i need to replace a two way light switch in my hall it hasnt worked for a whilewhen i took the cover off i discovered what i presume to be the problem one of the red wires had snapped and there is a plain yellow wire hanging loose !!!! where do i connect the plain yellow wire to ???? please help thanks jue

julie tudor, February 2008

Julie,
You could always check the other switch on the circuit, the only difference being if its a 1 way conversion then there will be two extra wires in the switch,
L1 - red (live)
L2 - black (switch live)

With the power off , pull the switch forward an make a note of the cable colours , then simply wire the other switch the same way !

Hope this helps !

Johnny, February 2008

You'll see that your new switch has 3 terminals - common(com), L1 and L2. This is how it should be done....Red goes to the common (on its own, at the top), Yellow goes to L1, and Blue to L2. The separate earth wire should connect to the metal box sunk in the wall (if indeed it is metal). If the lamp doesn't behave, swap round L1 and L2 connections. Make sure the light circuit is switched off at the fuse box - even though the lamp maybe off, the circuit is still live.

John, February 2008

Assuming it was originally wired according to protocol, the yellow wire will go in the connection complimenting the blue wire.
For example if the blue wire is in L1, then the yellow will go in L2 (or vise versa).
If your switch is a 2 gang (two switches on the front) be careful not to get them mixed up.
Because they are all switch wires, if you get it wrong there should be no bangs - just lights that don't work properly if at all.

Colin, February 2008