Dream Weaver

Further to my earlier wiring query, I will be going the way of the electrician for that one.

However, I have now bought a new ceiling light which needs fitting in place of the current 3 x spotlight type thing.

The current light is wired as such:



The three lights are of the potlight type. The blue wires from each light are tiwsted into the left block, and the brown wires from each are twisted into the right hand block.

The lights are currently onto a dimmer switch.

Now the problem - the new lights are halogen and cannot use a dimmer switch.

I am presuming the black wires that join into the left block are 1 x neutral and 1 x for the dimmer. Therefore how can I wire up to my new light? The new light is double insulated, and simply has a transformer with a blue and brown wire leading out.

My reckoning is that one of the black wires goes to blue, and the red wire to brown. But what do I do with the copper earth (coming off right from the red top wire), and the second black wire which goes into to left block.

I need to know by this afternoon,so I can fit it before darkness.

Do I need to wire into a junction box, and if so how?

DW

Dream Weaver

Forgot to say, i will be swapping the dimmer for a normal switch.

The current dimmer has 2 red wires going to the top of the switch, with a lightbulb symbol, and COM1.

The bottom of the switch has a black wire. 1 red wire and the black come from the same sheath, with a copper earth. The other red wire has a copper earth also.

God, home electrics are hard - give me a car anyday to wire up [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

DW

fast bloke

If you are getting a spark to do the other job he will do this for a couple of quid. 5 minute job if you know what you are doing.

fast bloke

p.s. - If the earth really is connected to the red wire, I would really really think about getting the spark to check the entire house.

Dream Weaver

Cheers again FB - turning into a nightmare this kitchen job - we removed the radiator the other night, then the upright and valve decided to blow, flooding the whole kitchen.

Was funny though holding my thumb over the pipe - everytime I moved it shot big jets of black water all over the place.

The earth wire is alongside the red, but not sure how it is all connected. It is all attached to a circuit breaker though, so I should be safe playing - no?

DW

BugEyed

Simon

Take FastBloke's advice - get the Spark to check the whole house! What you have got is not correct and is potentially dangerous.

Duncan

Dream Weaver

What is the correct configuration? I will have a proper look again now, and check the wiring.

Should the copper earth be joined via one of the black wires?

DW

fast bloke

it shouldn't be joined to anything other than the fitting. The earth is there as a path af least resistance so that if you get a short it will blow a fuse or trip a breaker instead of giving you a live fitting. There are a number of ways to do it correctly, but to get the best one for a refit you need to understand the entire existing circut. You are correct in the blue to black and brown to red assumption, but the dimmer doesn't sound straightforward. Com is generally the live feed. Sounds like the feed is to the switch and on around the ring with the circut to the light coming from the bottom. The earths most likely just make a circut with other earths.
Connect the switch first. It should be a straightforward like for like swap. Try it with the existing light. If the works then swap the light as you had reckoned.

Disclaimer - take the above advice at your own risk

care3

like the man above says

[Edited by care3 - 3/22/2002 9:42:16 PM]

firefox

Hell...

I'll offr anyone advice.. whether they decide to use it is at their own risk

The second black wire shouldnt be from the dimmer.. chances are it goes off to feed another light circuit somewhere else.

As your new light fitment is double insulted (should have two square boxes inside each other as a symbol) and no earth terminal, I tend to slide a long piece of earth sleeving over the unused bare earth wire and bend the wire back to prevent the sleeving coming off.

J.

Dream Weaver

Thanks again everyone - new light now installed and working - no fires as yet anyway

Just trying a few ideas on the picture lights now. Have bought some conduit and twin and earth wire.

The dimmer switch in the kitchen had 2 red wires joined to the common terminal, but I now think that one of the wires goes off to feed another switch - most of the switches in the house seem to do this, providing a live feed to other switches.

Thanks for the advice so far, plumbing next - any plumbers about?
DW

Luke

Earth into Live???? Good old cowboys.....

Luke

Lets have the Plumbing questions..!!

Dream Weaver

Cheers Luke

The plumbing is not major - I hope.

We drained and removed the kitchen radiator the other night, then the valve broke and flooded the kitchen. We managed to plug the pipe with a cap, and our plumber is coming to cap the pipes properly in a few weeks (he is v busy) as we dont use the radiator.

During the drain and flood, the system lost a lot of water, and since then the bathroom radiator wont heat at all, and the hot water is crap - i.e. cold all the time.

I am presuming the heat exchanger just needs to get back up to full with water from the cistern but not sure - I have bled all the radiators.

Any thoughts chaps?

DW

fast bloke

you might have an airlock in the water pump. Do you have a drain at the lowest point in the heating system? If so you could open this slightly (enough to allow a trickle of water to escape) while allowing full water pressure to the header tank. Leave it like this for a couple of hours, close it off, turn on the heating and bleed all the rads. You might have to do this a few times if you ahve an awkward airlock. Don't forget to top up the header with something to stop corrosion on the inside of the system.


Whats your next project?

cryptwalk

Yeeeesssssuusss DW mr DIY.

2 black into blue 1 red into brown just leave the earth sleaved up. On s/w 1 red in top marked common 1 in 1 way mark.

David_Wallis

You should also make sure all connections are tight... 1.5nm I believe?? As you could start a fire with a loose wire very easily... and also put sleeving over the earth wire if not allready done.. the other common problem people make is when screwing the switch / or socket back they dont check to see where the wires are going in the patress box and screw the scuring screws into them...

David