Wiring for a 2 gang outdoor weatherproof switch ALTO AL4268

[ns3270]

I've just bought the above switch to fit in the garden for a light and a pump for a water feature. I can't work out how to wire it. The light and pump each have a blue and a brown wire. The wire bringing the power from the garage 3 pin plug also has a blue and a brown wire.
The 2 gang IP55 weatherproof switch has 2 identical connection boxes, each with a COMMON, a 1WAY, and a 2WAY. I think the 2WAY connections should be ignored as I'm not trying to have 2 places to switch on the light or pump. So how do I wire this?
Thanks in advance for helping.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I have no doubt that someone less conscientious than I will come along and tell you in step-by-step terms how to do something that you don't understand and therefore shouldn't be doing until you understand it.

Switches are so very very very simple, and I find it quite scary that you think you should be doing outside wiring when you don't know how they work, or how to complete a simple circuit.

Please spend some time learning what you need to know:

• http://web.archive.org/web/20080213151445/http://www.kevinboone.com/electricity.html
  
  
• http://web.archive.org/web/20080213151445/http://www.kevinboone.com/domesticinstallations.html
  
  
• //www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics:books
  
  
• //www.diynot.com/wiki/electrics[/list]Doing electrical work without a genuine understanding of what, why, and how it all works is a bad and dangerous idea.
  
  And BTW - the work you are proposing to do is notifiable.

 

[ns3270]

I've read the links you sent but they haven't helped. I realise that you are saying that a little knowledge in electrics is dangerous and I agree with you, but an explanation of what to do safely and correctly is what is required, not a lecture with links which don't help. If I had bought a switched socket then connecting would have been easy but I am struggling with this switch. Please help.

 

[Alarm]

In easier terms.

Get someone who knows what they are doing.

Have to agree with BAS here.

 

[ns3270]

Surely someone is prepared to help - this isn't brain surgery.
I've got 6 wires, 2 from the power supply and 2 each from the light and pump.
I've got 4 places the wires can go - COMMON and 1WAY in each switch.
Come on guys help someone out here, it can't be that difficult.

 

[bernardgreen]

Come on guys help someone out here, it can't be that difficult.

It is very simple to wire the wires so that the pump and light can be controlled.

But because the light lights and the pump pumps does not mean the installation is safe.

The switch is marked IP55, do you know what means ?

Ingress prevention

The first 5 means

Dust protected; dust deposits are permitted, but their volume must not affect the function of the unit.

The second 5 means

Low pressure water jets from all directions, (limited ingress permitted)

To be safe the switch must retain that protection from water and dust and tools and fingers,

http://www.ezscreen.com/ip_ratings.htm

So you have a knock out hole in the box for the switch with a cable going through the hole. How will ensure that water will not get through that hole and at best short out the electrics or at worst make the outside of the wet box live. Anyone touching that is at serious risk of electric shock, possibly a fatal shock.

You do not have any idea how to connect the circuits to the switches ( hint you need one more item in the box ) to make the items work, so you will have no knowledge of what is needed to make the installation safe to use.

 

[viewer]

Yes, they're all right - you need to understand the situation rather than follow someone else's ABC. A lot of people have had incidents following a ' black to 1, red to 2 type of instruction. Perhaps the easiest way is to draw out he scheme - you know what arrives at the pump etc and you know what starts from the CU. As you work through combinations on paper (watching the fail safe of course) then the logic will show itself. Once you have something which 'works' on paper then look at the safety and regs issues; if all checks out, then show your solution here (or to other spark sites) and if all agree then you're OK. HTH

 

[ns3270]

A suitable silicone or acrylic sealing compound will be placed around the cables at their point of entry to ensure a watertight seal.
An RCD Adaptor will be used at the mains socket in the garage for surge prevention.
The box itself is plastic, not metal, so no serious risk of electric shock.
Am I getting any closer to getting help from anyone?

 

[bernardgreen]

A suitable silicone or acrylic sealing compound

Define suitable....... some sealants secrete acetic acid (the acid in vinegar) and this can corrode the switch contacts. It also degrades PVC insulation.

Does the switch have adequate cable retention ( cable clamps )

An RCD Adaptor will be used at the mains socket in the garage for surge prevention.

That is not the function of an RCD, if you don'r know what function an RCD performs then you really do not have the minimum knowledge needed for carrying out this install in a safe manner.

The box itself is plastic, not metal, so no serious risk of electric shock.

No serious risk. certainly that could be true if the box and cables are installed properly.

Am I getting any closer to getting help from anyone?

You are getting help that is potentially life saving advice.

 

[micandbabs]

Dear ns3270, We have just had exactly the same problem as you and almost gave up when our son-in-law turned up to save the day (and our patience). Apparently, the 'com' bit of the junction box is the 'live' although it doesn't even hint at that in the instructions. You probably made the same mistake as us by presuming the L1 and L2 were for the 'live' wires. So.... The 'earth' wires all go together into the 'earth' connector at the top of the box, the 'Neutral' wires have to be joined together and bypass the junctions altogether. The mains 'live' comes in and goes into one of the 'com' connecters with a little piece of 'live' wire going from this to the second 'com' connector. Then you can just put the 'live' from each of your appliances into each of the L1s, and Bob's your Uncle! Really easy when you know that 'Com' means 'Live'. We spent a whole day fiddling about with this checking and double checking, but finally we have our pond pump and our water feature running independently. Hope this works for you! Good luck.

 

[ns3270]

Thank you for your reply - it was 10 months ago when I originally had the problem and due to the sanctimonious and insulting responses I received from this site I went to B&Q and the gentleman there gave me the help I needed in two minutes. I'm pleased you have managed to solve the same problem and much appreciate your message. Thanks

 

[EFLImpudence]

But you don't KNOW what you have done or how it works.

As I have said before, because all you needed to do this was a screwdriver and a pair of scissors it must be easy.
Well, it is easy if you KNOW what you're doing - but you don't.
Therefore, without assistance, it was impossible, wasn't it?

Has the gentleman at B&Q tested the circuit (I know you haven't) to ensure that it is safe and the protection devices will work, rather than the wires just melting or catching fire, in the event of a fault?

Do you do your own gas repairs, repair the car yourself or poke around in the back of the television set without a clue?

 

[riveralt]

You probably made the same mistake as us by presuming the L1 and L2 were for the 'live' wires.

The mistake is that you think the're not for the live wires when in actual fact they are.
I take it your son in law also sorted out your additional protection and notified the Local Authority Building Control and provided them with the test results. No I didn't think so.
You know the ones that will indicate amongst other things that the Earth Loop Impedance is low enough to ensure that your installation is safe.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Dear ns3270, We have just had exactly the same problem as you and almost gave up when our son-in-law turned up to save the day (and our patience). Apparently, the 'com' bit of the junction box is the 'live' although it doesn't even hint at that in the instructions.

That's because:

a) it isn't so

b) the instructions assume (rightly) that they are aimed at people with an IQ bigger then their shoe size who will not fiddle with things they don't understand.

You probably made the same mistake as us by presuming the L1 and L2 were for the 'live' wires.

The trouble is your IQ is not bigger then your shoe size, and you don't see why lack of understanding should in any way be a bar to you fiddling with things.

Really easy when you know that 'Com' means 'Live'.

It doesn't.

We spent a whole day fiddling about with this checking and double checking,

That's because you are a pair of f***wits who don't know what they are doing but don't see why not knowing should equate to not doing.

You don't even know what the date is, FGS.

Please stop all forms of DIYing - you don't have the mental capacity for it.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Thank you for your reply - it was 10 months ago when I originally had the problem and due to the sanctimonious and insulting responses I received from this site

You did not get replies like that.

You got replies which told you, quite rightly, that if you want to do electrical work you must

what you are doing.

And you don't - you haven't got a clue.

I went to B&Q and the gentleman there gave me the help I needed in two minutes.

Did he?

Did he tell you about the testing you needed to do?

Did he tell you all the things you needed to know in order to be sure you weren't going to kill anybody?

Or did he tell you what wires to put where and encourage you to fiddle with things which you do not

?


"It works when I flick the switch" is so far from what you actually need to do to be sure your work isn't going to kill anybody that it beggars belief.


You too need to give up DIYing.