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What type of lighting wiring do I have?

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  • 12-10-2008 9:26pm
    #1
    murphaph
    Registered Users Posts: 19,026 ✭✭✭✭


    Hello learned sparks!
    I have a problem in a house I've recently moved into my dad's old house which has a curious fault with the lights. Basically it's arseways on the upstairs circuit. Lights in one room come on only when the switch in another is 'on' and only dimly otherwise. Weird stuff.

    Anyway, I'll likely get the lad up the road (proper sparks and does everything for next nothing as he's a pal of the brother) to look at it but I'm curious about the wiring. It's an early 70's house and one of the pendants has just the switched live and neutral coming in from the ceiling so I presume this is the last fixture on the circuit while the rest of them have what appears to be a neutral, a switched live and two lives joined together in the terminal block.

    Now, I have looked and it's clearly nowhere near enough wires to be 'loop in' wiring so is this 'junction bow wiring' but using the light fixtures as the junction boxes to save money (early 70's house remember!)??

    I'm almost sure the fault actually lies with one pendant which my dad changed just before he died and I think he got these wires mixed up on that pendant. All other light fittings are original and caked in ceiling paint so have never even been unscrewed.

    really I'm just curious, is this type of lighting circuit common on older houses?


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    #2
    Steve
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 22,584 CMod ✭✭✭✭Steve


    Yes that sounds about right for the '70's. Lives and neutrals were looped around the ceiling fittings and a switch feed & switch wire went to the switch. The problem you describe is probably caused by mixing up a switch wire with a live loop to the next fitting.

    This wiring method is cheaper as it uses less wire (which would have been more of a factor back then). AFAIK they still use it in the UK.

    One thing to note is that if it's still the original wiring (red + black colours) then it may be past its best and is at the stage where it needs a full re-wire.


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    #3
    murphaph
    Registered Users Posts: 19,026 ✭✭✭✭murphaph


    Thanks SteveC. The Lives/Neutrals are indeed red/black repsectively but I got the old screw type fusebox removed and replaced (and moved to a better location) with a consumer unit and the sparks said the wiring in the rest of the house was still sound and didn't need replacing.


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    #4
    DublinDilbert
    Registered Users Posts: 5,379 ✭✭✭DublinDilbert


    SteveC wrote: »
    Yes that sounds about right for the '70's. Lives and neutrals were looped around the ceiling fittings and a switch feed & switch wire went to the switch. The problem you describe is probably caused by mixing up a switch wire with a live loop to the next fitting.

    This wiring method is cheaper as it uses less wire (which would have been more of a factor back then). AFAIK they still use it in the UK.

    One thing to note is that if it's still the original wiring (red + black colours) then it may be past its best and is at the stage where it needs a full re-wire.

    Did We use the "UK" style wiring for lighting circuits for a time in the 70's?

    Didn't know that, although i was only a toddler in the 70's so my memory is a bit vague :D


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    #5
    Steve
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 22,584 CMod ✭✭✭✭Steve


    DublinDilbert wrote: »
    Did We use the "UK" style wiring for lighting circuits for a time in the 70's?

    Didn't know that, although i was only a toddler in the 70's so my memory is a bit vague :D

    As was I (a toddler that is)..:D

    I'm not sure of the exact timescale but I've definitely seen that 'BS' wiring style used in older houses including ones built in the '60s and '70s. It's not so common any more as most have been re-wired to current regs by now.


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    #6
    murphaph
    Registered Users Posts: 19,026 ✭✭✭✭murphaph


    I poked around a bit more and it looks like the neutrals are all looped together in the roses whilst some junction boxes must exist in the voids as most of the switches just have a live in and a switched live out, BUT some 'back to back' switches in adjacent rooms have their live in spured off to the live in of the adjacent switch on the opposite side of the same wall to save cable.


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    #7
    enmac
    Registered Users Posts: 98 ✭✭enmac


    SteveC wrote: »
    Yes that sounds about right for the '70's. Lives and neutrals were looped around the ceiling fittings and a switch feed & switch wire went to the switch. The problem you describe is probably caused by mixing up a switch wire with a live loop to the next fitting.

    .

    interestingly enought this is the method recommended by the ETCI in their guide to the wiring regulations - probably more appropriate now with the two brown cores and earth cable thats available


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