I have a copper colored wire, a black wire, a red wire and white wire in the little box in the wall?? please help.
Heres okorder /... I hope this hleps.
It sounds like you want to switch a light off and on from two locations. Here is what is needed. Two three way switches Open up both boxes and look inside. There should be a black, red, white and copper wire in that box. If so make sure you have a three way switch and take the copper wire and wrap it arond the gren screw. Turn the switch so that you can see the back side. On one side there will be one screw colored black. Place the black wire on that one and turn the switch a little and you will see two brass screws. Put the red wire on the bottom and white on top and tightem them. Now move on over to the other box. This one shoud have the following a black, red, and white w/ground and also a black and white with ground. One of the black wires will be alive and as it is now the only one. locating the live wire you can mark it some how and turn the electricity off at the breaker. Check to make sure all is quiet and safe the box, if so we move on. Take the two copper wires and twist them together a few turns leaving about 4 inch pigtail. Cut the other copper wire and then put the copper pig tail on the green screw. Now take the two white wires and twist them together and secure with a wirenut. Fold them back and stick into the back of the box. Take the wire that was alive and secure that to the black screw. Then take the other black and secure it on the opposite side to the brass one. Put the red one(Travellers) on the top brass screw. You should be all set. Now turn the power back on. Turn the lights on at one box and then go over to the other and turn them off. Now walk back to the first box and turn them on. If this does't work, Shut the power off and go to the first box and remove switch the red and white wires(travellers). Should do the trick kill all power and secure switches in the box If John Hinself is real than I am an Imposter
Try different combinations until it works. Try the white on the common (black) screw and the red and black on the other 2 screws. If that doesn't work, rotate the three wires from screw to screw until it does.
Are you replacing the switch with another, or perhaps a dimmer? It should be wired exactly as the one you are taking out. This may sound simple, but I had a contractor attempting to do that in my house, and he worried over it for 12 work hours! I did it in I5 minutes! The red wire connects to a second switch. The other wires are common, hot, and ground ( bare, or copper colored) If you have a digital camera, take a close-up of the existing wiring before you remove the wires, for reference. If you are putting in a switch where none has existed, then look at the wiring on the second switch, and wire it the same.
You need a 3-way switch at each end and a 4-way switch in the middle also you need romax with 3 wires plus ground check out an electrical wiring book from the library or go look at one at Lowes or HD to see how they are wired If it is a new house get the electrician back to fix it If you have the proper switches sometimes two - two wire romax cab;es are run and one of the wires are ignored to give you the three wires
