Pilot Light Switch No Neutral

Sometimes there s no neutral wire at a switch location if the power is coming through the light fixture.

Pilot light switch no neutral.

Switches switch boxes on the other hand don t need a neutral because they are just an interrupt spliced into the circuit. A light switch that has a little pilot light on it to indiacate that the lights are on in a location such as the basement so you don t have to go down stair. These smart switches will work with even older homes and switch wiring that does not have. But this would create significant additional resistance in the current flowing through the line to the main load.

This is shown in the diagram below. Most pilot light switches require the power source to be at the switch box such as your application. The case that everyone refers to when they say no neutral is when the line voltage comes to the light bulb first. The lighted pilot light may need the neutral wire for the operation of the pilot light.

This is called a switch loop. In fact one of the ways to address the issue of a light switch box that doesn t have a neutral is to fish one up from a nearby outlet. For a lamp that is lit when the switch is on i can envision a circuit diagram that has the switch lamp in series with the switched circuit. Some black wires carry the return current too becoming a black and white wire in one basically.

What to do about that neutral wire. There are some illuminated switches that operate without a neutral. I had a switch by cooper wiring devices the decorator switch that did not need the neutral for the pilot light. See the electrical wiring instructions for the specific type of switch that you have purchased.

The lutron caseta smart light switches will work in homes that don t have a neutral wire in the switch box. Then from the light bulb another loop goes to the switch. In either case what you ll need is a z wave switch with no neutral wire required. Wiring instructions for a pass seymour 692 series combination switch pilot light.

The hot from the source light to the switch and the wire from the switch to the device to be switched.