# 3-3way switches to 3 lights master single pole control all 3



## jw003 (Nov 21, 2013)

I am a student (sorry if this is the wrong place for this I'm new) and am having trouble with making a wiring diagram from wiring plans...does anyone know how to wire 3-3way switches to 3 lights respectively then have a master single pole control all 3? 

It's job #6

Thanks for any help...my teacher gave me 100% on the diagram I made and it doesn't work so hes not any


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## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

None of the wiring diagrams make any sense. What are the solid lines? What do the x'd lines mean?

Are you wanting to control 3 light with 3 switches (you'll need a 4-way in the mix), or each of the 3 switches controls one light each (then 3-ways are not needed at all).

Your question and the diagrams make no sense.


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## jw003 (Nov 21, 2013)

A big thing I'm wondering is, it calls for 3 way switches, why? Does the master single pole switch turn the lights all on and off everytime you flip it so you need to wire it through the 3 ways? Or does it depend on the other switches being off so the master can solely control the lights (each 3 way to each light and the master to each light separately from the 3 ways)?


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## jw003 (Nov 21, 2013)

im pretty sure the lines that look xd are just shown that way because its black and white and you can differentiate that line from the others i.e. theyre not really xd its cause solid lines and dashed lines are already used so they found another way to show it


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

My guess is the sp master is just to turn all the lights off if they are on or all the lights on if they are off. Without contactors it would not make sense.

The sp switch would have the power from the circuit and the switch leg from that would feed the 3 way switches. Now you don't have 3 - 3 way switches- you would have 2- 3awy switches with a 4 way in between.

Basically it is hard to know what the intent is on those diagrams


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## jw003 (Nov 21, 2013)

the solid lines are specifically where the wires are ran and the dashed lines are what controls what


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## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Wiring three lights to be controlled seperately by 3 switchs, plus a 'master' SP for on-off, is easy. 

The use of 3-ways is baffling.

My guess this is how someone learned to draw wiring diagrams back in the '60s and thinks it's somehow standard and universal now.


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## jw003 (Nov 21, 2013)

thats what i was thinking...thanks for the responses any other ideas are appreciated


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## CADPoint (Jul 5, 2007)

Having seen all that, now I know where a California three way came from!


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## Going_Commando (Oct 1, 2011)

Don't understand why 3-way switches either. This is how I would do it with a master switch and 3 switches to control 1 light each:


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## Shock-Therapy (Oct 4, 2013)

:blink:

Is he sure he needed 3 x 3-ways? Strange tutorial diagrams indeed. Did the OP draw this up?


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## Sparkshow Vancouver (Dec 21, 2013)

*Just an exercise*

I think the instructor wants them to think about control wiring in a simple way. 

You take the power coming in and switch it with the single pole switch, the switch leg from this single pole switch will feed one of the 3 way switches. 

this was already stated earlier!


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