wiring help

[jeffdonovan]

I have two lights that were wired through a switch in the following order. Power >> switch >> light >> light. I changed the two light fixtures successfully but, after a period of time (two weeks or so), the lights would no longer worked. I checked the obvious things like the breaker and the connections at the fixtures with no luck. After some more investigation, I found that the wire that feeds the switch is not carrying any juice. To test this theory out, I fed power to the switch from another line with success. This circuit powers an outdoor light in the following manner. Power >> light >> switch. The line from the exterior light has a white and black wire. I attached the white wire from the exterior light to the white wire running to the interior lights and wired both black wires to the switch. The problem I have now is that when I want to turn on the interior lights, the outdoor light will also be on. Is there a way to get the power from the exterior light line into a separate switch for the interior lights without affecting flow to the exterior light?

Thank you
Jeff

[Pal Joey]

A couple of questions, do you know where the interior light switch is fed from? Do you know what circut that light switch is on? Can you turn off that breaker, see what else loses power (perhaps a recptacle nearby or something) and check the connections there as well. If the switch worked for a while, some junction point upstream from that switch may have become loose. Also if you got power from the exterior light, are those two switches in the same box? The picture is kind of vague.If you could elaborate a bit more, maybe we can figure something out to help you.

[jeffdonovan]

Sorry for the confusion. Here is what I know. The switches for both the exterior and interior light are in the same box along with a switch for the fireplace. I know which circuit the exterior light is on by turning off the breaker. This breaker also services a nearby receptacle as well as two bedrooms (lights and receptacles) upstairs. I do not know which citcuit the interior light is on. The line that fed the switch to the interior light has no power. I tested this theory by attaching a lamp's cord (two wires) to the line. This resulted in the lamp not lighting up. As far as I know all other receptacles and lights in the house work. I even know which lights and receptacles are connected to which breaker. I think that the wire that was connected to the interior lights has somehow become loose. However, it would be too much work to try and reconnect it for a couple of reasons. One, the house is completely finished and I am not particularly handy when it comes to carpentry. Two, the time, money and effort to locate and access the junction box is probably not worth it. I can live with both lights coming on. If however there is a relatively simple solution, I would like to explore it.

quote:Originally posted by Pal Joey

A couple of questions, do you know where the interior light switch is fed from? Do you know what circut that light switch is on? Can you turn off that breaker, see what else loses power (perhaps a recptacle nearby or something) and check the connections there as well. If the switch worked for a while, some junction point upstream from that switch may have become loose. Also if you got power from the exterior light, are those two switches in the same box? The picture is kind of vague.If you could elaborate a bit more, maybe we can figure something out to help you.

[Pal Joey]

Ok, so if I understand your situation, you have a switch for the interior light with a black wire on one screw (power into the switch), A black wire on the other screw(to the lights) white wires nutted together shoved into the back of the box. And the switch for the exterior light done in the same fashion. We won't worry about the fireplace switch. If you disconnected the "power in" or "line side" wire to the interior switch, taped it up, tucked it in and and left it alone. Then removed the line side wire to the exterior switch, wirenutted or pigtailed to that wire two pieces of wire about six inches long, making sure the wires are the same thickness or guage (#12 or #14), then taking the other end of each of those wires to the empty screws on the switches, that should do the trick for you. I hope I've gotten the right picture of your situation and this helps. Please keep me posted.

[Jimmer]

Jeff,

If we can back up for a second... It sounds like when you replaced one of the lights you may have loosened the power feed down to the switch. Remove the two new lights and see if there are additional connectors in the box. Test for power at this location. Inspect these and adjust/tighten as required. Then try your light switch again.

Good luck, Jim

'Just a handyman trying to help'

[jeffdonovan]

The wires from the interior light run directly to the switch and were secure. The problem is the power source wire to this switch is not supplying any juice. The interior light works fine when wired to the exterior light power source and switch. The problem I am confronted with is when I turn on the switch, both the exterior and interior lights come on (as they should). I want to know if there is a way to add another switch to the circuit that will allow me to control the interior light at the same time allowing me to control the exterior light with the existing switch. I have two diagrams that show the way it was wired and the way I now have it wired, but I do not know how to add these diagrams to this post.

[jeffdonovan]

I just thought I would let everyone know that my problem had a solution. I traced the wires from the switch to the interior lights to a small box at the bottom of the fireplace. The power supply to this box was non-existing, so I checked each and every breaker in the house. All the breakers checked out OK and this confused the hell out of me. Finally, I decided to call an electrician from out of town who I know. After explaining the problem, what I had done and what I thought I might have to do (rewire from the panel to the switch), he offered one last hope. He said that a lot of fireplaces are actually plugged in to a receptacle. This would explain why all the breakers and circuits appear to be working, yet the power wasn't there. Well, it took some work but I managed to access the rear of the fireplace and sure enough there was an unplugged cord. The lesson I have learned is never stop asking questions - somebody will know the answer.

Thanks again for all your suggestions and help. I am sure I'll be back again for your expert advice and comments.

Jeff