in this video we continue on a series of videos that we've been looking at the two plate method
sometimes called taking the feed to the switch one of my students contacted me and said Gary
i've just taken a switch off the wall that had the neutral connections actually connected in the back
of the switch i said well that's interesting i think we can explore that and we will do in this
video so let's look at the rig we've currently got we've got a cable coming from the consumer unit
this taking the feed to the switch which brings our line our neutral and our CPC down to our
first switch of which the neutral isn't required there and we had to put it into a connector in
this case a Wago two two one because the neutral was required to be redirected up to our lighting
points and we've seen that in a series of videos including some on the wiring diagrams as well
but this switch here can help us remove that connector by having an additional terminal in it
so we're going to take it over to the bench we'll have a look at this switch and then we'll come
back and make the connections and see if it's a better switch or a better solution maybe than
having a connector floating around in the back of the switch so let's explore the terminals on the
back of this Schneider switch a little bit closer so here we have a two way switch we've got common
one way and two way we're possibly used to being common L1 and L2 in drawings in other videos
that we've done on the channel and now another terminal called loop i'm not sure that's the
right name for it but this is the terminal where we'll be making our connections for our neutral
let's explore the fact and see if this loop terminal is physically connected to any other
terminals we wouldn't expect it to be would we if we're putting a neutral in here permanent line and
our switching lines in these we wouldn't expect them to be electrically connected together so if
i bring in my continuity tester and we test first of all between common let's go L2 okay that has
a continuity if we operate the switch we expect that not to have anything so okay so that's now
not got a continuity so let's go to the L1 again that's got a continuity to operate the switch
we expected not to so that's working correctly in those terminals as we would expect on the back of
a two way switch but let's go now between common and loop and now loop and one way loop and two way
operate the switch again and repeat the process none of these are connected together that makes
perfect sense doesn't it so this terminal down here labeled loop is not physically connected to
any of the elements of the switching mechanism so effectively it's standing alone so it's no
different than the Wago 221 connector we've currently got in the back of our switch so
this could facilitate for us the neutrals let's go and connect this switch up next
so i'm going to replace this two way switch with this one from Schneider that has the
neutral connection in it but when you're changing stuff especially on site when you're learning
it's always worth just taking a photograph so once you've disconnected stuff you've got an
idea of where the conductors are going let's just familiarize ourselves once again with what we've
got in here we've got the cable coming in this side here bringing in our line into either L1 or
L2 our neutral into a connector block on our CPC and then we've got our 3 core that goes across to
our intermediate switch so our 3 core being brown black and grey and we've got those coming out of
grey coming out either L1 or L2 we've got a brown coming out of either L1 or L2 and our black in
common and then the other cable going up and out here is the one that takes out um our switching
line which is coming along with the grey our blue neutral and our CPC so again if that's unfamiliar
to you i've done a video explaining all of these connections so i'll recommend you go
back and have a look at that so let's disconnect this two way switch so we can put the new one on
so you can see from a training point of view the minute you've popped all of those out you're
thinking oh where does everything go so we get rid of the connector now as well because we're
going to connect those into the loop terminal in the back here that we just looked at so we've got
the loop one there for our neutrals so common so we've got a common connection which is our black
we've got it's labeled one way in two way which is our L1 and L2
so we've got a set there and a set they're going to go in those two there
as always i really like to double over my termination so i've come out the Wago 221
and we know we don't double over into them whose lever style connectors so i'm just going to strip
a little bit more back off i'm gonna double over my terminations you notice now no knife okay using
a set of wire strippers i do recommend if you can get hold of a decent set of wire strippers that'd
be brilliant so i'm gonna fold these over so i can make my neutral connection the one that we said
was labelled loop so i've double those over i'll just pop all my connections back into my switch
so let's pop our neutrals into this loop terminal which is new to me
lots of switches out there have them people keep saying Hager have been doing this forever
so again if you've been using that style of switch just let us know so pop those into there
and then we've got a choice now where we go so we automatically know are common for me and my
system is always black so i'll get rid of that one next my black common can go in and then we've got
to work out where we're doing next between one way and two way L1 and L2
so we've got a permanent line here and a switching line here so a permanent line and switching line i
always like my permanent line to go with the brown of the three core so those two there
will go into this terminal just here which it doesn't matter which one of the two it went into
pop those in and then i've got my switching line going in with my grey of my three core
like that a little bit different just those labels are a little bit different than we're used to
seeing we've seen L1 and L2 so there we have it so if you come across a switch like this could be a
Schneider one it could be a Heger one where you've got the two neutrals
for this system now not connected together in a Wago but actually inside the switch itself
we know that that neutral connection is not connected to any of the switching circuit
and we've got L1 L2 terminals and our common so our connections have been made into this switch
now replacing the original two way switch i'm sure the keynote amongst you would also
say now hang on Gaz there's an extra connection also in the intermediate switch so let's have
another look here because we put it round we've only got the brown and grey cables being passed
through the intermediate switch and for my system i always use black the one that's
going to be connected together it just passes through here to get to the next two way switch
so if i had an intermediate switch from the Schneider range hopefully i could get rid of
this connector by making those connections in the back of the switch so i bought an intermediate
switch so here's my intermediate switch and as i turn it over only the four connections that
i do require for my intermediate switcher there there is no additional terminal where i could put
these two here so that was a bit of a letdown that was when i bought i was expecting to have
an extra terminal here if you look at these two it looks remarkably like we're using the same frame
so the intermediate switch to be this switch and obviously making that loop terminal but when we
get to the intermediate switch they haven't had an additional section anywhere that i can put
these connections that i have to stay now in my Wago 221 so that was a little bit disappointing
if you've been using the Hager one and the Hager intermediate switch has an extra connection please
leave that comment below and i'll perhaps buy and investigate that but um yeah that was a bit
of a drawback yeah the Schneider switch for the intermediate had no additional terminal what shame
so a couple of bits there for us to just digest isn't there so we can get switches now that can
facilitate this neutral terminal when we're doing taking the feed to the switch sometimes
called the two plate method and just be aware of that in industry if you take one off don't start
panicking that neutral connections we proved is not connected to any part of the switching line
circuit you also saw in the video me use a pair of uh cable strippers or twin and earth strippers
i've even said twin and earth as well for our cables and again it might be worth investing in
a decent set of wire strippers for for one mil one five and 2.5 twin and earth or twin and CPC cables
so hopefully you've left me some comments below about this neutral terminal being added to the
back of the switch including the ones that maybe Hager make we looked at the Schneider one today
but as always i hope this video has been some help