UK Creating a 2nd light switch from a single power source or an existing single light switch

[kreatiff63]

As the title suggests I'm short of power source options to take the power to the plate with 3 way switch (4 in the US). I've seen on youTube that it appears more popular in the US as an option, but there's none in the UK I can find. Does anyone have any experience of this type of connection? What I am seeing is the taking of a spur from a socket, running this to 3amp fused switching wall plate, which controls the power to the light switch using smaller cable too. My preference would have been to take the power from a junction box could find a supply in the attic.

Current plan:

• 1st switch = would take the power to the switch from the attic, we live in a bungalow, but managed to trip the breaker when cutting into a cable with all lights switched off at the CU. So this didn't work
• 1st switch = running 3C+E (Brown/Black/Grey/Earth) to the intermediate switch @ switch 2.
• 1st switch = running cable to the light fitting.
• 2nd switch = receiving 3C+E from switch#1 - sending the same to 3rd switch
• 3rd Switch =receiving 3C+1 from switch#2 - finishing circuit.

This is the video I've used to wire the intermediate switching:

 

[marineboytim]

A cheats way would be to take power from the lighting circuit and fit a sender unit (should be accessable though) and use kinetic switches. No wires or chopping in plasterwork.

Kind regards Tim Knapp

 

[Lucien Nunes]

It's not clear what your underlying question is. Yes, you can run the supply and the switched feed to the lamp via the first 2-way, with 3C+E to the intermediate and on to the other 2-way.

If you mean you tripped the RCD when cutting a lighting cable in the loft, with the MCB turned off, this is not unusual as cutting it can short the neutral to earth which can cause a trip as the neutral is not isolated by a single-pole MCB.

 

[kreatiff63]

As the title suggests I'm short of power source options to take the power to the plate with 3 way switch (4 in the US). I've seen on youTube that it appears more popular in the US as an option, but there's none in the UK I can find. Does anyone have any experience of this type of connection? What I am seeing is the taking of a spur from a socket, running this to 3amp fused switching wall plate, which controls the power to the light switch using smaller cable too. My preference would have been to take the power from a junction box could find a supply in the attic.

Current plan:

• 1st switch = would take the power to the switch from the attic, we live in a bungalow, but managed to trip the breaker when cutting into a cable with all lights switched off at the CU. So this didn't work
• 1st switch = running 3C+E (Brown/Black/Grey/Earth) to the intermediate switch @ switch 2.
• 1st switch = running cable to the light fitting.
• 2nd switch = receiving 3C+E from switch#1 - sending the same to 3rd switch
• 3rd Switch =receiving 3C+1 from switch#2 - finishing circuit.

This is the video I've used to wire the intermediate switching:

Since I posted this I've decided to use what they call in the UK the power to the switch method, using a neighbouring light as the source of the live and neutral wires. The neutral is carried through to the light fitting, and the live joins the L2 terminal. The power to the light is taken from the L1 terminal.