UPB 3 Way Switch Wiring

BPet

Member
I just replaced a 2 wall switches, 3 Way Switch, with a new HAI 35A00 and Auxiliary 37A00.  Can anyone confirm if the new wiring configuration looks correct.  The switches seem to work, but I don't want it to burn the house down next week :)
SCN_103.jpg
 
The builder had a white wire, connected to a black hot wire, and so the color labels of some of the wires may be non-conventional - but I'm hoping its wired correctly :)
 
Thanks,
Brett
 
The easiest way to tell is to think of the slave switch as wired like an outlet, with the traveler back to the primary switch. IOW, all the slave needs is power (like an outlet would) and the traveler. It doesn't actually connect to the load at all, like the regular 3 way would.
 
So if you can figure out which wire goes to the load (looks like your wire2 upstairs), and which wire is your hot (wire1 white), bring the hot into the primary switch, then send the 'switched' side of the primary to the load.
 
At this point the primary should be controlling the load. If it is, you're wired correctly and you can just put the slave switch in the box and provide power to it, then connect the traveler to it and to the "slave" wire on the primary.
 
I would say you have it wired wrong and should redo it immediately.
These "group of" wires, is there another romex in the upstairs or is it just 2??
Looks like the original has power coming in (group of blacks), which is then sent to the DS's common using the wire1 white. Then the black and red are travelers back to the Up stairs box and wire2's black is on the common there sent to the load.
 
So disco everything. Run power (hot and return) to the primary upstairs. Then connect the wire2 black to the load of the primary.
This should now control the load. Does it?
Then just wire the slave as I described above.
 
Actually just looked at your diagram again, it is wired correctly but you should reverse the wire1 so that black is hot and white is return. That's what was throwing me off, seeing the black from wire1 going to the whites. Again, the primary does everything, then just send power to the slave so you can just connect the black from wire1 to the 'group of blacks' and the wire1 white to the 'group of whites. This willbring "normal" power to the slave.
Sorry about the confusion.
 
I think that makes sense to me...so, since the upstairs switch is the only one with more than one wire coming into the box, I'm assuming that the second wire (1Black, 1White, 1Ground) must be the wire to the Load.  The downstairs box only has the 1(Red/Black/White) wire.   From looking at the diagram, do you think its possible that it is all working, yet I mistakenly connected something wrong?  I know I have the hot wire coming into box upstairs and then also going downstairs....then the neutral from upstairs connects to other neutrals in the box(its 3 Gang) and the neutral from downstairs is connected together with those...then the control from downstairs is going to the control on the upstairs outlet...and the other wire(Black/White) in the upstairs box has its white connected to the other neutrals, and its black to the upstairs switch on the Load side....
 
Just edited as my post as you posted. Please reread the ending. No need to worry, it's wired correctly. You can just correct the color code to the slave.
 
"You can just correct the color code to the slave." ok, since I'm paranoid, I just want to be I understand correctly.  So, your saying that the wiring is correct, its just that since I have the white wire that is headed to the slave connected to the black wires, it will cause confusion (like it did for me for 4 hours today :)  ), and so I should swap the black and white wire connections on both ends to avoid confusion....
 
That's correct. You are now just sending 'normal power' to the slave, that's what I meant by wiring it as an outlet, so you can correct the color code as black = hot, white = return.
 
Everything else is correct. Remember, the primary switch does all of the control. So if you need to wire another 3 way, install the primary and get it controlling the load. You may need to run the load wire through the other box, this depends on where the hot wire comes into the circuit. Usually the hot will come into one box, then the load will come out of the other. These 2 wires are connected to the common terminals on the regular switches, and the travelers are connected to the other 2 terminals. So when you use the UPB switches you may need to send the "switched" leg from one box to the other to get to the actual load wire. Then just wire the slave as an outlet with the one 'traveler'.
 
As long as you get the primary controlling the load without the slave being connected you are pretty much assured it's right.
 
Thanks again Frunple, another question for you :)
 
Does it matter which white bundle the neutral wire from the UPB switch is connected to? There are other bundles of neutrals in the box (5 Gang)? And if I want to get power to the switch, does it matter which black bundle I tap?
 
My current issue is that I went to bed last night thinking that I had everything wired correctly. Then, today I was shredding some paper and jammed the paper shredder, which was attached to my Uninterrupted Power Supply - and the UPS started making a loud noise and everything connected to it(including two computers) shut off....I turned the UPS off and then back on and its working fine....20 minutes later, my wife went into the garage and said there was a smokey smell in there....Oh @#R!  Did I mess up a wire and am I going to burn the house down....oh, maybe it has something to do with the surge that the Shredder sent that tripped the UPS?   I quickly flipped off the breakers containing the switches that I wired yesterday, smelled all of the wall switches etc. Didn't notice anything strange...Is it possible that the jammed paper shredder that tripped the UPS also caused something to smell from the breaker panel?
 
Not sure about the shredder but as for the white, never mix them between circuits, never! Make sure you connect to the same circuit as the hot you are using. If there are more than one circuit in a box, keep them separate.
 
If everything in both the box with the master and the slave turned off with the same breaker, then It should be all on the same circuit, right?
 
Not necessarily, there may be another circuit 'passing through' that box. Turn off the breaker then check all the hots with a volt meter.
 
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