I know there are numerous threads on wiring in a 3-way switch. I’ve read through a TON of them the last few days, but still can’t quite seem to figure out if what I’m working with is going to work. I’m trying to install the Leviton switch and matching remote mentioned in the title. This is for my entrance hallway light, so probably the one I want to be able to automate the most. After looking at each switch box and studying/researching the last couple of days I seem to have line-switch-load-switch-1 from the following thread.
But the more I look into it, I seem to have a sort of combination of line-switch-load-switch-1 and line-switch-load-switch-2. I’ll try to explain. I have a 3-gang panel that controls right to left, driveway motion light (single pole), porch light (single pole) and entrance hallway light (3-way). There is a neutral for each switch coming into the box and then pigtailed together. Great!! I NEED a neutral. The line (hot) comes in with the middle switch and pigtails to three other wires which then serve as the line (hot) to each switch. Simple enough, right? The three-way switch then has a red traveler wire and another white that is not marked with electrical tape (hot? load?) running back out of the box. But the wires coming in for the 3-way switch (hallway lights) has the line wire pigtailed and then running back out of the box. This is what has me confused. If the 3-way switch has a line running to it, that would indicate scenario #2 as mentioned above. But if the line running into the box for the 3-way is pigtailed and then ran back out, that would indicate scenario #1. Here are a few pictures of the 3-way switch and box in question.
Now, the remote side switch and box is wired up the same in scenario #1 and #2 with no neutral. So that doesn’t really help me figure out what I’m working with. Here are a few pics of that switch/box.
With all of that being said, what do you guys think I’m working with? Is there a way to get the switch and remote in question to work without a neutral in the remote box and the way the switch box is wired? I have a multimeter, but haven’t taken the step to tear everything apart and start testing,which I will do before wiring everything up. But based on how things look and how the adjoining single pole switches are wired I’m pretty sure the way I explained things is correct. I’m just trying to get a starting point based on suggestions here before I start chasing wires. I would be open to a different switch and remote if it would work simply with what I currently have. But I’m also not intimidated to do some rewiring in each box if necessary to make the Levitons work. I could also do some rewiring in the fixutre if necessary, but if I have to start pulling lines here and there I’ll throw in the towel. Smart bulbs also wouldn’t be an option since the fixture takes 4 of the chandelier type bulbs with the small bases.
Thanks in advance for any help, advice, tips, etc. you guys can provide!!!
I don’t follow. The instructions say I need 2 travelers. I have the remote model with the LED indicator light, which uses both travelers to each switch. The non-LED model still uses both travelers, but only at the switch not the remote. I’m OK with my LED indicator light not working if I have to wire it up that way. Here is the instructions. Can you make sense of what I need to do based on those?
I’m still not following how I can wire either the switch or the remote with only one traveler wire when the instructions I posted earlier say I need both traveler wires.
Thanks for the replies and help. Really trying to get this figured out!!
I’m referring led no led to your diagram you posted,
Fist you need to figure out from your pictures witch one is your load, line and travler if you did can you tell witch one is witch and I think you need no led in your case
No, I have not taken a multimeter to the wiring yet to confirm, but certainly will before I attempt any re-wiring. But my educated guess is that on the switch side the red is traveler, black is line and white is load.
Do you think I can wire the current remote I have (LED indicator light) like it doesn’t have the indicator light which would forego the light just like the same model that doesn’t have the indicator light?
I believe the first picture you have line, neutral and the two traveler, you need to find out where is your load, and see if you have line on the second box, in my opinion you can we use the one without indicator
So I took the fixture down this evening and snapped the following pics.
The only wires going into the fixture are a hot and neutral. The insulation (grey) on these wires match the insulation going out of my 3-gang panel. You can see them here.
So I finally think I have figured out what is going on. If you look closely at the picture above, in the center of the box there is actually 4 sets of wires with white insulation coming into the box, in addition to the grey insulated wires that go out to the fixture. The one set of white insulated wires has a black wire pigtailed to three more black wires that go to each switch. On the main 3 way switch this connects to the terminal marked common. Multimeter confirmed this wire as being the line (hot) on each switch. So there is only one wire coming in that powers all three switches. The remaining three wires go out. 2 to there respective lights and one to the remote 3 way switch. What I figured out using a multimeter is that the only thing with constant power is the black wire on the common terminal of the main 3 way switch, which makes sense. I also confirmed the black wire on the remote switch is a load line that goes from the remote switch to the fixture. The white and red wires on each switch (remote and main) have to be traveler wires since they are hot/not hot depending on the state of each switch and whether the light is actually on or not.
The issue is that I still don’t have a neutral in the remote box. The light fixture is closer to the main 3 way switch box, so what the electrician did was power the main switch with the hot line and run 2 travelers to the remote switch from the main switch. He then ran the load line back from the remote switch into the main switch box and then out to the fixture. Instead of running the neutral to the remote switch box and back to the main switch box and then to the fixture, he tied into the neutral in the main switch box and ran it straight from there to the fixture. This is why I was so confused. Also goes to show, as many on here have already said, you can’t trust line color or assume anything with electricity. A multimeter will confirm it all.
Hopefully all of that makes sense. It makes perfect sense to me now since I broke out the multimeter and tested everything. But…I’m still in the predicament of no neutral in the remote box. Suggestions on how I can get this thing wired up now that my wiring, hopefully, makes sense?
Alright. So after sleeping on this last night, I think I have things figured out. Should be just like @kreddad said, only need one traveler and I’ll use the second to tie the neutral from the main switch box to the remote box. Just hoping my remote model with LED will still function without wiring the LED in. If you guys think this will be a no go, I’ll order the remote without LED indicator and return the one I have.
So here is my plan. I attached more pictures of the instructions below for reference. Please let me know what you guys think. In the main switch box with hot goes the new main switch. Line (1) goes to BK terminal, neutral (2) goes to WH terminal, ground (3) goes to green/ground terminal, first traveler (4) is supposed to connect to RD terminal and then run to remote switch box and pigtail to load line out to fixture. But since the load line out to the fixture in my situation is already in the main switch box (coming back from the remote switch) I’ll undo that pigtail and attach the load line out to the fixture directly to the RD terminal. Second traveler (5) to terminal marked YL/RD. For the remote switch load (1) and first traveler (4) have been addressed in the main switch box and are now obsolete in the remote box. Neutral (2) will be the old load line and will pigtail into my bundle of neutrals in the main switch box. Ground (3) goes to green/ground terminal. Second traveler (5) to terminal marked YL/RD.
So with the above, I’ve been able to “rewire” each box to make things exactly as illustrated in the instructions for the coordinating remote with no LED. Only reason, that I could see, for it not working is the fact that I have the remote model with LED indicator. If I wire it up this evening and it doesn’t work, or anything is funky I’ll return the remote and get the one w/out LED indicator. No other reason this shouldn’t work, right?
Thanks for all the help!! Greatly appreciated. Took me a little while to get my head wrapped around how everything was wired. Every example/picture I looked at wasn’t quite right. I understand why the electrician did things the way he did and can’t even be mad at him. But it sure made things difficult for me.
So I confirmed with Leviton this morning that the matching remote w/LED indicator will not function at all without a hot. So that one is going back to Amazon and a matching remote w/out LED is on the way. Shouldn’t be any drama now that I have the proper remote to make all of this work. Fingers crossed that what I’ve come up with in regards to my wiring is indeed correct and everything will work as intended!!
BIg Ter, I’m happy you did figure out, and that was a good tutorial with pictures for next person, and im 100% positive will work with w/out led. Let us know how did a workout for you.
Got the non LED switch in today (gotta love Amazon!!). Wired up per my instructions a few posts ago and everything is working perfectly. Thanks again @kreddad for the help!!!
Just wanted to say thanks again!! I got another 3-way switch in my kitchen wired up yesterday without any drama. Pretty simple once you get your particular wiring situation figured out!!
I got the Leviton DZ15S with the coordinating remote w/out LED indicator. Only coordinating remote that would work in my particular situation. The one with an LED indicator would not work the way my boxes are wired.
I’ve having issues getting a 3 way leviton switch to work. I think I understand the previous comments on here, but I’m not sure that I understand my own wiring. Is it even possible to use a leviton 3 way with my wiring.
I also can’t seem to find the remote switch without LEDs that everyone say work.
I have (2), regular 3-way switches. I want to replace one of them with a smart switch, and leave the other a non-smart switch. Will the Leviton DW15s work that way?
