[lord-dudester]

hi all

right im a complete idiot when it comes to electrics so i need some help with this one...

ive bought a rania IR switch for my lounge, currently my lounge has two light switches in it

ive pulled the main switch (the one that gets used the most) off the wall and theres a few too many wires i think!

the new lutron needs two wires, and an earth to the back box but my current switch has one extra wire in it.

its got a common and a L1 and L2 (3 in total excluding earth)

the new dimmer has only space for two wires, can someone please tell how to wire it up!!!??? do i have to out the L1 and L2 in together?


thanks in advance

[hornydragon]

Seems like the Ranioa is single circuit and your current light is 2 circuits, connecting L1 and L2 together will means all lights come on together, is the Rania suitable for that load? The common should be a permanant live feed with switch lives going to each fittting. If in doubt consult a qualified electrician

[lord-dudester]

thanks, hahaha! im well confused now!

so having those two wires means ive two circuits? ive 4 spots in the ceiling that all switch on and off together from two switches in the room...

so maybe the lutron i have is not suitable?

[ZippyCat]

You have got a 2-way switching arrangement which means you can switch on or off the lighting from two locations (the same as found in a house at the top and bottom of the stairs). The only way you will be able to get the Lutron to work is to do away with one of the light switches, as I don’t think the Lutron is 2-way compatible (as is the case with most dimmers).

Did you take off the other switch? If so, were there even more wires behind that one? If you could have a look we will be able to offer more advice.

[lord-dudester]

behind the other switch is exactly the same... i'd quite happily do away with it though as its never used.

[lord-dudester]

right after a bit of sniffing about on the net it seems i have a 2 way circuit and am needing to simplify it to 1 way so the new lutron can work...

is this a job for the pro's? sounds a bit complex to me...

[wolfboy79]

Originally Posted by ZippyCat

You have got a 2-way switching arrangement which means you can switch on or off the lighting from two locations (the same as found in a house at the top and bottom of the stairs). The only way you will be able to get the Lutron to work is to do away with one of the light switches, as I don’t think the Lutron is 2-way compatible (as is the case with most dimmers).

http://www.onetouchstores.co.uk/defa...LutTelumeSlave

Have no experience of using this with Rania dimmers but may help out the op. Bit on the expensive side. Modify the existing lighting circuit should be left to the pro's imo. Fitting a dimmer plus slave however can be done relatively easily. You should check the rating of the dimmer and slave units depending on what spots you have. If they're low voltage you'll have to ensure you have the right Rania dimmer in the first place.

[ZippyCat]

It is fairly simple to do what you are after and shouldn’t require an electrician unless you are unsure of what you are doing. Normally in a two 2-way installation the ‘Live’ and ‘Switched Live’ wires are connected across terminals ‘L1’ and ‘L2’ as opposed to ‘Common’ and ‘L1’ as found in a 1-way installation. L1, L2 and Common are then interconnected between both switches, usually with a 3-core and earth cable (note that the common is only connected between the switches and goes no further). However, you have indicated that there is exactly the same number of wires behind both switches; therefore it appears the electrician who originally wired the lighting did some of the connections elsewhere as opposed to at the switch itself.

If you feel confident enough, switch off the electricity, isolate the one switch (disconnect it in a safe manner), and short the wires currently connected to terminals L1 and L2 at the other switch using a terminal block. If when you reinstate the power the lights turn on, you have confirmed that the wires currently connected to L1 and L2 are actually Live and Switched Live, which can then in turn be connected to the new dimmer. If the lights do not switch on I would recommend you get an electrician in as the installation is doing something slightly unconventional and will take an electrician to deduce what is going on.

I must stress again that you need to be confident in what you are doing before undertaking any of the above.

[lord-dudester]

thanks all for your input on this one, i'll have a look tonight when im home but it sounds like it may be a job for the pros to be called in to do.

i'll go grab a terminal and a blank switch plate today though just incase!!