light switch - 2 switch, 2 lights > add another switch

irelandhouse

Hi there

older house currently renovating. In the kitchen we have a light at either end of the room controlled by 1# 2 gang switch. pic attached.

I would like if possible to put in another switch at the other end of the room to allow us to control both the lights also. Is this possible to do ?

Is this done at the current switch or at the ceiling rose ?

I can get access to both the switch and the ceiling rose.

If I could do it through the rose to the new switch it would be ideal.

Many thanks

Risteard81

That wiring is very old. I would strongly advise you to commission a Registered Electrical Contractor (REC) to carry out periodic inspection and testing and produce a Periodic Inspection Report on the entire electrical installation.

hufpc8w3adnk65

Risteard81 wrote: »

That wiring is very old. I would strongly advise you to commission a Registered Electrical Contractor (REC) to carry out periodic inspection and testing and produce a Periodic Inspection Report on the entire electrical installation.

I second this... messing around rewiring switch’s can lead you to inadvertently causing issues to other lights also if you don’t know what your doing

irelandhouse

MrMac84 wrote: »

I second this... messing around rewiring switch’s can lead you to inadvertently causing issues to other lights also if you don’t know what your doing

Thank you for that.

Is it possible to perhaps leave this socket and connect to the ceiling rose with a new switch ?

hufpc8w3adnk65

irelandhouse wrote: »

Thank you for that.

Is it possible to perhaps leave this socket and connect to the ceiling rose with a new switch ?

As said above get a REC out and ask them to check the entire house and then take it from there.. looking at the old red wires in your pics and depending on the bonding scenario in your house you may be better looking to rewire sections or the entire house.

jmBuildExt

Ah jaysus lads - red and black wires does not always equal re-wire

Op - problem here is (regardless of the colour of your wires) there's not enough info to see how your lights are currently wired.
If you want to know more about how its done, look up "2 way switching". If you're not familiar with the term, get an electrician.
To give you an idea of the impact the work will have, he will more than likely have to run wire(s) from one switch to the other, and new switch to the light.

ps: he might well tell you you need a re-wire but that's a story for another day.

2011

irelandhouse wrote: »

Is this done at the current switch or at the ceiling rose ?

It is possible to achieve this by just accessing the current switch. Three wires + an earth could be brought from the existing switch position to the new switch position.

As the last poster said red wires do not necessarily need to be replaced. They can be tested to verify their integrity.

hufpc8w3adnk65

I didn’t say the OP needed a rewire. I said due to the age of the cabling and the nature of the the bonding done at that time that getting in a REC and seeing if it’s easyier to rewire etc. a REC can explain various things and see a lot more then we can here and none of us here can rule out rewire from the limited info provided..

2011

MrMac84 wrote: »

I didn’t say the OP needed a rewire.

Agreed, we can all see your previous post.

jmBuildExt

MrMac84 wrote: »

I didn’t say the OP needed a rewire. I said due to the age of the cabling and the nature of the the bonding done at that time that getting in a REC and seeing if it’s easyier to rewire etc. a REC can explain various things and see a lot more then we can here and none of us here can rule out rewire from the limited info provided..

Ah yeah I know - and you're right.
I was just worried about the OP coming on, asking about adding a switch and the only info he gets back is that he may need to re-wire his house.... and he's still none the wiser about his new switch.

2011

Mod note: The point about it being a good idea to get any old installations checked by an electrician is well made now, time to move on.

evosteo

2011 wrote: »

It is possible to achieve this by just accessing the current switch. Three wires + an earth could be brought from the existing switch position to the new switch position.

As the last poster said red wires do not necessarily need to be replaced. They can be tested to verify their integrity.

2 gang 2 way switching

will require

2 x strapper pairs
1 x looped feed from existing socket
1 x earth cable looping switches and lights

5 x 1.5mm pvc/pvc brown from existing to new switch + earth loop

6 cables in total

sorry about the crude drawing but i was wrapping up and heading to bed

[IMG][/img]

EDIT;

make sure you loop the permanent feed at the existing switch or the other lights around the house wont work depending on what way they are wired

2011

Here is another way of doing it. In this example only the existing switch needs to be accessed and the new wiring goes from here to the new switch position. Ignore the strange wire colours and the intermediate switch, it is the best example I can find at this hour.

Three wires + an earth could be brought from the existing switch position to the new switch position to change from one way to tow way switching.

Bruthal

Here is 2011 one simplified, so the existing switch position is on left , 3 wires to second (new) switch, no need to reroute switch wires to the second switch position. Just 3 cores and earth out for the new 2 way. If doing 2 gang setup, just run out 6 + earth from existing to new and repeat as in diagram for the second gang. I often did it this way even in industrial setups as its easier wiring in a lot of cases than the traditional way, even when using singles in trunking/conduit.