Four Way Switching Explained - How to wire 4 way intermediate light switch

How to wire 4 way light switch and intermediate switch, in this video we explain how four way intermediate switching works to connect a light fitting which is controlled with three or more light switches. We look at the EU colour coding wires and explain the different ways to connect the lighting circuit.
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[@EngineeringMindset]

⚠️ *Found this video super useful?* Buy Paul a coffee to say thanks: ☕ PayPal: www.paypal.me/TheEngineerinMindset

[@umt1cardiff]

Why not use twin brown cable colours ?

[@tsango1972]

Keith Lewis you could but if you buy the 5 core wire for doing 2 way circuits the wires are coloured black and grey, along with brown, blue and earth wire

[@EngineeringMindset]

How *2 WAY and 3 WAY SWITCHES* work ➡️ kzbin.info/www/bejne/paHSdqath9WSoMk

[@Frack_Black]

Concisely and slowly explained. 👌 Good delivery.

[@Dislob]

I always felt dumb that wiring was not intuitive to me. I now understand why. It's not intuitive at all.

[@GbabyRoss]

Yea it's an acquired learning skill

[@taymorgan999]

It only becomes intuitive once you understand how electricity works/acts. You can learn how to wire stuff but if you don’t know the math and science behind the theory of electricity you’ll never be fluent per say. Source: JW Electrician

[@mr.bradley7316]

Thanks dude! Cool to know how switches work! ⚡️⚡️⚡️

[@EngineeringMindset]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@basshappens]

Excellent! Very clear explanation!

[@eldadappiah7828]

Best Video on the topic i've found online

[@joshuabullard828]

I was just trying to figure out why the lights in this room weren’t working yesterday using a three way switch with one of them being a four way and being that I’m still learning it was Kindve getting me but me and the dude training me figured out the 4 way switch was faulty and so we replaced it but this video really truly helped me get the simplistic design if you understand electrical work at all. Thanks for the tips!

[@abuguokechukwu5601]

I so much appreciate all your teachings....I haven't seen any one that teaches electricity in an explicit manner like....thumbs up👍👍

[@georgetriadafillou6958]

Ohohoho this is so wizard. I was curious about this and tried figuring it out years ago and couldn’t, so this video is great because now I actually get it. Thanks!

[@flauntflowers]

This is amazing, finally been able to connect my switches correctly! 🎉

[@danielteyehuago1633]

I'm here again. Thanks for sharing it with us

[@chuckerbjr2333]

The head of our bed is placed perpendicular to the wall on which the overhead light switch is mounted by the door. My wife has to walk clear around the bed in the dark at night after turning off the light or in the morning to turn the light on. This 3 switch circuit will allow me to replace and rewire the original light switch with a 4 way and add 2 more 3 way switches on either side of the headboard. In this manner either of us will be able to turn on or off the light when entering or exiting or from either side of the bed. Thanks for your very clear and concise video. I know that I'll get a lot of husband points for my efforts...

[@JosephStock7241]

TMI 2:17 2:18 2:19 2:20 2:20

[@danielteyehuago1633]

Thanks for sharing it with us

[@josephokedi1506]

great job guys

[@changieng6902]

Thank you for show

[@ebileneafolabi1313]

Thanks for enlightening me more.

[@ballygarran]

Excellent video.

[@clovertchick]

I have learned so much from it,l love it

[@guillermoramos5047]

good video , i like it , i personalty check the terminal on the four away as deferent manufacturers put the travelers sideways and up and down on the switch

[@abobobo943]

GREAT. VERY WELL EXPLANATION. THANK YOU

[@EngineeringMindset]

Glad you enjoyed

[@mdarfat4745]

thanks for the vry halful video

[@danielteyehuago1633]

Wow! This is very informative, thanks for sharing it with us. It worth it...wtc

[@fr.michaeldiavatis5811]

Great videos! Do you have this video using American colors too?

[@dullahelectronicsandtechni1170]

Nice and clear

[@atefmadany6074]

very good

[@galawangelectrical]

I will use the convenient and easy way method.

[@preciousibieokotogha225]

Good job, keep it up

[@zakinaizientyzainal6546]

Good sharing

[@nicholaskoech9907]

Am not Electrician but I love working on my own house wiring, may working on a faulty wiring. This is of great help since it is explained simple

[@tensevo]

Hire a professional. It is illegal to work on your own house wiring unless you are professionally qualified.

[@ZenTunE-]

​@@tensevoOh boohoo illegal

[@awesomegmg956]

Going 4 way is a big mistake. There is no 4 way smart switch replacement meaning you are stuck. For 3 way or single pole you can easily replace with smart devices and add infinity numbers of WiFi switches everywhere you want. The only non-smart device I have remain in my house is a 4 way.

[@IMixYourMusic]

@@tensevoit’s legal to work on your own house in many places

[@a.k.3659]

It may be legal but if you do a mistake the legal turns into lethal.

[@GTAV-qd3sk]

Thank you

[@hanifabaali3299]

Thanks sir for spleen me.

[@mohammadafroj5047]

Very nice sir

[@abayomijohn1964]

Super!

[@sujanpaudel2031]

incredible job 👏👏

[@LoganathanJ13]

I'm from India....good explanation sir...🙏

[@EngineeringMindset]

Thank you, do you know we also have a Hindi channel? kzbin.info/door/g4k338hz9U8jnD5SXPO5jQ

[@thomasjoseph9609]

nice i love it

[@dfwrealestateninja]

This is a great video, thank you! Can you or anyone reading this tell me how to wire a timer switch into this configuration? TIA!

[@mohammedhocine8888]

Very gooooood

[@johankroeker8622]

Hey the video is very helpful and also very well describe how a 4 way switch works thanks for the video 👌 I’m working on some lights installation and i have a question for you i have 3 light’s I’d like to know if it’s possible to have 2 4way switches that can turn all 3 lights on ! and of : and then have and other switch that turn just 1 light on and If I’d turn 1 of the 2 4ways on. That all 3 light’s are on. If turn them off! one of the 3 lights is still on.

[@ONEREBEL4LIFE]

It’s possible cause I’m actually working on something like this where I have a group 12 leds on one switch and one light lands on by the kitchen island and I’m thinking of using it on a separate switch by using a third three way switch and using that to split what goes to that light

[@cookwithpardesi9789]

This is the best channel i have learn a lot thanks buddy 😍😍🙏🙏👍👍 love from 🇵🇰🇵🇰

[@MamunKhan-xx9mp]

thinks sir

[@harrypotter_petronus]

Damn easily explained but still going over my head. Probably have to watch few times

[@EngineeringMindset]

Take as long as you need :D

[@fredtoituyau278]

Be carefull not to use wizardry on muggles technologie

[@harrypotter_petronus]

@@fredtoituyau278 :D

[@harrypotter_petronus]

@@EngineeringMindset Yep repetation is the key to realisation :P

[@EngineeringMindset]

completely agree. eventually your brain digests the info and you understand it

[@waheedsiyanbola9060]

It's very interesting 😂

[@homersimpson932]

Learn what you can carful your eyesight looking youtube continuously but these are great

[@aloysiusgrahan8984]

Thank

[@sharrybhai9217]

Thnk u s0 MuCh❤

[@aungthanngwe4919]

Thank you so much.

[@sumnewguy]

Are there situations where the different methods have advantages over each other? I can't think of a reason to not wire it the first way which is by far the simplest and easy for anyone fault diagnosing to follow.

[@EngineeringMindset]

Yes, check the subtitle on each. Most are conversion

[@sumnewguy]

Ahh of course sorry I missed that. They use the conductors already present at the switch

[@kelvinthiongo2504]

Yeah. The 2nd one is for an existing basic model so need not to make so many changes

[@MrSkeeech]

Wow, this video really helped me out! Thanks a ton.

[@mr.sayemsirmr.sayemsir9302]

Good

[@vikjts]

In method 2, instead of running common wire between the 2 end switches and then run a blue/brown wire to the light, is it OK to just use the lights black wire as the common and avoid the other 2 wires? I ask this because there are no 3-wire cables in the existing setup i have and the source line and the light wire are in the same box. I can run a second cable from the far end of the recessed lights serving it as the common between the far ends of the 3-way but is this OK to do?

[@abdulhafizkedir5712]

Tnx man , but i hv a question ! Why did u assume L2 and com as internally connected unlike for the 2 way switch when u assumed L1 and com were internally connected ??

[@DTAAuto]

Do you have a pdf (or video) available using US wiring?

[@JosephStock7241]

Like it.

[@runbou3019]

អគុណthank

[@dr.trichome6419]

Alot like wiring subwoofers and amplifiers cool

[@muslimameen1450]

Thank you👏😍

[@EngineeringMindset]

You're welcome

[@dylan-nguyen]

I kinda like method 1/2. Connect all odd lines and then connect all even lines. Then connect common!

[@shannonj1000]

Hi Paul, great video, I am looking to do something similar for my portfolio with sockets etc, as an adult apprentice did you use an app or ppt, to do the diagram.. if you could send to me would be ideal Thanks again John ..

[@Dylan_Lanckman]

I'd like to know how to add a smart switch like let's say a Shelly to a 4-way circuit. I don't seem to be finding a diagram for that.

[@josephokedi1506]

do you have a Book or PDF in building wiring?

[@noelelas4739]

Nice tutorial , thanks bro

[@ninotebermatiga163]

and it become more complicated 😅 but thanks for the info😁

[@geda2494]

I have wiring in my new build home similar to Method 1 at 4:43 but the power (live/neutral) and the load wire seem to be in the middle 4 way switch, I have 2 wires coming in both L1 and L2 and 1 cable in the others, as well as within the box neutrals connected and com connected. Struggling to understand why it seem to be done in even more complex way than it needs to be... I just want to identify the load wire route to light so I can put a smart switch instead of the 4 way switch, then use the existing wiring to convert the other switches to just live/neutral receivers for smart switches as well, which would control the first one. Any suggestions? Also what software is this diagram on? Would be great to try replicating what I have and seeing what would work.

[@activeenergy3082]

Active Energy will always come to your channel to see how you do it differently. I teach electricity but I give you thumbs up

[@user-fx4fk4co7z]

I kinda confused when i came acrose these 4 way switch type at the British high com residence(Solomon islands NZ standard). Now i fully understand on how these thing works. Thanks for this piece👍

[@kadapaworogers7126]

right

[@Kimberly57698]

Can you create the video 4 way light switching for US?

[@Gnefitisis]

How important is it to consider the colors of the wiring? It seems to me somewhat arbitrary to which wire becomes which color, as long as the outputs of each switch have 3 unique color wires, which can but do not have to be the same orientation between a second/third switch. I also don't understand why the color wire to the load is neutral. Shouldn't it be the color brown (L1) coming towards the load, since it will then be neutral only after the load?

[@LyonsArcade]

The reason the wire colors change is because typically people don't run individual wires that are the correct color, they run wires that are prepackaged out of the box in a set of two or three colors (grey, blue, brown here, in the USA it may be White, Black, Red).... so you often don't have two of the correct color wire running out of the box. Usually this is marked by putting the correct color electrical tape on the wrong colored wire.... It's important to mark them some discernible way so that if someone is messing with the wiring later, they can tell what in the world you were doing but they don't necessarily all have to be completely the correct color, any electrician that opens the box and sees a blue wire with a brown piece of tape on it for instance is going to figure out why you did t hat.

[@adrianpolydorou537]

Yes, I agree with you. It seems a little bit confusing. The wire coming from the switch should be brown because typically here in the UK we use twin and earth cable (brown/live, blue/neutral and green & yellow/earth). So typically the whole cable would be taken to the switch, with the blues (neutrals) blocked together and the brown (live) terminated into whichever plate method you are wiring. Also the green & yellow (earth's all blocked together). The cable to link the two or more switches would be a 3core and earth (brown, black and grey, plus the earth) and they would all be sleeved appropriately for what they were being used for (brown sleeving for live/intermittently live or blue for neutral. I hope this has cleared things up for you. Just trying to get my head around it myself. I also hope this is correct and thanks for the videos. I've enjoyed watching so many of them. I can see a lot of hard work has gone into making them and they are both clear and concise.

[@wilsonmogollon3000]

👍👍👍

[@katynewt]

Unless standards in Europe have changed since the 2010s, Red is the main colour used for Live, with Brown, Black, Purple, Grey, Orange used as secondary Live colours (going from switches to receptors).

[@EngineeringMindset]

IEC colour codes are Live = brown, Neutral = Blue, Earth = Green-yellow. ~2004/2006 it changed from red, black (IEE)

[@Berrynyc]

'murica: is it two switches? Ok let's call it four-way switch

[@laurentkessy2725]

Is it possible to control one lamp by 4 intermediate switch

[@awesomegmg956]

Nowadays it seems easier to have switches connecting directly to WiFi and control the lights on with smart home system.

[@discam0]

Where does a grounding conductor fit in all of this?

[@Alex-wy8qm]

Watt's Up!!!

[@GTAHomeGuy]

I like the content, helpful. Question though - Can the device only operate from one end of the chain of switches? What I am dealing with are 3 exterior lights all separately switched. I want them all on the same switches. So at the end each of the 3 switches turn all 3 lights on or off. It would be a lot of wire running to make this happen if all switches needed to be in series first and then the devices down line in series from the last switch. Any insight you could provide would be helpful!

[@EngineeringMindset]

You probably want this circuit instead kzbin.info/www/bejne/oIqph6aLpr5psMU Do not wire your lamps in series, they will not work

[@jeremiahdavila9209]

I'm from Brooklyn but correct if my wrong so you put two wire on L2 ?! On the second method ?!

[@bpomowe224]

Yes. Since it's called conversion, I imagine the leftmost switch is the original one, which then gets expanded with extra switches chained on.

[@TheJulieNclaire]

but I thought that in the UK the live normally feds the bulb/light and then the switch turns is off and on.

[@JD_London]

Correct, that's how I was taught the rose feeds the switch not the switch feeds the rose

[@piratedprivacy9052]

It doesnt matter which feds what first... In Switching what matter the most is obtaining the Permanent-Supply then ensuring the configuration of yr Switching is feeding the correct/designated Load-Point...

[@codygambin5082]

whats up!

[@seanohaimheirgin1047]

I thought the links might be to UK switches? Very useful video though, thank you hugely! 👍

[@kennethdavetomas6953]

hey can i ask something? What is the circuit structure of a 4 quadrant switch?

[@netking66]

It would be basically a DPDT switch (Double Pole Double Throw) which is two two way switches operated by the same handle. A basic DPDT switch has six terminals and can be used as an 'intermediate' switch by using appropriate connections. However the ones used for intermediate switches have four terminals and a couple of internal interconnections.

[@audigex]

At 3:00, is there any reason you use L1 instead of L2? Using L2 would seem more logical since you can then use even numbers for live and odd numbers for the switched neutral

[@karmaszn1900]

It really doesn’t make a difference tbh mate

[@nomadicsoul34]

there is no switched neutral. We dont switch in neutrals. Live conductors only.

[@SmartLifeEnthusiast]

Wouldn't L3 and L4 often be named L1' and L2'? Would make most sense in the configuration shown as "Four way switch conversion - Method 1" (4:30)

[@sumnewguy]

I've seen both in the UK personally prefer L1 & L2

[@bpomowe224]

The prim ' indicate the incoming line (common on motor controls), so L1 and L2 would become L1' and L2', while L3 and L4 would become L1 and L2.

[@kingcuan5261]

Wish I had this during my apprenticeship and wasn’t forced to memorise it

[@cendoldawetchannellowbudge7039]

👍🏼☕

[@LightGesture]

I have a double paddle i want to put into 3 switches to control fans and lights in the room. I have a double paddle that one switch is fan, one is light...i want to have another 2, even just 1 more switch, that would be a 3 way switch

[@jont1209]

Watt’s Up!

[@nelsonahlvik6650]

Watt's up

[@InSterquiliniisInvenitur]

Can you please make a separate video for North American electrical switches? This video is useful but hard to understand with different wiring colors and conventions that North American wiring uses.

[@ponni.k7475]

How to purchase 4way switch

[@AL-if7fe]

Pls do about y delta.

[@EngineeringMindset]

Here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nmmchYetobOhprs

[@AL-if7fe]

@@EngineeringMindset thanks.

[@nicholaskoech9907]

How to connect heavy power using machine like an oven for bakery

[@zooo131]

Hey. Cool Video. As an Elecrtician it's always interesting to see how things are handled in other countries. But your Videos leave me some questions: 1. Which country are you from? Just to understand which regulations you're referring to. (Sorry for not being able to recognize that form your accent). 2. Ist it so, that intermediate switches in your area just have four outlets and cross the Switches mechanically? Because in Switzerland we have a double-switch (which is operated by one "lever") and have to connect the wires form output one of switch one to output two of switch two and vice versa. The wires then create an X on the back of this switch, so it's called a cross-switch and the whole arrangement is called a cross circuit. At last i would mention, that in our electrical regulatory we always expect, that a wire is a life wire. So we only have to dindicate, when a wire is not life by placing a blue sleeve on it's end. (Much cheaper and safer option i think). I hope you can answer my Questions. And if you are btw. interested in making a video about the "swiss way" of electrical installation i would be happy to help you with some facts. Greetings from Switzerland. Julian

[@fernando47180]

That system where you mark non-live wires is quite clever! Thanks for that info

[@KSITREVS]

Whilst easy on paper, rather hard to get my head around this in my property. However I have just realised that as long as you don't connect the neutral cable into the switches the worst that can happen is dodgy logic and there is zero risk of popping the fuse/breaker, this realisation has put my mind at ease!

[@danielteyehuago1633]

I'm here again

[@ryanmaharaj4365]

Noticed u are placing a brown sleeve on the grey, blue and black wires. Why not use the brown wire instead since u already know which terminal it is connected to

[@piratedprivacy9052]

Its within a cable made & 'coloured' according to the manufacturer.

[@bpomowe224]

It also makes it easier to keep track which terminal is connected to which. Imagine coming back years later, and all wires are the same colour.

[@kyewilliams8492]

is the brown hot and the blue neutral

[@clashanime-7312]

I think the brown is neutral cuz electrons come from it ...

[@cezarcatalin1406]

clashAnime - كلاش انمي Nope, brown is hot. Look at the colour code standards. It’s AC anyways... elections go both ways constantly at 50Hz

[@techlord7014]

Watt's up?

[@uittyman]

A lot of the 2 way explanations only use single gang switches.... Can I see an explanation using a 4 gang switch where 2 of the switches are a two way switch with 2 other separate switches. Make one a 2 gang and the other a 4