Bathroom Light and Extractor Fan

[Stephen Skidmore]

Hi

New to the forum, competent diy'er (have added sockets to ring not spurs and added additional lights - know I shouldn't but...) and looking for clarity on wires at a light fitting for a bathroom light and extractor fan.

Changing the bathroom light and didn't take notice of the connections (fool!). I have the usual feed in and out to next light but then there is a switch cable with 1.5mm 3 core & E. From the switch the red permanent live connects from common to the in/out live (red) at the ceiling rose - no problem. In the switch there is then a few yellow wires in L1, one of which goes to the ceiling rose which I believe is going to be switched live.

The query then involves the neutral wires (black). In the light switch back box the switch cable black is block connected to another black wire but is not connected to the switch.

There is a link cable from the light switch to the fan isolator which is directly next to the light switch and I think this is where the other black in the block comes from. There is another cable which is 1mm not sure of cores and not sure what it does but it doesn't go to the bathroom light rose.

So the question is...at the rose do I still connect the switch neutral (black) wire (that is block joined in the back box) to the other 2 neutrals (feed in & out)? Then it is just a case of light neutral to these 3 and light live to the yellow?

Any help appreciated, cheers.

 

[Dustydazzler]

Pictures would help....

 

[Stephen Skidmore]

Hi Dustydazzler

At work & took a moment to seek some help. You're right, it would help tremendously and I will try & get some when I get home.

Cheers

 

[John Preston]

Just be aware that just because the cable is black doesn't mean it's definitely a neutral when it comes to switches. Some folk forget to put red tape or a red sleeve on some lives or switch wires.

 

[Stephen Skidmore]

thanks John - that's true! I know the yellow is live as it runs from L1 in the switch to the rose but that doesn't have a sleeve or tape at any end!

 

[telectrix]

back in the day we didn't always sleeve yellow and blue as any sparks with a brain would know they were L or switched L. these days we have to allow for the Electrical Trainee's that grew up with brown and blue, still in nappies.

 

[John Preston]

back in the day we didn't always sleeve yellow and blue as any sparks with a brain would know they were L or switched L. these days we have to allow for the Electrical Trainee's that grew up with brown and blue, still in nappies.

I only ever sleeved black as the others were phase colours anyway... and I'm not yet back in nappies

 

[telectrix]

i agree. why sleeve phase colours anyway? if it's brown, black or grey, it is LIVE PHASE... o wait, grey is the new N. black is the new E.

 

[The Ghost]

I was working on three phase and the circuits were coloured according to the phase they came off. So Blue was live and Black was neutral joining this up to new colours blue and brown. That was mixed in with a 3 core old colour Red Yellow Blue with the new three core colours Brown Black and Grey so it was an interesting and very careful bit of wiring. Some of it felt so wrong! But it wasn't nothing went bang.