Neutrals at switches

[Guest 004]

Went to a job today, twin and earth, and it had been wired 2 plate, which of course meant that all the switches had the neutral taken to them.

WTF, if I had done that in my apprenticeship I would have been kicked off site.

Is this how things are done now, god I hope not.

 

[Adam W]

For down lighters, what's wrong with keeping the neutral conductor in the ceiling void??

Why not ask yourself ''what's right with it'' ??? If you don't loop the neutral at the switch you'd have to loop the live at one of the downlighers.... But which one?

 

[aptsys]

IMO it works better, especially when you consider that a lot of decorative light fittings make no allowance for loop-in at the rose. I can't see how you could consider it lazy though, if anything it is more work.

 

[Electricalserv]

I have never ever seen this....Is it really so common....I was always taught loop in ceiling rose.

 

[malcolmsanford]

Is it o.k takeing a Zs measurement at the switch though......

You still have the CPC at the light, all you have is the S/L and Neutral and CPC. So even with the 2 plate system I would do the Zs at the light fitting.

 

[High Tower]

If there's no need for a neutral at the switch, then No i don't like it. A lot of this looping neutrals at the switch is more by laziness than for any real need. If you were wiring an outside light , fine bring a neutral to the switch. For down lighters, what's wrong with keeping the neutral conductor in the ceiling void??

Yeah cracking idea!, loop the Neutral in a JB or some other nastiness and then hide it somewhere in the ceiling void! top idea that

 

[Engineer54]

Well, ....seeing as your hiding all the other connections anyway, why not?? Neutrals at switch points when there not needed is a nonsence!!

 

[aptsys]

Not really.

 

[Adam W]

The idea is not to get a neutral at the switch, rather not to have a live looped in elsewhere.

 

[morph]

i nearly always do it this way
better for most modern lights that only take tiny cables , looping at the light on a modern light fitting nearly always means a j/b which is poor practice
at the switch all connections are available and easy to work on.

 

[glasgowbiker42]

the loop in system never came to prominence till the early eighties before that the neutrals were taken to the light switches or junction box's i.e. if a house was split level jou had a j.b in the upstairs landing servicing the downstairs lights and one in the attic for upstairs. Benefit is you only have one cable at each light fitting point.Another method is to use 10A D.P switches i.e. MK K4876WHI.

 

[oldtimer]

I have never seen double pole (2 plate ?) switching on a light circuit but I have seen a neutral passing through a lightswitch due to the way it was wired years ago ie fuseboard at low level conduit out to a 4x4 in the hall and a conduit to each light point via the switch and with single cables the neutral passed through but with T&E you tend to see a neutral joint but in this case someone has decided to double pole switch the lights.

On other thing to point out power sockets and fuse spurs are beginning to be double poled switching and when you think of it this is a good thing if you have a neutral to earth fault downstram of the switch/socket and theres a RCD involved as well

 

[Des 56]

If there's no need for a neutral at the switch, then No i don't like it.

Strong views on this subject
Only picked out this quote just to emphasise the word like

Like it or dis like it ?
I have no issue with either method,they have advantages and dis advantages

Like is not in the Brb
If you approve of one over the other,what reason can you give that is backed up by the book ?
If you cant give a book reason there is no right or wrong way

 

[Electricalserv]

Loop in system to ceiling rose everytime for me. New fittings can be connector blocked at rose which is essentially what a ceiling rose is. Cables are accessible then and a JB above ceiling is not needed.

 

[Richard]

Can't see a problem with it at all, and have wired 100's of new propertys this way! If Ikea and co start designing their fittings to be slightly more accomdating to receiving 3 cables then maybe i'd think twice!

 

[Engineer54]

Let me put it this way then, .... I wouldn't and haven't allowed it on any of my projects in the past, and wont allow it on my next project!!! If a neutral is needed for outside lights and the like, fine i have no-problem with that, but i do have a problem with using the switch points as junction boxes as a wiring system!!! No Way Ho Say!!!!!

Only ever seen this tried once on a project, and that was on a stand alone smallish building on a large shopping centre complex. In this case the building was very much like a normal house build, and using T&E wiring methods. Only caught it after a good 2/3rds of the first fix had been installed. Just the same, ...it all came out!!!