need 3 wire cable (with black, red and white wires plus the bare copper ground) instead of the standard 2-wire plus ground cable. It would be too hard to explain in writing how to wire the "travelers" between the switches (the black and red) -- check on-line for a diagram illustrating how to safely connect the "3 way and 4 way switching."

If you want each light separately controlled by its own switch, you will need to run a two-wire cable from each switch to each light.

Answer 3

Billy Brite is most likely correct. I've run into these old systems, (they frequently work off 12 volts, rather than the standard 110), from the switches to the transformers. They can be a real pain and depending on where you live, they can be extremely hard to find parts for replacement or someone who's qualified to work on them at all. The odds are that the whole house is wired this way. Good luck.

Answer 4

120 volts? Run a standard circuit to feed the three switches. Pull a switch leg from each switch to each of the fixtures, along with a neutral and a ground. One switched hot wire to each fixture. One neutral and one ground to all three lights. I actually read your question.

Answer 5

need more info