Discuss advice - two wall nights and one dimmer switch wired wrong! in the Electrical Forum area at ElectriciansForums.net

Welcome to ElectriciansForums.net - The American Electrical Advice Forum
Head straight to the main forums to chat by click here:   American Electrical Advice Forum

Reaction score
4
Long story short i had a friend helping me out with some DIY today and I have realised that he left the wiring like pictured. I have and voltage tester so i have worked out that the middle red wire is the live one.

Long story short they are now not working (i have tried some variations based on what i have read online but they just leave the lights on). I put them back to the way i found them wired - please see pictures (including the dimmer as i think he messed with that too. Can someone tell me what is wrong and how they need to be positioned/ connected?

and dont worry, i will never let him touch electrics again....

advice - two wall nights and one dimmer switch wired wrong! 20190527_200002_resized - EletriciansForums.net

advice - two wall nights and one dimmer switch wired wrong! 20190527_200116_resized - EletriciansForums.net
 
A competent spark wold have this resolved in under an hour.

I think I've figured it out but unfortunately explaining it falls foul of the forum "step by step guides" rule.

Also there are a few pitfalls with lighting circuits that mean it's not safe to offer diagnostic advice.

Generally the feed in should go through the switch then to each light fitting with the neutrals from the light fittings returning to the feed in neutral.

Your dimmer may need it's own neutral, note just because there is a black wire there it may not necessarily be a neutral, it could be an unidentified switched live.

And when someone has been in and messed the whole lot around it just becomes a PITA.
 
A competent spark wold have this resolved in under an hour.

I think I've figured it out but unfortunately explaining it falls foul of the forum "step by step guides" rule.

Also there are a few pitfalls with lighting circuits that mean it's not safe to offer diagnostic advice.

Generally the feed in should go through the switch then to each light fitting with the neutrals from the light fittings returning to the feed in neutral.

Your dimmer may need it's own neutral, note just because there is a black wire there it may not necessarily be a neutral, it could be an unidentified switched live.

And when someone has been in and messed the whole lot around it just becomes a PITA.
Thanks, I tried making a 'loop' (from the mains in to the dimmer, to the first lamp to the second etc) but it just stayed on. Tbh i am a bit tired, so i will give it another go next week and if i can't get it to work i might just get someone in. What confused me was when i looked online it suggested grouping the 3 live wires together but then i couldn't figure out how the light switch would act as the circuit breaker. :pensive:
 
Long story short i had a friend helping me out with some DIY today and I have realised that he left the wiring like pictured. I have and voltage tester so i have worked out that the middle red wire is the live one.

Long story short they are now not working (i have tried some variations based on what i have read online but they just leave the lights on). I put them back to the way i found them wired - please see pictures (including the dimmer as i think he messed with that too. Can someone tell me what is wrong and how they need to be positioned/ connected?

and dont worry, i will never let him touch electrics again....

View attachment 49597

View attachment 49598
This must be the most common fault I get called out for why does nobody make note of the wiring before they touch it, 5 minute job including cup of tea £30/40 notes depending on my mood
 
Several posts have been deleted advising which conductor to connect to which and whilst they may be correct we cannot be certain. The OP has limited electrical knowledge and the best course of action is to get an electrician in as suggested several times.
Thread closed.
 

Reply to advice - two wall nights and one dimmer switch wired wrong! in the Electrical Forum area at ElectriciansForums.net

OFFICIAL SPONSORS

Electrical Goods - Electrical Tools - Brand Names Electrician Courses Green Electrical Goods PCB Way Electrical Goods - Electrical Tools - Brand Names Pushfit Wire Connectors Electric Underfloor Heating Electrician Courses
These Official Forum Sponsors May Provide Discounts to Regular Forum Members - If you would like to sponsor us then CLICK HERE and post a thread with who you are, and we'll send you some stats etc

Electrical Forum

Welcome to the Electrical Forum at ElectriciansForums.net. The friendliest electrical forum online. General electrical questions and answers can be found in the electrical forum.
This website was designed, optimised and is hosted by Untold Media. Operating under the name Untold Media since 2001.
Back
Top
AdBlock Detected

We get it, advertisements are annoying!

Sure, ad-blocking software does a great job at blocking ads, but it also blocks useful features of our website. For the best site experience please disable your AdBlocker.

I've Disabled AdBlock