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At the top of the list is loose connections. A loose connection will oxidize from the heating and cooling action of the switch being turned off and on. This oxidation creates a gradual rise in the resistance of the connection. This means that more and more current is needed to overcome the resistance. More current results in more heat. Left unchecked the insulation on the wire will bake and fall off leaving bare conductors in the box or the wire will eventually burn off the terminal. Any noticeable heat at a switching device should be dealt with immediately.
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Wiki User
∙ 11y agoA 3-way switch should not get hot. The current running through a 3-way switch is the same as a single pole (normal) switch. If your switches are hot you have major electrical problems.
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I have Two black wires and one red wire conected to a switch. Which is hot and which is neutral?
It sounds like your switch is a three way switch. The wire that is on the different colour screw of the three screws will either be the "hot" wire or the wire to the load. The neutral might or might not be in the box that the switch is in depending on which end of the three way system you are at. See discuss question button below.No wires connected to a switch are neutral. A switch breaks the circuit of the hot wire. Black AND red are hot wires. White is used for neutral and is almost never connected to a switch.
What can be compared to a three-way switch?
a switch on railroad tracks
How can an intermediate switch be used with a 2-way switch system to control a light from four floors?
A two way switch is UK terminology for a North American three way switch. Though the switch has two names it is still a Single Pole Double Throw switch that has three terminals. North American terminology. The circuit is the same as the three way switch system. To control from four locations just add another intermediate switch. For the system to work properly the new intermediate switch has to be adjacent to the existing intermediate switch. The connections must run - three way, intermediate, intermediate, three way.
How do you connect 2 black and 2 red wires to a new switch?
switches work by interupting the hot side of a wire loop, so what you do is you wire your non hot (usually black) wires directly to the device you are trying to control, next, to one side of the switch you connect your two reds, then to the other side of the switch connet the hot lead from your device.
What is a red wire switch leg?
Red is the alternate hot leg in a 2 way switch circuit
Is there a way to wire a 3 way household dimmer switch as a 2 way dimmer switch?
You need a three way switch to control lights from two locations. The name is misleading. Three way switch refers to the connection points on the switch. You can use a three way switch as a single switch as long as you place hot wire on the brass screw and the use any of the other screws for the return hot.
I have Two black wires and one red wire conected to a switch. Which is hot and which is neutral?
It sounds like your switch is a three way switch. The wire that is on the different colour screw of the three screws will either be the "hot" wire or the wire to the load. The neutral might or might not be in the box that the switch is in depending on which end of the three way system you are at. See discuss question button below.No wires connected to a switch are neutral. A switch breaks the circuit of the hot wire. Black AND red are hot wires. White is used for neutral and is almost never connected to a switch.
Is it possible to run power from a three way switch to install an outlet?
Yes you just have to "steal" power from the switch. Do this by running a pigtail wire from the hot of the switch to the hot wire of the plug. Make sure you do this before the switch or you will end up with your outlet being switched as well.
Can you replace an old no ground single switch with a three way switch?
A three way switch can be used as a single switch. Replacing this switch will not allow you to switch a fixture from two locations unless there is a three wire cable going to the second box.
Why use an alternate hot leg in a 2 way switch circuit?
Its probably a three way switch Or if you have four wires and a ground connected it could turn on two things at once. Double pole single throw
What can be compared to a three-way switch?
a switch on railroad tracks
How can an intermediate switch be used with a 2-way switch system to control a light from four floors?
A two way switch is UK terminology for a North American three way switch. Though the switch has two names it is still a Single Pole Double Throw switch that has three terminals. North American terminology. The circuit is the same as the three way switch system. To control from four locations just add another intermediate switch. For the system to work properly the new intermediate switch has to be adjacent to the existing intermediate switch. The connections must run - three way, intermediate, intermediate, three way.
How do you connect 2 black and 2 red wires to a new switch?
switches work by interupting the hot side of a wire loop, so what you do is you wire your non hot (usually black) wires directly to the device you are trying to control, next, to one side of the switch you connect your two reds, then to the other side of the switch connet the hot lead from your device.
What is a 3 gang 3 way switch?
3 gang switch and you can call it 2-way switch..is a type of swithces we are using mostly in the stairs lighting ,that mean you have switch up to the stair and one down to the stair and you can switch the light on from one and switch it off from the other switch and via verse. <<>> There is no such thing as a three gang three way switch,. The nearest thing is a three gang double throw switch. It is used to supply a three phase load from two individual three phase supply sources. This is the type of manual switch that can be used for emergency power switch over from utility to generator. Three way switching uses a single pole double throw switch at each end of the circuit and a cross over switch in the center position. The center switch in a three way lighting configuration is a cross over switch and a double pole double throw switch in that position will not work.
What is a red wire switch leg?
Red is the alternate hot leg in a 2 way switch circuit
How many hot terminals are there on a 3-way light switch?
No good way to answer this. A 3-way light switch has one wire coming to it, two wires run to the second switch and one back out of the second switch to the light. At any point, any one of the terminals may be "hot". The only one always hot is the first single terminal that is the power source.
What is three way switching?
A three way switch is use control in two station of the lamp
