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DIYer here. I have basic electrical knowledge, but non-standard stuff confuses me. I am replacing standard light switches with Legrand Adorne sofTap switches. I’ve have used these to replace multiple switches throughout my house with no issues, but am having problems with a 3-way installation to control lights in the garage.

Here’s what I have:

  • 15A circuit from panel, switches are rated 15A
  • Switch box in garage: standard Romex 14/3 (B/W/R). enter image description here Power comes into the box on black (FYI, The 3 way switch also uses a jumper to power another switch). I assume the red acts as a traveler that powers the light itself (though I am not certain of this) because it carries power when the switch is on. All neutrals are tied together in the switch box. All grounds are tied together in the box as well. This box is pretty standard, so I don’t think I have any issues here.
  • Switch box at bottom of stairs: standard Romex 14/3 (B/W/R), grounded to the Adorne faceplate as per installation instructions. Here’s where it gets interesting. Power comes in on both the white and red wires (nothing on black). However, this only happens when power is coming into the garage switch. In other words, if I disconnect the black hot wire from the switch in the garage, no power comes into the switch at the bottom of the stairs at all. Also, there is no enter electrical tape to indicate that any wire is a switched hot.

So, I’m not sure exactly what I’m looking at. I’m not great with a multimeter, so I haven’t explored that yet at all. Any suggestions? In the box at the bottom of the stairs do I treat the white wire as a hot, the red as a traveler, and the black as a load?

Edit: here’s the back of the original switch. H=hot (black screw), J=jumper to 2nd switch (brass screw), and R=red (brass screw) enter image description here

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  • In the garage box, you talk about one traveler wire on the 3-way switch. However, 3-way switches have TWO travelers. Where’s the other? Commented Dec 14, 2024 at 19:17
  • 3 way switches have 2 travelers that connects them and one each input or output wire Commented Dec 14, 2024 at 19:19
  • @DoxyLover, I should have been more clear. The 2nd traveler is the black wire. I’m assuming that it goes to the light itself. I’ve edited the original post to include a pic of the back of the old switch after I clipped the wires and a picture of the box as it currently is. Obviously the hot wire that is not currently connected will have to be connected, but I took it out to make sure I was clear on which one is hot. FYI, If I connect the hot wire back to the switch, the garage switch works to turn the light on/off. Commented Dec 14, 2024 at 20:49

2 Answers 2

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Here is how 3-ways work

3-way switch diagram for supply-switch-switch-lamp

There are 2 travelers. One is hot, and one is not. When the switches line up, the lamp works.

On the switches, the "travelers" are identified with brass colored screws and the other is black. That seems to have been done on your classic switches.

I mention all this because you seem to have an odd sense of how they work, and perhaps that is being informed by how the new smart(er) switches are wired.

Except for white wires, the colors of wires are arbitrary. I feature travelers as a pair of yellow (and use that in THHN wiring or mark wires as such) because it makes boxes easier to understand. The travelers in classic 3-ways are interchangeable and there is no value in distinguishing them from each other. Where I have 2 3-ways right next to each other, I make the second pair of travelers blue.

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  • Ok, I thought I understood, but now I’m having a new issue. I connected the W/R wires as travelers and connected the black wire back to the light. That switch (which we will now call #2 because it should be the end line) controls the lights just fine. However, the switch where the power originally comes in (we will call it #1) only works when #2 has the lights turned on. If #2 has the lights off, #1 does nothing at all. What am I doing wrong? Commented Dec 15, 2024 at 23:36
  • Not every three-way system uses two travellers; there's also the california three-way wiring that has just one. Commented Dec 16, 2024 at 0:51
  • @Hearth yes but it also requires /4+ground cable, so we don't see a lot of it. Unless they're doing something heinous that violates 300.3 or something even worse with bootlegging ground. Commented Dec 16, 2024 at 8:04
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Step one, don't assume.

Step two, understand 3-ways a bit better. They don't have an "on" position - one traveler is hot when the switch is one way, the other traveler is hot when the switch is the other way. Both ways are "on" in the sense that power is connected from the common to a traveler - whether that turns the light on or off depends on the other switch (or switches, if a 4-way is involved.)

Are there more than two switches that control this light, or do you have mystery switches that you don't know what they do?

Normally the switch where power comes into a 3-way (on the common terminal) has no direct connection to the light - it only connects to the far-end-switch on its travelers, and the far-end-switch connects (on its common terminal) to the light. If you have a black and red traveler leaving one switch, and red and white travelers at the other (where the black probably DOES connect to the light - that's why there's no power on it) there's either a 3rd switch (would be a 4-way) or a junction box in-between.

If there are only two switches, the likely junction box is the light, where the neutral in this 14-3 cable will meet the light, and the travelers (black and red from the power supply switch) will connect to white and red to the far-end-switch, and the black from the far end switch will connect to the light. The white wire should be marked with paint or tape in a hot color at both ends to indicate its use as "not a neutral."

None of this is "non-standard" - if the switched hot was white, that would be non-standard and a code violation, even if it was marked. Unfortunately not uncommon when sloppy work was done, but not correct. The described wiring appears to be correct so far. If you think "white is always neutral", you have a bit to learn, even in the present day when it usually (but still not always) is.

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  • Thanks for the info. I’m always trying to learn more…that’s why I asked! Since there’s no 3rd switch (not assuming…I’m certain of that), and no junction box that I’m aware of (I’d have to trace wires to be sure), that’s what I was confused about. But, if I’m understanding you correctly, it stands to reason that since the white and red on the far end side are both hot when the garage side switch is on, then on the far end I could connect the white to the common/hot screw, red to brass traveler screw, and black to brass light fixture screw…correct? Commented Dec 14, 2024 at 21:50
  • The common screw is black. The traveler screws are brass. And you apparently have not LOOKED in the light fixture, which is mounted on a...junction box. DO THAT! Commented Dec 16, 2024 at 2:01
  • Sorry, that’s what I was saying. W to black/common screw, R to brass screw, & B to other brass screw. As for looking in the light j-box, the light is 20+’ up & not easily accessible. After taking your advice to try to understand 3-ways a little better, I started doing more research. The more I learn, the more this seems like a 3-way switch loop, except the power is coming into the 1st box rather than the light. The travelers then go back to the light k-box and connect to the wires going into switch box 2. But, if that were the case, why would both the R and W wires be energized in the 2nd box? Commented Dec 16, 2024 at 5:29
  • I am curious about this "If there are only two swiches, the likely junction box is the light" -> I live in italy, and most of the time the story here is different; usually we have N/L arriving at the first switch, then N/L/T1/T2 to the second, and finally N/swL to the light. Ground is present as needed. Perhaps the (slightly) different config you mention is due to this "14-3" cables (romex?) being widely used in the US, while in Italy at least we have conduit everywhere and use "single wires" for everything. Commented Dec 16, 2024 at 8:23

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