LED Light Problems
#1
Member
Thread Starter
LED Light Problems
The setup is: ceiling light/fan/heater unit, 1 40w LED light on the wall. Wall switches....... 1 paddle switch controls LED light, 2 2-way switches and 1 3 way switch to control ceiling unit.
Originally there was a 5 40 watt bulb halogen light bar on the wall instead of the LED. The paddle switch controlled the light bar and the other 3 switches controlled the ceiling unit.
After installing the LED now every switch will tun on the LED, the heater in the ceiling unit won't come on and the vent fan runs very slow, sometimes the ceiling unit lights will come on, sometimes they won't.
I wired the LED light the same way the halogen light bar was wired. The common from the box and common to the switch were tied together. The hot from the box was on one end of the light and the black from the switch was on the other end. So apparently power to the ceiling unit runs through the wall light as it won't work unless the wall light is wired up.
I don't know if this makes electrical sense but I'm wondering if the electrician who wired it up originally counted on the total resistance from the halogen light bar to keep it from coming on when the switches for the ceiling unit were used.
At any rate it looks like I might have to disconnect the power at the LED and run it down to the switch in order to isolate the LED from the ceiling unit. Does that sound right?
Any suggestions much appreciated.
Originally there was a 5 40 watt bulb halogen light bar on the wall instead of the LED. The paddle switch controlled the light bar and the other 3 switches controlled the ceiling unit.
After installing the LED now every switch will tun on the LED, the heater in the ceiling unit won't come on and the vent fan runs very slow, sometimes the ceiling unit lights will come on, sometimes they won't.
I wired the LED light the same way the halogen light bar was wired. The common from the box and common to the switch were tied together. The hot from the box was on one end of the light and the black from the switch was on the other end. So apparently power to the ceiling unit runs through the wall light as it won't work unless the wall light is wired up.
I don't know if this makes electrical sense but I'm wondering if the electrician who wired it up originally counted on the total resistance from the halogen light bar to keep it from coming on when the switches for the ceiling unit were used.
At any rate it looks like I might have to disconnect the power at the LED and run it down to the switch in order to isolate the LED from the ceiling unit. Does that sound right?
Any suggestions much appreciated.
#3
Your thread was moved.
You wired the LED fixture incorrectly. It sounds like you have the light connected across two switched hot lines and missed the neutral.
What are you calling common ? There is no "common" wire. White is neutral but neutral won't be found on a switch. There is a common terminal on a three way switch but that is a hot connection. So if you connected that hot connection and the black from the box.... you have two hot wires to your light.
You wired the LED fixture incorrectly. It sounds like you have the light connected across two switched hot lines and missed the neutral.
The common from the box and common to the switch were tied together. The hot from the box was on one end of the light and the black from the switch was on the other end.
#5
Member
Thread Starter
not sure I understand
All I did was replace the old light with a new light and wired it exactly as it was before.
There is a line coming straight from the power panel and another line coming from the switches. The two neutrals were wired together and the black from the switches was on one end of the light while the other black from the panel went on the other.
thanks
All I did was replace the old light with a new light and wired it exactly as it was before.
There is a line coming straight from the power panel and another line coming from the switches. The two neutrals were wired together and the black from the switches was on one end of the light while the other black from the panel went on the other.
thanks
#7
You need a hot and a neutral for the light. The way you describe the wiring places the fixture in series on the hot.
#8
Member
Thread Starter
Fixed it.
Apparently the electrician had used the neutral wire from the switch and tied it to the hot wire.
But then there was something else, the ceiling unit wouldn't work unless the wall light was on. So I pulled both switches and yes, he had the ceiling unit switch jumpered from the wall light switch so I disconnected that and tied the ceiling unit lights/fans to the incoming hot.
Apparently the electrician had used the neutral wire from the switch and tied it to the hot wire.
But then there was something else, the ceiling unit wouldn't work unless the wall light was on. So I pulled both switches and yes, he had the ceiling unit switch jumpered from the wall light switch so I disconnected that and tied the ceiling unit lights/fans to the incoming hot.