Hi all. I did a dumb thing. I was helping a friend put in a new shower and had to widen the door. The bathroom switch was okay to move but I also took out a three way switch on the outside of it. And I don’t remember how it was wired. From what I know there doesn’t seem to be enough wires, but it was working before so I guess there are. I thought I would remember it but don’t.
What I have is the end that supplies the power. There is a 14/2 coming to it hot. There is another 14/2 heading to the other switch in the next room, that powers a receptacle. I thought it had to be three wire for it to work, but somehow it was working before. So which wires go to the switch?
i appreciate any help.

 

3 way with power at the switch

 

Thanks for that. It looks like they went without a neutral. The drawing shows the extra wire. But somehow they made the two wire plus ground work. Is that possible?

 

I wouldn't know I just follow the pitchers.

 

Having run this circuit in residential wiring as well as work truck lighting Old Farm Truck's image is about as clear as it can get. Honestly I don't know any other arrangement would allow multiple switches for a single load to work properly.

 

Hi Bob,

If the wiring is with standard 14-2 wiring, you won't have a red wire. The white in your circuit will look like the white Old Farm's pictures, but all of the hot side wiring will be with black wires. That can be confusing if you're not used to seeing it.

Unless you're comfortable wiring live circuits you'll want to turn the breaker on/off for testing and wiring. It might be a bit aggravating, but there's enough voltage there to hurt you if you make a mistake!

You'll want a volt meter (or circuit tester) to find the hot wire in the switch closest to the breaker (switch 1). Test all 3 black wires against the white. If all of the black wires are loose, there should be only 1 hot wire. That wire will connect to terminal C in the picture above. Note that the hot is normally the end of the switch with only 1 terminal. The end with 2 terminals has the switched lines. Attach the other 2 black wires to the other 2 terminals.

Now go to the other switch (switch 2). If you know which wire goes to the lamp, attach it just like you attached the hot wire. (To terminal C -- the end of the switch with 1 terminal.) If not, you'll have to find it. To find the hot wire, test the 3 black wires against each other to see which two carry voltage. Change the position of switch 1 and test the wires at switch 2 again. The black wire that had voltage during both tests is the wire that goes to the lamp. Connect it to terminal C. Connect the other 2 wires to the other 2 terminals. (I'm meticulous with wanting both switches down when the power to the lamp is off. If that matters to you, you might have to change the last 2 wires that you connected, or turn the switch upside down.)

And make sure the terminal screws are tight. A loose connection can heat up and burn up the switch, or worse.

That's it. You've just rewired the 3-way switches!