Three way light switches control a light from two locations such as from both ends of a staircase or hallway.
How to wire a three way light switch with dimmer.
With a three way dimmer you can control a light with two switches.
Three way switches can commonly be found at either end of a hallway near the doors of a very large room with multiple entryways or at the top and bottom of a set of stairs.
Plus learn how to change a single pole switch to a 3 way switch.
These wires attach to the travelers which are the pair of wires attached to the two screws at one end of the regular 3 way switch.
This lets you dim from one location and turn the lights on and off from another.
How to wire a three way dimmer switch.
Wiring a standard 3 way dimmer switch.
3 way dimmer switches typically come with the following pre wired leads.
The source hot wire is spliced to the common on the dimmer and the neutral is splice through to the light fixture.
Attach to the bonded ground wire s in the switch box.
They allow you the ability to turn the lights on or off from either location.
You will need a three way dimmer and a three way switch.
If two switches control a single light or a group of lights you will.
If only one switch controls the light purchase a single pole dimmer.
Wiring a 3 way light switch.
Wiring a 3 way light switch is certainly more complicated than that of the more common single pole switch but you can figure it out if you follow our 3 way switch wiring diagram.
These diagrams illustrate how to wire a pair of three way light switches in three different situations.
A three way switch is built and wired a little differently than a conventional single pole light switch.
From the dimmer 3 wire cable runs to the other switch and 2 wire cable runs to the light fixture.
A ground wire a hot lead wire and two travelers to allow for a connection to another switch or outlet.
3 way switches are also marked with four wires in the wall outlet.