![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Well that didn't go well.
I had planned on installing the second ceiling light fixture. First thing, I drilled a small hole in the ceiling to mark where I wanted it. Second, I took the first light down, to see what the wiring looked like. It didn't look easy. Actually the wiring didn't look difficult, but it would take a bit of work to get into the box. Then I decided to look at wiring diagrams for three-way switches.
Oh shit.
I got lightheaded just looking at them. Wiring two fixtures into your three-way circuit is apparently much more involved than only one.
Just to (try to) be clear... there is a conduit coming from one switch, and going to one side of the box (the box in the ceiling, where the wires are all connected, above the light fixture). And there is another conduit going from a switch on the opposite side of the room to the opposite side of the box. So I was going to disconnect the one of the conduits from the box. That conduit would go the new, second box which would be closer to the switch, and I'd get the slack I was looking for. Then I'd connect the two boxes. This would be easy - red wire to red wire, white wire to white wire, etc. Nope! Three-way circuits are not that easy, and three-way circuits with two lights are even less easy.
So my next plan was to cut the conduit in the wall above the switch, and put the extender coming off the switch. I'd connect them in a box in the wall. But I opened up the switch box. There are two switches and one outlet. Both switches are for three-way lights. The outlet is on a different circuit than the switches. There are five conduits feeding into the triple-wide box. There is a lot of wire in the box! I could hardly see the back of it.
I would have to pull the flexible metal conduit (BX) from the switch and box, and run some non-metallic cable between the switch and the new box. That would I could definitely just hook up the right colors. But when I looked at the wires in the box, I discovered there were four wires. White, black, red and blue. Blue? Home Depot doesn't have four-wire cable, and it was Saturday, so the electrical supply place wasn't open. Could I risk running two strands of two-wire? I don't really want to take risks with electrical.
So after looking and thinking and looking and thinking all day (and getting a little input from a buddy at a distance), I decided to close it up, and it was going to stay the way it is. I would drywall around that one conduit, leaving it exposed. No second light fixture. This should be OK, because the undercabinet lighting will be fairly bright. But it's disappointing.
I cut a slot for the three remaining conduits, then drywalled to close up the ceiling. After supper I installed the switched outlet near the sink, for the undercabinet lighting there. Cutting that flexible conduit is a pain, especially when you need to avoid cutting the wires inside. I needed Cindy's help to hold it while I cut with the saw.
Just now, I discovered they do sell four-wire BX cable, and also cutters for it. I'm not working on it Sunday, so I may go to the electrical supply place on Monday, and see if they have any. I haven't completely closed up the wall yet.
Monday night I finish putting up the drywall. I need to contact the cabinet guy and see if he's still planning on delivering the lowers this weekend. If so, I need to remove the existing lowers before then. That means emptying the cabinets, disconnecting the plumbing, removing the countertops, pulling out the cabinets. Maybe pulling up flooring. He can help with demolishing, but the more I can do, the better.
Three cables sunk into the top plate, and the one that will remain exposed.
The rat's nest of wires inside the switch box.
.
I had planned on installing the second ceiling light fixture. First thing, I drilled a small hole in the ceiling to mark where I wanted it. Second, I took the first light down, to see what the wiring looked like. It didn't look easy. Actually the wiring didn't look difficult, but it would take a bit of work to get into the box. Then I decided to look at wiring diagrams for three-way switches.
Oh shit.
I got lightheaded just looking at them. Wiring two fixtures into your three-way circuit is apparently much more involved than only one.
Just to (try to) be clear... there is a conduit coming from one switch, and going to one side of the box (the box in the ceiling, where the wires are all connected, above the light fixture). And there is another conduit going from a switch on the opposite side of the room to the opposite side of the box. So I was going to disconnect the one of the conduits from the box. That conduit would go the new, second box which would be closer to the switch, and I'd get the slack I was looking for. Then I'd connect the two boxes. This would be easy - red wire to red wire, white wire to white wire, etc. Nope! Three-way circuits are not that easy, and three-way circuits with two lights are even less easy.
So my next plan was to cut the conduit in the wall above the switch, and put the extender coming off the switch. I'd connect them in a box in the wall. But I opened up the switch box. There are two switches and one outlet. Both switches are for three-way lights. The outlet is on a different circuit than the switches. There are five conduits feeding into the triple-wide box. There is a lot of wire in the box! I could hardly see the back of it.
I would have to pull the flexible metal conduit (BX) from the switch and box, and run some non-metallic cable between the switch and the new box. That would I could definitely just hook up the right colors. But when I looked at the wires in the box, I discovered there were four wires. White, black, red and blue. Blue? Home Depot doesn't have four-wire cable, and it was Saturday, so the electrical supply place wasn't open. Could I risk running two strands of two-wire? I don't really want to take risks with electrical.
So after looking and thinking and looking and thinking all day (and getting a little input from a buddy at a distance), I decided to close it up, and it was going to stay the way it is. I would drywall around that one conduit, leaving it exposed. No second light fixture. This should be OK, because the undercabinet lighting will be fairly bright. But it's disappointing.
I cut a slot for the three remaining conduits, then drywalled to close up the ceiling. After supper I installed the switched outlet near the sink, for the undercabinet lighting there. Cutting that flexible conduit is a pain, especially when you need to avoid cutting the wires inside. I needed Cindy's help to hold it while I cut with the saw.
Just now, I discovered they do sell four-wire BX cable, and also cutters for it. I'm not working on it Sunday, so I may go to the electrical supply place on Monday, and see if they have any. I haven't completely closed up the wall yet.
Monday night I finish putting up the drywall. I need to contact the cabinet guy and see if he's still planning on delivering the lowers this weekend. If so, I need to remove the existing lowers before then. That means emptying the cabinets, disconnecting the plumbing, removing the countertops, pulling out the cabinets. Maybe pulling up flooring. He can help with demolishing, but the more I can do, the better.
Three cables sunk into the top plate, and the one that will remain exposed.
The rat's nest of wires inside the switch box.
.
no subject
Date: 2021-08-22 04:50 pm (UTC)From:You probably already know this but: Red, black and blue wires are the colours for three phase wiring. Most houses only have so called single phase wiring. This is confusing terminology because that means a house has two phases coming in Not one as the name seems to indicate. I can kind of see why an electrician might use a handy spare four wire conduit for 3 way switches. After all it is just a wire...
no subject
Date: 2021-08-24 12:44 am (UTC)From:Later in the evening I was looking up such products, and found a photo of four-wire BX (with blue). And learned of BX cutters. So I am again thinking about replacing this one conduit.