Help wiring a bathroon light/fan

Need help figuring out the wiring - I have a Nutone fan/light fixture. It has a white and black wire for the fan and a white and blue wire for light. Now I have 2 separate switches the first is for the fan it has white,black and white. The other is for the light and it has white and black. HELP HELP

It sounds like your switches are switching the hot at the fixture. If this is the case black runs to the fixture and from there it runs to one or more switches. Each switch then switches the hot and it runs back up to the fixture.

If it's what I'm thinking your white wires should be marked in some way with black. It could be a marker mark or electric tape wrapped around the wire for no apparent reason. The power wire (black) is running to the switch. The white wire is also running to the switch. But when the switch is active (closed) that white wire becomes a hot wire and should be marked black. It should also be marked black up at the fixture.

If the circuit runs fixture-switch-fixture, at the fixture you should have 3 wires running from your breaker or fuse box; black, white and green. The black wire from the breaker box is attached to the black wire that runs to the switch or switches. The white wire which runs to the breaker panel is attached to all the other white wires from the fixture (two whites from the nutone fan). The green from the breaker gets attached to the box and any green on the fixtures plus green from the switch box.

The whites from each switch (which should be marked black) each get attached to one of the fixture hots (black and blue).

Make sure the breaker is off or fuse is out while you are working on it and lock the box so no one but you can turn it back on. Never trust anyone but yourself when working on electric. If you are working on the circuit you and only you should have the key to the box.

If you aren't sure, ask someone qualified for help.

Lippy welcome to the forum.

Thank you Jmborchers. There is nothing I could possibly add to your reaction to Lippy

Here is a diagram - Hopefully it will help - can you help me to connect wires?

Post edited by: lippy, at: 2008/08/17 12:37

The fan switch is a 3-way switch. I don't know why that is unles there is two entrances to the bathroom and two switches to control the fan circuit?

I need to see in your diagram where power is coming from the breaker or fuse panel. Your diagram is not showing where the power is originating from.

The switch marked "for FAN" is inside the bathroom it also has a receptacle next to it. The switch marked "light" is on the wall outside the bathroom so you can switch it on before you inside the bathroom. i checked this switch and it is the end of the run. The ceiling has both set of wires coming out of it.

I still don't have enough information regarding the 3-way switch.

This switch is either wired to another switch somewhere which gives the capability to turn the fan off from two places, or switches the hot between two circuits.

If the fan is off is something else on?

lippy,

Please excuse my tardiness in welcoming you to the Forum.
I have a question concerning the room you’re working in.

Is there by chance, a Single Outlet or single Gang Outlet placed up on the wall of the room a bit higher than the others, that works intermittently,
Or…
Is there a second overhead Light Fixture, or a second threaded socket in your existing Light Fixture, with the threaded receptacle the size of a Miniature or Candelabra Night Light?

Have a good Day !
S.W.

OK here it is. I HAVE FIGURED IT OUT. It's working now. I think I should have been a electrician, because I know some of you are not. So it wasn't that difficult. So with this configuration the fan is controlled seperate from the light switch. SIMPLE.

Post edited by: lippy, at: 2008/08/18 06:46

Considering you've tied black and white together at the ceiling light I can tell for certain you aren't an electrician and should never be one.

Secondly, the the switches appear to be switching the neutral.

That's not to code. Only hots can be switched and hots may never be white.

You didn't get your answer because your information was either missing or incorrect; not because you weren't getting proper information from electricians.

What you have done is incorrect and not to code.

Why can't you switch white?

Because white is a current carrier to ground. You are never allowed to break the path to ground. You've essentially removed one of the failure points to ground.

Your circuit also should be on GFCI and grounded with green.

Post edited by: jmborchers, at: 2008/08/18 23:50

Sorry that was my mistake in the drawing. Here is what I meant to draw. This was the only way. Did you have any other suggestions?

But you aren't showing R connected to B in the source box?

White must run through the source box but not be switched.

Post edited by: jmborchers, at: 2008/08/19 00:15

There are 2 set of wires that are coming out of the ceiling that were going to the previous fan/light that was up there. I decided to replace it with a new one. My mistake was to not mark how it was set up before I disconnected it. So with that said the 2 set of wires coming out of the ceiling were there and working previously. The 2 set of wires are as follows - RED BLACK WHITE that is coming from the switch that controls only the fan and WHITE BLACK going to the switch that controls only the light. SO my only problem is making the correct connections at the ceiling. Now I would think that the switch on the right of my diagram ( THE LIGHT SWITCH ) needs to get the power from the other switch which was set up for 2 hot connection ie the black and red. Everything is working fine The switch on the left of my diagram works for the fan only and the switch on the outside of the door controls the light only. Everything is grounded and tested.

Okay. Now I think I understand it all.

Now I see what you have in your drawing is the same as mine except I still have the red and black backwards as black is your always hot and red is your switched hot.



Post edited by: jmborchers, at: 2008/08/19 03:01

Now I have it all correct.

Yours is quite different from the normal because you have a switch dropped from the fixture because you have a switch outside the bathroom and the switch inside is only for the fan.

Typically, a single 12/3 or 14/3 cable will be used. Black switched runs the fan, red switched runs the light and white is neutral for both.

Post edited by: jmborchers, at: 2008/08/19 03:28

So is the switched red and black a problem? Should I change it? I really never even touched the wires from the inside of the switches. They have allways been the same. thanks for all you help

Red and black switched is to code. White switched is a no no. The white always has to have a clear run to the breaker or fuse box and so does green. But green doesn't typically carry any current and white does carry current back to complete the circuit.

maybe you can visit this site to find an answer to your little problem to your wiring:
Ceiling Fan Reviews , maybe consult to a electrician to fix your problem in wiring a bathroom light/fan that is my advice for you!!

Welcome to the Forum jams001, thanks for your input.

Have a good Day !
S.W.