Re: How to wire up a RS-150BA-N Vacancy Sensor Switch with Nightlight and Manual On/Off

["Rheilly Phoull" <rheilly@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"OneSolution" <onesolution@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:IT%Mi.980$lD6.175@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> On Thu, 04 Oct 2007 06:18:23 GMT, Noozer wrote:
>
>> The black is always on and is the power. The white is what is switched on
>> and off and is the load. You're missing the needed neutral. You should
>> also
>> have a bare copper wire, which is ground. This is because the switch
>> comes
>> AFTER the light in your circuit instead of before it.
>
> Thank you Noozer for your volunteer help; I greatly appreciate the advice.
> I'm a bit confused. If a circuit is a complete loop, why would it matter
> if
> the switch is before or after the load?
>
> Note: I do understand that the black wire in the wall is the hot (incoming
> 120vac) wire and that the white wires in the wall are the neutral
> (outgoing, supposedly near 0vac) wires which go into the ground at every
> fifth telephone pole or so. And I do understand that the bare wire (green
> on the switch) is grounded to my water pipes and does not carry current
> normally. But I have no idea what this red (load) wire is supposed to do.
>
> In looking again, there is a bare copper wire inside the box as you noted,
> so you know your stuff. But there certainly isn't a red wire.
>
> While I understand your basic premise that I can't use the switch because
> I
> don't have three wires in the box (black, white, red) to connect the three
> wires on the switch (black, white, red), I still don't understand why this
> circuit is different.
>
> If it helps, I did put the switch on another wall outlet which did have a
> black, a set of whites crimped together, and a red ... and the Legrand
> "WattStopper RS-150BA-N Vacancy Sensor Switch with Nightlight and Manual
> on/off" wall switch worked fine.
>
> Can you explain why some of my wall boxes have only a black and a white
> and
> ground while other boxes have a black, a set of whites crimped together,
> and a red wire?

It is not unusual for a switch to simply be connected to the "hot" and the
"load" (the other side of the lamp from the neutral). So then you will only
have the "hot" and the outgoing wire to the lamp fixture, thus there is no
neutral to power your electronics in the sensor.
--
Cheers .......... Rheilly P