Lesson Activity – Wiring Two Three-Way Switches and an LED

Lesson Activity - Wiring Two Three-Way Switches and an LED

Grab your screwdriver, wirecutter/stripper, two three-way switches, an LED, three wire nuts, four 10” lengths of 3-strand cable (two black sheath, yellow wire removed and two brown sheath), a roll of electrical tape (shown pink in the circuit diagrams), and your WorkBench with Load Center. Follow along with the video to practice creating a circuit with a single LED that is controlled by either a three-way switch, and then try your hand at creating two other arrangements of three-way switches!

Your goals:

Part 1:

• Cut two 10” pieces of 3-strand cable (one black, one brown)
• Prepare the cable by stripping the sheathing, stripping the wires, and preparing the cable as shown in Lesson 5
• Connect the Hot to the common screw terminals of the first switch
• Connect the red traveler to the right traveler terminal and the left traveler to the left terminal of the first switch
• Wire nut the neutrals
• Connect the red traveler to the right traveler terminal and the left traveler to the left terminal of the second switch
• Connect the Hot of the LED to the common screw terminals of the second switch
• Wire nut the neutrals
• Turn on the Load Center and test that the LED can be controlled by either switch

Part 2:

• After following the video to build one type of three-way switch setup, follow the circuit diagrams below to create: 
• A circuit with the LED between the two switches
• A circuit with the LED between the switches and the Load Center
• Test each circuit to ensure the LED can be controlled with either switch 
• Once you feel comfortable with these skills, remove all connections and cut your cable clean to prepare for the next lesson!