Wiring switch-controlled light

[Earl James]

Here's another conundrum for you HayZee. I'm trying to wire a switched-controlled light which takes its fee from a hot receptacle. The live fee also services two three-way switches for bathroom lights. I've wired the light two ways as suggested in two electrical books but the circuit blows. I've back-tracked and both the outlet and two-way switches work so the problem lies with the single switch and the way it is wired, either in the switch box or the way it gets its feed.
The live feed is in a four inch square box and from the receptacle I took a two-wire cable to a switch box and thence to the light. I'm thinking that the wire may have to be tied off and only the black wire affixed to the terminal.
I look forward to your reply with thanks in advance.

[HayZee518]

ditto

ok, I'm assuming you have a dual three way switch - that is two three ways on one switch yoke and one receptacle. now what you want to do is remove the receptacle and install a switch-outlet combination with the other two switch yoke devices. get back to me so I can draw a diagram.

[Earl James]

ok, I'm assuming you have a dual three way switch - that is two three ways on one switch yoke and one receptacle. now what you want to do is remove the receptacle and install a switch-outlet combination with the other two switch yoke , but devices. get back to me so I can draw a diagram.

Thanks HayZee518. I realize the difficulty in trying to visualize my situation, but I'll try and articulate the setup more accurately. The physical room configuration is two bedrooms separated by a bathroom in the middle. Bedroom #1 has a 3-way switch at the entrance to the bathroom on its side as does the bedroom on the other side. There were also two receptacles on the circuit as well. Everything has been fine for years and an electrician did see the wiring when I had the wall removed to relocate the three-way switch in bedroom #1. The live feed for all of this had been in a 4 inch box (on bedroom # 1 side) along with the cable connections, but of course it is not code to have a junction box in-accessible so the box was moved out further on the a stud and a plaster ring was affixed. The electrician did all this and it was in working order. Incidentally, this box is about a foot above the floor and that's the limit of the live feed.
Subsequently, I realized that the four inch box (on bedroom #1 side with the plaster ring could be fitted with an additional outlet instead of just putting a cover plate on it. This I did and that worked fine as well, until I decided to add the extra single switch to service a light up in the loft. I though that because the new receptacle outlet, which is always hot, why not take the "juice" from it and run it up to the proposed new single switch by way of a separate 2-wire cable. The trouble lies in the last addition of cable with me using the upper terminals on the outlet receptacle.
More wordy than I intended, but I hope this helps.

[HayZee518]

switch controlled light

ok, I can sort of visualize this. the 4 inch is where the hot feed is and all splices occur in this box.
now, for a three way circuit, a hot cable must enter either three way on one end and the load taken off the other three way. the neutrals are just spliced together. the hot is the only wire that is switched.
so a hot feed into the j box. one cable from there to three way #1 and another cable to three way #2. At the remote three way #1 a load to a light #1. Switch #2 remote to light #2. so you have two lights, one for each three way switch circuit.
just thinking for two three ways controlling one light from two directions would need a four way somewhere in the middle. what you'd have is a three way to a four way to a three way.
I see what you did in that j box. you took off the cover plate and replaced it with a single device plaster ring and installed a receptacle here. now what you want to do is install an addition cable to feed a single pole switch and then to the load in the loft.
this should be easy.
run a 12 or 14/2 from the j-box to the loft switch box. at the 4 inch j-box connect the white to the nickel screw and the black to the brass screw. at the remote switch box, splice the white from the load to the white from the 4 inch box. the black from the 4 inch j-box to one screw on the switch and the load black to the other brass screw on the switch. so you'll end up with a black and white at the loft light. then its easy white to white and black to black at the loft light.

[Earl James]

Wiring switch-controlled light

Thanks HayZee518, your advice is what I have done. This is what is so puzzling. Basically one has two wires, black and white running from the junction box (the receptacle) to the lone switch box. The light is at the end of the run so |I brought a black and white from it. In the switch box I spliced the two whites and then attached the black feed to one terminal of the switch and the black from the light to the other terminal of the switch. So it should just be a simple off and on event. After your submission I re-checked the wiring and this is the way I have it wired. I am puzzled, but, like most things, there is a solution staring me in the face. What say you?

[HayZee518]

switching a light

I have drawn up a diagram which I hope the electrician has installed. it consists of your existing junction box, a feed to your first switchbox, inter-connected three wire to the bath, from the bath to the other switchbox and a 2 wire to the lamp load in the bathroom.
your added wire and circuit is on the left hand part of the drawing.

[Earl James]

Wiring single pole switch

Good afternoon HayZee518, I won't get a chance to check on all of this until tonight. Thanks for the diagram and help. EJ

[doorrepairsac]

nice diagram