Light switches OFF at night!

[smarg]

I've just wired up an outside light to a day-night switch. My problem is that the light switches on during the day, and off at night which is obviously not what I want. Any idea how this could be happening?

Is it possible that I connected the neutral terminal of the light to the day-night switch instead of the live, with current still flowing to the live terminal of the light? Would this cause this situation?

 

[JohnW2]

I've just wired up an outside light to a day-night switch. My problem is that the light switches on during the day, and off at night which is obviously not what I want. Any idea how this could be happening?

Are you sure that the day-night switch doesn't have one terminal for achieving the behaviour you're experiencing, and another terminal for achieving the behaviour you actully want? Some do that because, for some applications, one actually wants it to switch on during the day and off during the night.

Kind Regards, John

 

[smarg]

I've just wired up an outside light to a day-night switch. My problem is that the light switches on during the day, and off at night which is obviously not what I want. Any idea how this could be happening?

Are you sure that the day-night switch doesn't have one terminal for achieving the behaviour you're experiencing, and another terminal for achieving the behaviour you actully want? Some do that because, for some applications, one actually wants it to switch on during the day and off during the night.

Kind Regards, John

Hi John,

I don't think so. I've got other lights wired to the same day-night switch, and they come on at night and go off during the day.

 

[JohnW2]

Hi John, I don't think so. I've got other lights wired to the same day-night switch, and they come on at night and go off during the day.

Hmmm - odd. You presumably can't have them all wired to the same day-night switch in exactly the same way, because electricity cannot be both present and absent at the output of the switch at the same time! Are they all just 'simple lights' or do some of them have PIR or other detectors associated with them (or battery-powered 'emergency back-up' - which could cause them to come on when the power went off!)?

Kind Regards, John.

 

[smarg]

Hi John, I don't think so. I've got other lights wired to the same day-night switch, and they come on at night and go off during the day.

Hmmm - odd. You presumably can't have them all wired to the same day-night switch in exactly the same way, because electricity cannot be both present and absent at the output of the switch at the same time! Are they all just 'simple lights' or do some of them have PIR or other detectors associated with them (or battery-powered 'emergency back-up' - which could cause them to come on when the power went off!)?

Kind Regards, John.

Hi John,

It's just a plain simple light. Do you think it might happen if the neutral isn't really neutral but is actually live?

 

[JohnW2]

Hi John,
It's just a plain simple light. Do you think it might happen if the neutral isn't really neutral but is actually live?

What you are describing makes little sense, even if one considers situations in which the wiring is totally wrong.

In an attempt to get some clues ... when the new light comes on during the day, do the other lights connected to the same day-night switch go completely off, or is it possible that they remain 'partially on'? Are the 'other lights' (the ones which behave 'correctly', from the same day-night switch) such that you could remove the lamps/bulbs? If so, if you remove them, does the new one still come on during the day?

Kind Regards, John

 

[smarg]

Hi John,
It's just a plain simple light. Do you think it might happen if the neutral isn't really neutral but is actually live?

What you are describing makes little sense, even if one considers situations in which the wiring is totally wrong.

In an attempt to get some clues ... when the new light comes on during the day, do the other lights connected to the same day-night switch go completely off, or is it possible that they remain 'partially on'? Are the 'other lights' (the ones which behave 'correctly', from the same day-night switch) such that you could remove the lamps/bulbs? If so, if you remove them, does the new one still come on during the day?

Kind Regards, John

Hi John,

I had a look and the other lights do go completely off during the day. I did notice though that this light which comes on during the day flickers quite a bit which I don't think it did before. I haven't had a chance to remove the bulbs from the other lights, but will try that and let you know.

 

[securespark]

What kind of lamps are in these fittings?

 

[JohnW2]

Hi John, I had a look and the other lights do go completely off during the day. I did notice though that this light which comes on during the day flickers quite a bit which I don't think it did before. I haven't had a chance to remove the bulbs from the other lights, but will try that and let you know.

Thanks. If I could get my hands and eyes on your lights and wiring, it would probably be possible to get quickly to the bottom of the very odd situation you're describing. However, I'm thousands of miles away from you and I fear that you're going to end up having to get a local electrician to bring his/her eyes and hands to bear, since I suspect that we're not going to get very far trying to resolve this 'remotely'!

Kind Regards, John

 

[bernardgreen]

You most likely have wired the new lamp across the switch and not across switched Live and Neutral as the other lights are,

When the switch is OFF this new lamp is in series with the other lamps and getting a supply through them. Enough to make the new lamp light but not enough for the others to light.

 

[JohnW2]

You most likely have wired the new lamp across the switch and not across switched Live and Neutral as the other lights are, When the switch is OFF this new lamp is in series with the other lamps and getting a supply through them. Enough to make the new lamp light but not enough for the others to light.

As you will have seen, that's the (I would think most likely) possibility that I've been pursuing. The OP has so far told me that the other lights do not appear to be on when the new one comes on (when it shouldn't), but I've also asked him to remove the lamps from the 'other lights'. If my (and your) suspicions are correct, removing those lamps should stop the new lamp coming on when it should be off ... so we would then know what we are probably dealing with.

Kind Regards, John

 

[smarg]

What kind of lamps are in these fittings?

Hi,

It's compact fluorescent light bulbs.

 

[smarg]

You most likely have wired the new lamp across the switch and not across switched Live and Neutral as the other lights are, When the switch is OFF this new lamp is in series with the other lamps and getting a supply through them. Enough to make the new lamp light but not enough for the others to light.

As you will have seen, that's the (I would think most likely) possibility that I've been pursuing. The OP has so far told me that the other lights do not appear to be on when the new one comes on (when it shouldn't), but I've also asked him to remove the lamps from the 'other lights'. If my (and your) suspicions are correct, removing those lamps should stop the new lamp coming on when it should be off ... so we would then know what we are probably dealing with.

Kind Regards, John

Hi John and Bernard,

I finally got a chance to remove a lamp from the other lights yesterday, and it doesn't make any difference. The new lamp continues to shine during the day, and go off at night.

Perhaps some background might help: When I moved into the house, this outside light worked off the same switch as an inside light. So when I switch on the inside light, it lights up both inside and outside. I wanted them to work independently, and for the outside light to work off a day-night switch.

I opened the switch and saw that there is only a single live wire. So I went up into the ceiling, and found the two wires that were coming from the outside light. The live from the outside light was joined to another wire that was going to the inside light. I'm not entirely sure where the neutral was going. So I left the neutral as it was, and took the live from the outside light and joined it to a connector to which I've joined all the other outside lights. This connector gets its power from the day-night switch. All the other lights that get their power from the connector work fine, so this is why I think it might have more to do with how the neutral is connected?

Regards,
Saul