Add junction to light circuit for camera

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Hello

I have got into a bit of a pickle with a job that i thought would be fairly straight forward. In my garage I have two fluorescent strip lights, with two light switches (one by the garage door and one by a door at the opposite end). I wanted to install a ring camera, so thought I could just spur off the supply to the light switch at one end of the garage and use a 3 way junction box to supply power to the camera (the supply is just in trunking so easily accessible).

The light switch had three cables going to it and I figured out which one was the supply and the other two going to the two light fittings. Cut the source feed and found it is a 3 core + earth cable. I continued anyway and wired it all up into the junction box. Joined the brown > brown live wires, the neutral greys I connected together with neutral going to the camera and that left me with the two black wires, which I just connected back together.

It all worked ok, until I turned the lights on - this is when the camera turned off. Turned the lights off again, camera came back on. Is there any way this could work or do I need to get someone to run a new feedback just for the camera as the supply for the lights just isn't suitable.

Have disconnected it all and put it back to the original configuration for now, but hoping someone might be able to help advise.

Thanks
 
usually no neutral in that configuration

FOUND the diagram i was after



BUT you say the camera worked ???

one of the feeds to the switch will be a LIVE IN

used to a good drawing online - cant find at the moment

where did you get the nutral

any photos of the wiring , switched and lights connections

do you have a multimeter
 
Send a picture.

Since you have mentioned 3 core and earth cable, and the fact that it goes off when the lights go on, I can't help but think you have wired into the 2 way switching cable - but no one does that.
 
Thank you for the responses. I have attached a picture. This is just everything reconnected back to the original state and the camera feed removed (white cable in the background).
20240716_121944941_iOS.jpg
 
Show us where the 3 core+earth cable connects to.

I don't think you should be connecting to that.
 
When I searched for more information on the 3 core + earth colours, all the answers I found suggested the grey was neutral. This one as an example (see the section on 3 core and earth wiring colours. https://blog.fantasticservices.com/uk-wiring-colours/
That refers to when 3 core+E is used to supply permanent live, switched live and neutral.

In your case, 3 core+E has probably been used as a 2 way switch cable, consisting of common and 2 strappers (most likely). In other words, 3 lives.

Or, depending how it's been wired, it could be a neutral, and two strappers - the strappers alternating from being live to dead depending how the switch is operated.

So it's wrong.

Send a picture of inside both switches.
 
Last edited:
Here are the photos of inside both switches. Thanks
 

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This is where you will find the connexions you require, one of the brown points will be permanent live, the other will be switched live.

Alternatively identify which of the twin and earth cables is permanent live. Very likely the twin and earth cable loops between switches as shown brown:
1721648039434.png


and add the junction box there (shown pink)
 
To clarify what has been said - you could get your feed from the switch with lots of wires.

The blues in the connector block is neutral.

The permanent live you will require is EITHER at L1 or L2 on the switch - you will have to check first.
 
To clarify what has been said - you could get your feed from the switch with lots of wires.

The blues in the connector block is neutral.

The permanent live you will require is EITHER at L1 or L2 on the switch - you will have to check first.
My apologies somehow I deleted this pic from my previous post:
1721669492560.png
 
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