Hi all, newbie here. I'd appreciate some help please, recently I've decorated my downstairs and stairwell and landing and decided to replace all the light switches, unfortunately after doing this (and not checking how it was originally wired in) I've noticed the following issue with the stairwell 2-way lighting. The upstairs switch has twin+e from the light, also in the box there is a 3 core+e which I know should run down to the bottom switch to enable the 2-way switching, unfortunately and completely baffling to me is that in the downstairs switch there is only a twin+e, this doesn't make any sense and for the life of me I cannot understand how it would've been possible to get the 2-way switching to work like this. The 3-core upstairs has your standard grey colouring insulation but the 2-core downstairs is white, they must both go off to a JB somewhere but that doesn't explain why there is still no common to join the 2 switches up. The 2-way switching always used to work but now I can only get the switches working 1-way. Help please.
If rewiring a switch it is common to use triple and earth so in the future two way switching can be added, one wire will normally be earthed. However in your case clearly at some point it must be jointed, most likely at the ceiling rose. Since with two way wiring one of the three wires is permanent line, it is possible to borrow that line wire off another switch, at one time this was common, but it can cause problems with loop hearing aids so is now frowned on, however there is nothing to say you shouldn't do it as long as the other switch is supplied by the same protective device, if not from same protective device it becomes a borrowed neutral which is dangerous.
You must be missing something then, unless some naughty person used the earth (seen it a few times). Is it a dry lining box? Could a cable have slipped out?
You can't in this pic as it's wired as it should be as I assumed the earth was earth obviously, unfortunately the cowboy before me thought it a good idea to use it as the common.
Appreciate the reply guys, in the pic the earth is wired to the earth terminal on the box which is obviously correct, I've since come to find that the earth is actually connected to common elsewhere.
Can you turn the switch round so the terminals can be seen clearly? Please provide a photo of where the earth is used as a common also.
No that is a plane yellow not a yellow/green lol Find the other end of the plain yellow and plain blue...
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