"Tom Edelbrok" wrote in message
news:u2KDd.7325$8l.3095@pd7tw1no...
I have a switch in the foyer and another at the top of the stairs. Each
switch can control the light above the stairs. But when I enter the garage
(right at the location of the switch at the bottom of the stairs) I have
no
control over the garage lights. So I end up walking across the garage in
the
dark to turn the garage lights on. When done, I have to turn off the
garage
lights, then walk through the dark back to the foyer.

Here's what I want: The two existing switches stay as they are (they work
great for the light above the foyer stairs). I want to add a light and
switch just inside the garage door as I enter the garage from the foyer.
This light and switch would be hooked into the existing system that has
two
switches and one light. When I enter the garage I flick a switch to turn
the
new light on. Then I can see my way to the other side of the garage to
turn
the main garage lights on.

One problem - I had someone come in to hook it up and they said that when
it
was hooked up 'one way' the lights went dim. When it was hooked up the
'other way' the lights didn't work. I don't know a lot about electricity
but
when viewing a diagram of 'two switches controlling one light' (pulled off
the web) it seems to me to be impossible to do what I'm trying to do
because
the new second light (with third switch) would always be in serial instead
of parallel to the existing light (my meager electrical knowledge says
that
you don't hook lights up in serial).

So was this a dumb idea? Can it only be done by running electrical wire
all
the way from the other side of the garage to the foyer? If on the surface
of
garage drywall is a conduit required? And finally, does my renovator know
what he's doing (obviously not!).

Thanks in advance,

Tom Edelbrok


I read this a couple of times and "think" what you should probably do is add
a 3 way switch in the garage by the door and replace the switch across the
garage with another 3 way switch. This way it will work like the switches at
the top and bottom of the stairs. This will require a third wire be run
between the switches called a traveler.
Here is a good site that explains it better....
http://www.handymanwire.com/articles/3wayswitch.html
It would probably be fairly inexpensive to just hire an electrician and have
him fish all the wire inside the wall and mount the switches. As for your
renovator, I think he must not be a licensed electrician if he is hooking
bulbs in series!!

....Good Luck, Ross