three core cable plus earth Ask questions and find answers to many subjects relating to electrics and electrical work

[neilipswich]

Hi

I am trying to install two new lights in my kitchen, but one light has just 1 cable running to it ( red,black and yelow) but the other ceiling rose has a cable with 4 wires in (red, black, yellow and a fourth cable). I also have a cable running back to the light switch.

Can anyone tell me after i have joined the red to red, black to black and earth to earth, what do i join the fourth wire to?

at the moment, i have joined up all cables except this fourth one and the lights work bu the light switch doesnt swith them off!!

Please help


thanks

neil

[ericmark]

There is the standard wiring for lights shown in the projects area of this forum. I have tried to work out what you have but wire and cable seem all mixed up. Except at the end of the line you will normally get three cables to each ceiling rose each cable will have two wires plus an earth. One cable feeds in another cable feeds next light and last cable one goes to switch. It is common to use same type of cable to the switch as between the lights and when this is done sleeving should be used on the wires to show the return wire is not neutral. This wire should go to the light.
If the sleeving has fell off once the wires are removed it is hard to find which is neutral and which is switch. So care is needed to note all connections before removal.
As to a fourth cable some times two lamps are feed from one and also when two lights work from the same switch you may also get a forth cable to second lamp off same switch.
If you are talking about wires then normally triple and earth only goes between the switches and does not go to ceiling rose on two way systems so unlikely to be that. But where emergency lights are used you have two line cables one always connected to line the other through a special switch which allows the power to be switched off for testing the batteries last the full three hours.
Of course who ever wired your house may have used different methods often when originally wired with SELV lights power is taken to the switch rather than the ceiling rose.