External light

Camalot · 19 May 2016 at 22:50

Hi guys,

Having trouble getting an external light to work. I've wired it up via recommended way from an electrician which is a switch linked to the fuse board. Ive ran the cable to the light and wired the blue / brown / earth into the terminals as per instructions.

When i turn the fuse back on and flick the switch, my 'pen' detected power at all the cables via beeps, but the pir light never comes on. Ive checked bulbs etc but dont know what else to check :confused:

Any ideas before i have to call him out :confused:

RJC · 19 May 2016 at 23:02

What type of light is it?

(And no one say a outside one

)

Camalot · 19 May 2016 at 23:08

Its one of them ones that come on dim when it gets dark, then bright when it senses movement .

a1ex2001 · 20 May 2016 at 07:18

Camalot said:
Its one of them ones that come on dim when it gets dark, then bright when it senses movement .

Is it dark when your testing? Have you checked the adjustments on the pir light most have sensitivity adjustments for light/dark and time they stay on

RJC · 20 May 2016 at 07:30

How have you wired it to a switch?

Can you take some photos?

Camalot · 20 May 2016 at 09:24

I can take photos tonight. I was testing the light at 11pm in the pitch black, and i adjusted the sensor in all directions possible, the light never come on.

There is a light switch going into the fuse board, then a cable coming out the fuse board which wasnt in use. It was put there so we could add a garage light at a later date. Basically after a 5min call to an electrician friend, he said i cant wire my external lights to that switch, as there is no neutral, i need to connect my cable to the cable coming out the fuse board (which the light switch operates. So i joined the cable live to live, earth to earth etc.

Power is then fed to my light via that cable when i hit the light switch.

Hope that makes sense.

That is the other end of my cable going into my light.

PhillyDee · 20 May 2016 at 09:27

A lot oo lights have an override where you turn it on, off, on to get it to stay constant, check the manual. Could be a faulty PIR. Have you tried altering the sensitivity and light levels on the PIR?

Camalot · 20 May 2016 at 09:32

PhillyDee said:
A lot oo lights have an override where you turn it on, off, on to get it to stay constant, check the manual. Could be a faulty PIR. Have you tried altering the sensitivity and light levels on the PIR?

I've moved all the dials in all the directions they can go, nothing happened.

Nothing in the manual about an override switch.

jpaul · 20 May 2016 at 11:59

have you checked with pen(?) or multimeter that live and neutral arriving at the light chocolate block connector have a supply that turns on/off as you use switch at fuse box ?

from picture it looks as though red/live lead goes directly from control box to light, so you cannot temporarily wire light to the mains to check bulb is good ?

the drawing of the fuse box connections looks odd, you would not normally have wires going back into the fuse box (I am not an electrician but is that authorised ?)

Mercenary Keyboard Warrior · 20 May 2016 at 12:14

Can you easily wire on a plug and plug light directly into the mains just to check the functionality?

Camalot · 20 May 2016 at 12:17

I cant check individual wires with the pen as it beeps pretty much as i get close to the wires. I need a multimeter for that.

I've been told today to wire a plug to it and plug it in to see if the light is working, then eliminate that. So i'll be doing that first tonight.

I'll re-check all the connections again after work and see if anything is lose.

What a headache lol

manic_man · 20 May 2016 at 12:23

Have you taken the little black sticker off the light sensor part of the PIR unit that B&Q lights all seem to have? This is so when you first switch them on they think it's dark and you can set them up but then after you have done this you need to take the sticker off for it all to work as the lights go off...

lude1962 · 20 May 2016 at 12:28

wiring at the fuseboard end sounds a bit funny
pics of your connections to your fuse board may be handy

Camalot · 20 May 2016 at 12:45

manic_man said:
Have you taken the little black sticker off the light sensor part of the PIR unit that B&Q lights all seem to have? This is so when you first switch them on they think it's dark and you can set them up but then after you have done this you need to take the sticker off for it all to work as the lights go off...

Nope, not touched any sticker, no note of this in the instructions either.

Surely if there was a sticker it would have lit up anyway if the sensor thought it was dark?

Camalot · 20 May 2016 at 12:47

lude1962 said:
wiring at the fuseboard end sounds a bit funny
pics of your connections to your fuse board may be handy

Do you need a picture with the fuse board front plate taken off?

All i know is the end wire coming out the fuse board was just wraped up and taped off. The light switch at the garage enterance seems to operate this.

manic_man · 20 May 2016 at 12:52

Camalot said:
Nope, not touched any sticker, no note of this in the instructions either.

Surely if there was a sticker it would have lit up anyway if the sensor thought it was dark?

The ones i bought recently lit up once when i first turned them on them wouldn't light up again until I'd taken the sticker off... it was in really small print in the manual.

Saying that, when i looked they were obvious and so I'm sure you would have seen them so in guessing this isn't your problem. Good luck

Beer_MonsterUK · 20 May 2016 at 16:22

If you have 230v at the light then it could be a faulty PIR.

All the PIR lights i've dealt with come on for a few seconds as soon as the supply is turned on to the light, or has an over-ride function where if the supply is turned off then straight on, it stays on.

Could be connected up wrong in the board/switch, have a faulty PIr or the lamp is blown.

Mark M · 20 May 2016 at 16:37

Daft question but have you checked that the circuit breaker is turned on? You said that the wire had been taped up so I presume the power would have been turned off on that circuit?

Also, your diagram with the switch looks weird although Im not an electrician!

Camalot · 20 May 2016 at 19:23

The breaker was on, as it also does the hall way lights.

Anyway, ive checked the connections in the junction box and they were lose, ive re done them and the light now comes on YAY.!!

Thanks for everyones help, such a learning curve !

jpaul · 20 May 2016 at 20:44

.. make sure you have the electrician from your first post review what has been done - for yours & neighbours safety

you should review this including below sections (there may be better references this was just a quick search)

The definition of competency is not simply someone with an understanding of how electricity works. It is very specific and includes the ability to test an electrical circuit thoroughly for faults both before, and after installation and the further ability to log these readings and report them to the appropriate electrical authority.

A competent person is a person or firm that has been approved by a Government approved Part P scheme.

What Electrical Work Can be Done Yourself?

DIY doctor will continue to publish projects involving minor works which are permitted under the new regulations, e.g. the addition of a lighting point or socket to an existing circuit but regrets that because of insurance restrictions, is now unable to answer specific electrical questions.