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View Full Version : 3 way wiring /w ceiling fan


ddhiggi
Oct 4, 2009, 08:46 AM
Sorry about the multiple questions/ my new question is I have 2 3-way switches, a porch light, and the hot 2-wire coming in the ceiling in a junction box so.. in this box I have 2-3ways, the hot 2-wire, the 2-wire going to the fan/light, and a 2-wire going to the porch light. I've tried multiple things but can't get them all to work at the same time.

hkstroud
Oct 4, 2009, 08:54 AM
Let's see, you have a hot 2 wire cable to the ceiling box, you a 2-wire cable going to one of two 3-way switches, and you have a 2-wire cable gong to the porch light or to the switch of the porch light. You want to control the light of the fan/light by the 3-way switches and control the fan by the pull chain. Is all of that correct?

In your previous post you said power was coming to the switch

ddhiggi
Oct 4, 2009, 09:03 AM
Almost, I have 1 2-wire which is the hot coming in the box, 2 3-way's, and 1 -2wire going to the porch light and 1 -2wire going to the ceiling fan/light. The ceiling fan/light sits between the 2 3-ways which I want to control the ceiling fan/light. Then there's a switch by the front door which I want to control the porch light and yes there is a pull chain also - there's a switch by the front door too to control the fan independently from the light but I haven't run that wire there yet... in the ceiling coming from the fan/light there is a blue,black and white wire. Help!

hkstroud
Oct 4, 2009, 09:09 AM
So, you have a hot 2 wire cable to the ceiling box, you a 2-wire cable going to one of two 3-way switches, and you have a 2-wire cable going to the switch of the porch light. You have a 2-wire cable going to a switch that you want to control the fan. Is all of that correct?

Edit; You also have two 3-wire cables going between the two 3-way switches.

ddhiggi
Oct 4, 2009, 09:37 AM
All I have at the 2-3 ways are the 3 way wire and yes I have the hot 2-wire coming from the breaker to my junction box and yes I have a 2-wire going to the switch for the porch light and a 2-wire going to the fan/light. Right now I don't have a separate wire to go to just the fan but I'd like to add that too.

hkstroud
Oct 4, 2009, 10:51 AM
OK, add the 2-wire cable for the fan switch.
Connect all the ground wires together and tuck up in box out of the way. Connect the white wires of the 3-wire cables together. Connect the red wires of the 3-wire cables together. Connect the white of the power cable and the white of the porch light together and add a pig tail. Tuck all of these up in the box.
Connect the black of the power cable, the black of the porch light, the black of one of the 3-wire cables and the white of the fan switch together. Tuck up in box.

You should now have sticking out of the box, a white to connect to the fan/light white, a black from the fan switch to connect to the black of the fan and a black from a 3-wire cable to connect to the blue of the light.

At both 3-way switches, make sure that the red and white are connected to the traveler screws and the black is connected to the common screw.

ddhiggi
Oct 4, 2009, 04:18 PM
Thank you! It worked great... now I have another problem. In the 3 gang box by the front door I have the switch for the porch lite, 2 horizontal switches ( the top controls the top row of plugs and the bottom is supposed to control the fan) and then of course the 3-way which works.. everything works like it should but when I try to connect the fan 2-wire the breaker blows. Here's the existing wiring.. the switch to the porch top screw-black going to porch light--bottom screw -black going to top screw of horizontal switch. The white of the porch light is capped with the white of the hot pair and the white of the 3-wire going to the plugs. The black of the hot pair is capped with the black of the 3-wire and a pigtail to the bottom screw of the horrizontal switch. Oh and the red wire from the 3-wire is on the upper left screw of the horizontal switches. Oh boy! So how do I fit in the fan 2-wire down there?