3-way wiring problem

[TugBoat1]

I'm not sure that this is the correct forum for this question, but I'm not sure where to ask. I am in the process of upgrading my lighting to Vizia RF+, and have hit a snag in replacing my existing switches. I have some 600W dimmers and coordinating remotes with LEDs. When I attempted to replace the 3-way switches in one of my circuits, I found that my circuit is "dead ended." One of the boxes has only a single 14-3 coming into it, and I assume the other box has both the switch leg and the feed. From the Vizia documentation, it would seem that my wiring is not compatible with the switches. Is there any way to resolve this short of rewiring the circuit?
Thanks,
Bill

 

[az1324]

Well you only need two wires to connect the dimmers together and the other wire can be used to feed the load back to the other box, right?

 

[Frunple]

Most, if not all, automated lighting 3 way switches are just "slaves" to the "master" switch anyway. Meaning that the slave switch doesn't control the load but just controls the master switch, which controls the load.
So all you need to do is get power to the slave, wire it just as if it were an outlet, and then connect the control wire back to the master switch so it knows which load its on.
So you're fine with the wiring you have to make it work, in fact, any normal 3 way wiring can be adapted to automated 3 way if you just follow the paths regardless if power and load are in one box, power goes to the light first or if powers in one box and load is in another. You just have to rearrange the leads so you have a straight shot from the slave to the maste and from the master to the load.

 

[IndyMike]

Hello Tugboat,

The following are few common 3-way configurations that can have a "dead end" switch as you have described. As noted previously, both should be compatible with your Vizia switches. You'll need to identify the traveler wires, and then reconfigure them per the Leviton instructions:

3-Way 1

3-Way 2

3-Way 3

 

[TugBoat1]

Thanks for all the advice. I hope to start wiring this up this weekend!

Hello Tugboat,

The following are few common 3-way configurations that can have a "dead end" switch as you have described. As noted previously, both should be compatible with your Vizia switches. You'll need to identify the traveler wires, and then reconfigure them per the Leviton instructions:

3-Way 1

3-Way 2

3-Way 3