A light switch that does nothing!
 

I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)

--
Mr W.

"Mr. Whippy" wrote in
:

I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing!
How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out
walls to trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)


Are there any wires connected to the switch? Maybe the switch is bad.

Are you sure it doesn't control half of one of the duplex receptacles in that
room? It might also have gone to the fan in a fan/light combo that is now just
a light. Is it near a basement or attic access? How about an outside outlet? I
had a "mystery switch" that controlled a landscape light outlet in the yard.
That took a while to figure out. ;-)

"Mr. Whippy" wrote

I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring?

Well, they DO do something and I wish you would stop f*cking with them! I'm
having a helluva time trying to read!!!

Greg wrote:

Are you sure it doesn't control half of one of the duplex
receptacles in that room? It might also have gone to the fan in
a fan/light combo that is now just a light. Is it near a
basement or attic access? How about an outside outlet? I had a
"mystery switch" that controlled a landscape light outlet in the
yard. That took a while to figure out. ;-)

Yep. If it's an older (50+) home, it could go just about
anywhere, be broken, or some combination of the above.
Oh, joy! g

If the home is more "middle age" (20-50) or newer, I would lean
towards the 'half-of-duplex-for-table-lamps' as more probable,
and it it's 20 I would think it could have been put in for
"future use", which builders didn't really do until recently.
If so, and it is anywhere like Greg said, you may want to look
for a blank cover plate on an outside wall where you might place
a light fixture or outlet.

--
The real Tom Pendergast [ So if you meet me, have some courtesy,
aka I-zheet M'drurz [ have some sympathy, and some taste.
Accept no substitutes! [ Use all your well-learned politesse,
$1 to Mick for the .sig ---[ or I'll lay your soul to waste.

"Mr. Whippy" wrote in message
...

I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)

Some new houses have extra circuits, and perhaps
switches too, for plans the owner never got around
to implementing. In my house these are (1) outdoor
lights (extra switch at the front door) and (2) unbuilt
extra bathroom (circuits only, no switches.)

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)

On Sun, 24 Oct 2004 05:19:36 GMT, "Mr. Whippy"
wrote:

I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)

You might want to look carefully at the ceiling in any room that
doesn't have a ceiling fixture. I found small round plaster repairs
in the ceilings of two rooms in my house. The previous owners
apparently didn't like ceiling fixtures.

I took a chance that the one in my MBR might still be active and
chopped away the plaster. I installed a cheap "temporary" fixture
that I had bought in case it worked. That was, of course, a couple of
years ago. The difference between temporary and permanent is a subtle
one in my house.

Even if I didn't need a fixture, it's just as well that I opened up
the ceiling box. If memory serves there was no cover on the box, just
a wad of newspaper stuffed into it to serve as a backing for the
plaster. The wires inside were just taped off and the tape was in
questionable condition.

Greg Guarino

2 years later, I'm working in the attic above this closet when I see
wiring
come out of the 'floor', go up a support stud to two wire nuts, and stop.
To this day, I have no idea what he was planning to use it for.

A switched light in the attic..is there a ceiling trapdoor in the closet for
attic access?
...or maybe there 'was' going to be one.

OR, run the circuit across the attic and out to a box w/ duplex outlet in
the soffit/eaves area

Gives you a dry outside place to plug in your "roof" Christmas lights and
switched "inside".
No cold wet trips outside in Winter to turn off/unplug the Xmas lights.

We have 2 such circuits Ho Ho Ho!

Rudy wrote:

2 years later, I'm working in the attic above this closet when I see
wiring
come out of the 'floor', go up a support stud to two wire nuts, and stop.
To this day, I have no idea what he was planning to use it for.



A switched light in the attic..is there a ceiling trapdoor in the closet for
attic access?
..or maybe there 'was' going to be one.

OR, run the circuit across the attic and out to a box w/ duplex outlet in
the soffit/eaves area

Gives you a dry outside place to plug in your "roof" Christmas lights and
switched "inside".
No cold wet trips outside in Winter to turn off/unplug the Xmas lights.

We have 2 such circuits Ho Ho Ho!




I installed ceiling track lights in my dining room when my wife was
giving art classes. Above the ceiling was an attic, so it was easy to
run the wiring to a newly installed switch on the DR wall connected to
an outlet on the adjacent LR wall. When my wife gave up the classes, I
removed the track lights but retained the switch, which then did
nothing. Subsequently, I installed a motion detector light on the rear
of my house (for the dog) and used the DR switch to control the outside
light.

As sure as sheetrock, you are correct! I've never heard of such a thing,
but the switch DOES control one half of an outlet!

Thanks!
Mr. Whippy

--

"Greg" wrote in message
...
Are you sure it doesn't control half of one of the duplex receptacles in
that
room? It might also have gone to the fan in a fan/light combo that is now
just
a light. Is it near a basement or attic access? How about an outside
outlet? I
had a "mystery switch" that controlled a landscape light outlet in the
yard.
That took a while to figure out. ;-)

"Mr. Whippy" wrote in message
...
I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)

I had one of these, too. At some point, I had a worker up in the attic who
mentioned that the attic fan wasn't running, though it was 90F+ out (and
thus, oh, 3,000F or so in the attic). I got an electrician out, who went
up, tromped around, then came down and quickly found the switch, said
"You're not gonna like this..." and turned the fan on. (Being a "sensible"
sort, I'd left the "useless" switch off...)

(Actually, he was there to do something else as well, so it didn't cost me
much; better than the time I spent $43 to learn how to reset a GFI
breaker -- it never occurred to me that the "half-tripped" position meant to
turn it OFF and then ON; I kept trying to turn it on, decided it was
physically busted, called the electrician...)

Mr. Whippy wrote:

I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)



Remember the Steven Wright joke:

"In my house there's this light switch that doesn't do anything. Every
so often I would flick it on and off just to check. Yesterday, I got a
call from a woman in Germany. She said, 'Cut it out.'"

Split receptacles, oh yea, I wired a couple of those in my house. You wind up
having a receptacle to use for a lamp with out having to put another one side
by side for a lamp. I use one of them for electrical repair projects when I
want to stand back a ways to test what ever I hope I fixed. They are not so
handy when you can't remember why the vacuum that was running just a minute ago
now doesn't run. I also have a switch that does nothing for a garbage disposal
I'm going to put in, someday, when I get around to it, when I think of it, and
they are sale, maybe I find a new one at a garage sale...

"Mr. Whippy" wrote:

As sure as sheetrock, you are correct! I've never heard of such a thing,
but the switch DOES control one half of an outlet!

Thanks!
Mr. Whippy

--

"Greg" wrote in message
...
Are you sure it doesn't control half of one of the duplex receptacles in
that
room? It might also have gone to the fan in a fan/light combo that is now
just
a light. Is it near a basement or attic access? How about an outside
outlet? I
had a "mystery switch" that controlled a landscape light outlet in the
yard.
That took a while to figure out. ;-)

Greetings,

It probably controlls a switched outlet. Plug in a lamp to each outlet
nearby and flip the switch until you find out which one it is. I could also
be an emergency gas boiler shutoff switch.

Hope this helps,
William



"Mr. Whippy" wrote in message
...
I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing! How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)

--
Mr W.

William Deans wrote:
Greetings,

It probably controlls a switched outlet. Plug in a lamp to each
outlet nearby and flip the switch until you find out which one it is.
I could also be an emergency gas boiler shutoff switch.

Also note that sometimes switches can be wired to control only half of an
outlet.

"William Deans" wrote in message
news:1100819753.BaCXJw45rIkyl8D9xltLzg@teranews...
Greetings,

It probably controlls a switched outlet. Plug in a lamp to each outlet
nearby and flip the switch until you find out which one it is. I could
also
be an emergency gas boiler shutoff switch.


Maybe and attic light?





















































Hope this helps,
William



"Mr. Whippy" wrote in message
...
I just bought a house that has a light switch that controls nothing!
How
do I trace what this switch is supposed to do without ripping out walls
to
trace the wiring? Suggestions? (now... be nice) ;-)

--
Mr W.

In my house there's this light switch that doesn't do anything. Every so
often
I would flick it on and off just to check. Yesterday, I got a call from a
woman in Madagascar. She said, "Cut it out." -- Steven Wright