Hello. It’s my first post here, it appears there are some great people who can help with 3-Way switch wiring. I’ve done home wiring all my life, hooked up a 3 way smart Zigbee in another room no problem. This one has me pulling my hair out. (Just realized I can’t post more than one picture)
Here is the configuration:
New condo in Toronto Ontario, so latest building code, colours etc.
Using Homeassistant, the Zigbee switch has been added and recognized properly.
It’s a new Jasco, GE, Enbrighten (Can’t keep the names straight) Zigbee switch, not dimmer. I’ve tried a spare to eliminate hardware.
It’s a new Jasco, GE, Enbrighten add-on switch. I’ve tried spare to eliminate hardware.
I know that the work to turn the light on and off is done by the primary, and that the add-on only signals the primary acting as a remote through the traveller wires. In my case, the traveller wires are Blue and White. So, here’s the problem.
Primary switch appears to be hooked up properly but no ceiling light turned on even though there is power to the switch evidenced by blue light and of course tested with a meter. That second black on the LINE terminal powers the adjacent switch, nothing to do with this issue. See picture 1.
On the add-on switch, I attached the blue to traveller and the white to common, I still cannot turn on the light either with the add-on switch, the primary switch or the home assistant integration although I can hear the primary switch click on the other side of the room. See picture 2
Interestingly the blue traveller to common shows 55 volts on the add-on switch. Also note that I’ve removed the red and additional black on the add-on switch. Red to common (capped) shows 120v and black to common shows zero volts. See picture 3.
The only way I can get the automation to work and the primary switch and Homeassistant to work is to attach the black that I removed on the add-on switch and pairing it to the blue, and after doing that the motion sensor and the downstairs switch work but the upstairs switch still does not work. See picture 4.
So it’s the add-on switch that I cannot get to work. Thank you for all assistance. If a bounty is appropriate on this site, I’m glad to pay one for successful help.
I believe I am, I’ve see this diagram, actually studied it a lot. I’ve got the commons going from PRIMARY common to Add-on common. I’ve got the blue which appears to be the traveller going from traveller to traveller. And I’ve got the line and load on the Primary switch, the line feeding the box (confirmed, 120 between common and line) and the load going…well, who really knows where the load is going as I can’t see through the walls. But mine sure looks like the one above.
No picture 3 and 4 currently - I assume the forum software limits you to 1 image as a new member, those might help if you’re able to add them…
I would disconnect the add-on and focus on getting the primary switch to work without the additional component confusing things. Once that’s set, you can hook the traveler / jumper back up.
Where does the red wire go from load at your primary switch? If it follows the multi-location diagram, it should be connected to load in the add-on box. You mentioned having red and black wires capped there but it’s not clear what cable they belong to (may have been shown in one of the missing images).
I agree. Should be able to just hook up the load and neutral to the wires coming from the light. Leave the traveler and add-on switch out of the equation. It’s your choice what color wire is assigned to what function coming out of the primary, but in this case I think I would stick to:
So you were talking about the red on the primary. I can swap it with the black that feeds the other switch but then the other switch beside it in the box won’t work.
Why intrigued about the white? White is always to common at least here in ontario, the white in the primary box is attached to a bundle of white wires, same with the white in the add-on box.
Green is the typical color used for ground in the U.S. so that’s why he was wondering about the white wire connected to the ground terminal on the switch. Do you have a ground wire that is separate from the neutral/common?
Picture 2, showing the add on switch, has a green/bare ground bundle in the bottom right that the white ground appears to be pigtailed from. Should really swap out that white wire to avoid confusion…
Of course, I understand. So any ideas where the problem may be? I seem to be doing this as Jasco describes, unless I’ve mis-interpreted the load perhaps. And here is picture #4, the way it’s hooked up now with 2/3 of the equation working. Nothing works unless that black is attached to the traveller (Blue).
IF your blue wire is a direct connection between primary and add-on - the only thing you would ever possibly want connected through there is a second traveler to another add-on. It looks like that black wire is something important but it’s not a traveler and definitely shouldn’t be connected there. The function of the traveler is to signal the primary switch when the add-on is pressed. It’s not intended to carry any real current. If connecting another wire is what makes the light work, it’s just by luck, and you need to identify what the black wire is and where it should properly be connected.
Canadian wire colours are very similar to US except that Canada mandates all of them, and the US only mandates neutral and ground, leaving the others optional in most jurisdictions.
Canada, like the US, allows for striping, so when you have the time you should get some green electrical tape and wrap a few stripes around the white pigtail just so anybody else looking at it understands that it was a planned connection.
As far as not being able to see through walls, with the right tools and patience to isolate the circuits, you should be able to tell where any circuit is going. Electricians do it all the time.
Canadian home insurance companies tend to be much stricter than US companies as far as covering incidents in which the work was not done by a licensed electrician. So just something to be aware of.
I agree with everyone who said the first thing to do is to get the primary switch working correctly. Then add the auxiliary into the mix.
It’s your choice what color wire is assigned to what function coming out of the primary
is true in most places in the US, but not in Canada, which mandates all colours. The mandated colours do match the recommendations you gave. At the primary, red should be the load. Blue should be the traveler.
