For the small remodel I’m doing, I have to replace 2 ceiling fans. No problem.
BUT, in one room the switch does not control the ceiling box. That is constant hot.
Now, the switch box has a 2 wire and a 3 wire coming into it. The red from the 3 wire is wire nutted to the black from the 2 wire, then another black wire is pigtailed off of that and connected to the switch.
The black from the 3 wire is also connected to the switch.
The whites are just tied together. When separated from the switch, both black wires are hot. Two hot wires feeding a switch and nothing feeds the switch.
I do some electrical work, but this I do not understand. Anyone have a clue?
Thanks.
Glenn
Replies
You don't say what is going into the ceiling box? Off hand I could think of two reasons to have a two wire with ground and a three wire with ground at the switch:
1. it is a wired for a three way switch and the red is the traveler.
2. It is wire so you could do a ceiling fan with light, black controls the fan and red the light.
Is there another switch somewhere that controls nothing and someone took out a three way and put in a single pole switch on the one you are working with?
Are the black and red tied together at the other end on the three wire?
Wallyo
Certain things I don't remember from Friday but will check tomorrow.Not sure what is in the ceiling box. I will check.Room is small, bedroom in a cape, so there are no other switches or 3 ways.I understand about the 3 wire in your second option. I have done that before and will have to check.The problem is that both blacks are hot when not connected to the switch.I will explore further tomorrow.Thanks.Glenn
That is way I am thinking that if the 3 wire goes to the ceiling box someone may of caped the red and black together up there causing the black to route hot back to the switch it does not pop the breaker because it is just circling in a loop not going to ground.Wallyo
Check everything again. If it is as you describe the switch wouldn't work.
Disconnect everything and locate your hot wire.
You need to look at the light/fan box and maybe even disconnect some of the wires and them put power backon and test where you have power in that circuit.
If you have power coming into the box then it is setup to switch power back at the fixture and also supply power to the switch box and then downstream from their.
http://www.selfhelpandmore.com/switchoutlet/fixonhotswitch/
Or the box might be wired like this for the fan always hot and if it has the a light the light switched. Or it might have been prewired like that and who ever installed the fan/light did not understand it.
http://www.selfhelpandmore.com/switchoutlet/fanlight/fanhot1switchpwsw.htm
Note the black and red might be interchanged from this, either is OK.
And with this setup power might be also feed OUT of the box to downstream loads.
If it is not then you could also get a combo fan/light control and wire it up this way.
http://www.selfhelpandmore.com/switchoutlet/fanlight/fansepswitch.htm
And here all of the different ways that a fan/light can be wired.
http://www.selfhelpandmore.com/switchoutlet/fanlight/
And as the OP said it might be part of a 3 way (again not properly wired).
.
A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.