Advice on basic Fan extractor and pull cord light

[newbie9857]

Hi I have recently wired a basic fan extractor to a pull cord bathroom light. I managed to get it working but I need someone to confirm the theory behind what I have done and I have some questions. Any knowledge will be appreciated.

The fan is a basic fan, it has 3 wires. Blue, brown and yellow/green.
The light switch is a 3 way switch. It has 2 red wires, a blue wire, a yellow/green wire.
There is also 3rd red wire in a connector block.

I connected it like this:
Red wire 1 in common port.
Red wire 2 in L1 port.
Fan blue wire to the L1 of the light swtich.
Fan brown wire to connector block with red wire 3.
Fan yellow/green wire to ground terminal in light switch.

Questions I have:
1) The light switch has a ground terminal screw so I connected the yellow/green wire from the fan to this but as the fan is plastic and does not have a ground terminal screw do I need to connect it at the fan side or the light switch side? I did put the wire around a screw in the fan just in case but not sure if this correct.
2) The blue wire from the fan is connected to L1 of the light switch with a red wire also in L1...is this correct?

Thanks

 

[Dartlec]

Hi,

It's hard to say whether what you have done is correct, because I think there is a step missing - the blue cable at the switch is likely (hopefully) not the same as the blue wire at the fan, otherwise things would have tripped the second you turned things on.

The blue and brown to the fan will be a supply cable, which from the photos isn't fed directly from the switch, but via a junction box either above the light(s), or somewhere in the ceiling.

The earth is usually not needed at the fan and there is often no terminal provided for it, but it should be sleeved in green/yellow sleeving rather than cut short - a length of sleeving that is slightly too long and the wire bent over on itself is a good way.

The only cables that are usually at a pull cord switch are a permanent live in and a switched live out - the blue is likely being used as a switched live but should be sleeved brown to show this. The connector block above the pull cord may be a permanent live that was originally for a timed fan, or may be something else entirely.

The earths at the switch need to be connected to the terminal to ensure continuity elsewhere.

The blue cable in your picture of the switch appears to have damage to the insulation, which needs to be trimmed back to make a good connection - though the entire blue cable looks a bit 'distressed'.

Even though things are working, I would honestly recommend getting a local electrician to check things over to be sure that things are as they should be - it should be less than an hours work to ensure that things are safe and in a bathroom it is never worth taking chances. The hourly rate of a local small firm or one man band is worth the peace of mind.

 

[newbie9857]

Hi,

It's hard to say whether what you have done is correct, because I think there is a step missing - the blue cable at the switch is likely (hopefully) not the same as the blue wire at the fan, otherwise things would have tripped the second you turned things on.

The blue and brown to the fan will be a supply cable, which from the photos isn't fed directly from the switch, but via a junction box either above the light(s), or somewhere in the ceiling.

The earth is usually not needed at the fan and there is often no terminal provided for it, but it should be sleeved in green/yellow sleeving rather than cut short - a length of sleeving that is slightly too long and the wire bent over on itself is a good way.

The only cables that are usually at a pull cord switch are a permanent live in and a switched live out - the blue is likely being used as a switched live but should be sleeved brown to show this. The connector block above the pull cord may be a permanent live that was originally for a timed fan, or may be something else entirely.

The earths at the switch need to be connected to the terminal to ensure continuity elsewhere.

The blue cable in your picture of the switch appears to have damage to the insulation, which needs to be trimmed back to make a good connection - though the entire blue cable looks a bit 'distressed'.

Even though things are working, I would honestly recommend getting a local electrician to check things over to be sure that things are as they should be - it should be less than an hours work to ensure that things are safe and in a bathroom it is never worth taking chances. The hourly rate of a local small firm or one man band is worth the peace of mind.

Hi thanks for the reply. The blue cable at the switch in L1 is the cable from the fan. The brown cable from the fan is connected to one of the red cables via the block connector.

Thanks for the info on the ground wire at the fan. If it not conected then on the switch side is it ok for me to leave it connected to the terminal or shall I disconnect and sleeve it?

Thanks again.

 

[Dartlec]

Hi thanks for the reply. The blue cable at the switch in L1 is the cable from the fan. The brown cable from the fan is connected to one of the red cables via the block connector.

Thanks for the info on the ground wire at the fan. If it not conected then on the switch side is it ok for me to leave it connected to the terminal or shall I disconnect and sleeve it?

Thanks again.

The earths should be left in the terminal at the switch.

Something may still be missing in the explanation, but if the cable from the fan goes directly to the switch, then there is definitely a problem - you may be switching the neutral, which is potentially highly dangerous as the fan may appear to be off, but will still be live.

There may still be a junction box somewhere in the middle, in which case the blue wire is not a neutral in this case and should be sleeved accordingly.

I assumed you were replacing an existing fan?

If this is a new install then I hadn't picked that up - Wiring a fan in a bathroom is (usually) covered under Part P of the building regulations and needs to be notified to the Local Building Control by a registered competent person (slightly more complicted, but that's the quick version) and it is a criminal offence not to do so.

Replacing an existing fitting is not always covered, but if the cabling was already there it hasn't been done correctly.

Unless you are able and confident to test which is line and neutral and confirm the same at the fan end then this really needs an electrician to clarify in person. getting something 'to work' is only part of a safe electrical installation.

 

[newbie9857]

The earths should be left in the terminal at the switch.

Something may still be missing in the explanation, but if the cable from the fan goes directly to the switch, then there is definitely a problem - you may be switching the neutral, which is potentially highly dangerous as the fan may appear to be off, but will still be live.

There may still be a junction box somewhere in the middle, in which case the blue wire is not a neutral in this case and should be sleeved accordingly.

I assumed you were replacing an existing fan?

If this is a new install then I hadn't picked that up - Wiring a fan in a bathroom is (usually) covered under Part P of the building regulations and needs to be notified to the Local Building Control by a registered competent person (slightly more complicted, but that's the quick version) and it is a criminal offence not to do so.

Replacing an existing fitting is not always covered, but if the cabling was already there it hasn't been done correctly.

Unless you are able and confident to test which is line and neutral and confirm the same at the fan end then this really needs an electrician to clarify in person. getting something 'to work' is only part of a safe electrical installation.

Hi thanks for the response, fyi the fan is an old fan it was disconnected at some point in time for replacement but never got round to doing so decided to try to reconnect it! I think I will need to get a qualified person to check it. Thanks for the help and info anyways!

 

[Dartlec]

Hi thanks for the response, fyi the fan is an old fan it was disconnected at some point in time for replacement but never got round to doing so decided to try to reconnect it! I think I will need to get a qualified person to check it. Thanks for the help and info anyways!

No Problem, lighting wiring can be a minefield especially when a mix of old and new and sometimes only the use of a test meter (and the knowledge to use it) can work out what is what.

Should be a small job for any local electrician - but bathrooms are not places where any doubt should be left with 230V.