3 Way Switch Help (GE 12722)

Last one I promise! I have a fan/fan light combo that is controlled by 3 switches set in two switch boxes. The first switch box has 1 switch for the fan light, and 1 switch for the fan blades. Across the room there is one more switch for the fan light. I need help wiring the fan light’s two switches to a GE 12722 and GE 12723.

SwitchBox1 has 2 switches: Fan light and Fan Blades. The hot line from the breaker is in this box.
SwitchBox2 has 1 switch, only for the fan light. There is a single romex coming into this box
Fan/light: There is a single romex coming into the junction box above the fan

I apologize for the horrible pictures, it was dark last night when I took them. If it is not clear with these pictures I will take more when I get home today.

I took a single picture of the fan and a single picture of SwitchBox 2 because those are pretty simple. The rest of the pictures are of SwitchBox1.

Pictures: https://goo.gl/photos/uJFcxWcytKqV6nPp8

These pictures were taken at different times, so some of them you will notice I labeled one of the red wires as LOAD. This one I am 99% sure goes to the romex in the junction box of the fan light.

There is a white wire that is tied into the black line wires in SwitchBox1. If I remove that white wire and power on the breaker, all lines in both boxes and at the fan are dead except for the group of black wires that it was tied into, telling me that the group of black wires is the line from the breaker.

You did have horrible pictures. I am not an expert but I think you might have similar setup as I had. But I
take no responsibility on my advice.

Let’s straighten things out a little:

  1. Your power from breaker is in the black bundle, one black is from breaker, one black is going to the fan blade switch. One white is coming from the romex line that goes to box 2.
  2. One black and one red from romex line in box 1, that’s your two travelers in 3-way setup.
  3. One red in box 1 on the left is what you labeled - load to the light.
  4. A bundle of white neturals in box 1, one goes to the break, one is from light, one is from blade.

So old setup:
Line goes to switch 2 via white line, then travel either black or red to switch 1. Power then goes to load to the light.

Your new wire and to follow the color code as best as we can:
Make sure you turn off power first:

In Box 2 GE 12723 Add-on.

  1. Connect white wire to neutral.
  2. Connect red wire to traveler.
  3. Connect ground.
  4. Cap black wire.

In Box 1 GE 12722 Switch.

  1. Un-bundle line(two black, one white).
  2. Connect white to neutral and connect the neutral from 12722 to neutral.
  3. Connect romex red to traveler.
  4. Connect ground.
  5. Connect load red to load.
  6. Last, line wire, you can insert both black wires to 12722 line. Or find another wire and connect the line to the bundle.
  7. There is one extra black from romex, cap it.
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Awesome I will try this out as soon as I get home.

This looks very typical and awesome to have the neutral at the switch box for the master switch. What @wingflywx suggests is good. I would change the steps slightly though since you are having trouble.

I would suggest you do it in phases to isolate the trouble you were having. This is a good process to follow below to isolate your trouble spot which is most likely to an incorrect identification of one of the wires in double gang switch box. Based on your pictures I can see how its easy to get confused. Those boxes are nasty from the wall texture contractor being messy.

Here is the process, I can detail exact steps later:

-Phase1 ; Start with just the GE 12730 Smart Fan Control and get the fan operational.
-reconnect your ceiling fan box B3 up as it was with romex1 blk-blk(fan motor), red-blu(fan-light), wht-wht(neutral), grd-grd

  • at the light switch box B1 connect romex1 and romex2 to GE12730 as follows
    R1-blk to LOAD,
    R1-grd to GROUND,
    R1-red will go to GE12722 LOAD but that is phase 3,
    R1-wht to white bundled neutrals including the romex2 wht, use the small white jumper that came with GE12730 to go from NEUTRAL to same bundled group under this wire nut
    R2-blk to LINE (romex2 is the incoming breaker power)

If fan is operational then:

-Phase2 Then add the GE 12722 primary fan light switch at B1 and get the fan light working by primary switch itself. So that means do NOT connect the R3-red traveler wire yet.
R2-blk to LINE
R2-wht to NEUTRAL
R1-red to LOAD
R2-grd to GROUND
R3-blk is unused, cap it with wire nut. (romex3 is the bundle wire that goes across room to 3-way switch)

If fan light is operational then:

-Phase3 Then connect the 3-way GE 12723 add-on switch at B2 to communicate with the primary GE12722 switch in B1 via the red traveler. You will have a spare black wire to cap off at both ends of this romex
In box B1 connect R3-red to TRAVELER GE12722
In box B2 connect R3-red to TRAVELER GE12723
In box B1, B2 the R3-blk is unused spare so cap it with wire nut at both boxes

in B2 R3-wht to NEUTRAL
in B2 R3-grd to GROUND

Test that both primary and add-on switches control the fan light.

FYI: your 4th romex in the box B1 is the outgoing power to the next device in the circuit which could be the next light etc.

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That was it, thank you very much!

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YEA! Now on to running the neutral for the kitchen hanging lights :wink:

Already did that today! The switch is now wired and it works manually for both lights, but I am having trouble when I include it into smartthings. Smartthings sees it as a “z-wave remote” and I cant do anything with it. Also, after it’s paired with smartthings, the switches do not work until I exclude it. :frowning:

That is not good… OK start a new thread specifically for this new problem. Since it all works manually that is great so we know the wiring is good. Let’s get to work on the next issue.

Here we go: Leviton VRCS2-MRZ Device Type and inclusion