Light Switch Wiring - My Head is Broken trying to understand it!

[Martynt74]

My parents have just bought a flat and as you walk into the lounge area there is a lightswitch with 3 dimmers.

The one on the right (as you look at it) controls 2 lights on the Mezzanine level. The one in the middle controls 4 lights on the main level. The one on the left does nothing.

So i figured i could just replace with a regular double switch. A bit of a pain since it's a double sized faceplate but i could stick a single backbox in and the rooms to be decorated anyway.

I unscrewed it and pulled it out and i was left severely confused about what's going on inside. Which i hope you guys can help with.

The 2 black wires going into the connector block are easy enough (i think) to understand to complete the intermediate circuit.

But then there's an awful lot of cables coming out of the wall (and only 2 black wires) and a lot of red wires and i don't understand why there are some earth sleeved wires going to the left dimmer switch!

Is this the point i either

A) Replace like with like

B) Call someone qualified

 

[Mynight]

Two on the right are easy enough. No idea what's going on with the left one. Are they all in the same terminal? If so you could just block it like the black wires are and then swap out to a double switch.

 

[Martynt74]

Yeah looks like it so that's an option.

Have you ever seen a double switch on a double faceplate? To save the hassle of changing backbox and then doing lots of making good.

 

[uchuff]

The MK Grid range is modular so one solution might be a 3 gang faceplate with 2 switches / dimmers and a blank.

 

[Mynight]

Have you ever seen a double switch on a double faceplate? To save the hassle of changing backbox and then doing lots of making good.

Never seen one and a quick google suggests uchuff idea to be the best available.

There looks to be an awful lot of wires in the back of there you may struggle swapping it out to a single back box.

Annoying really.

Add a new light somewhere .

 

[uchuff]

I would have liked that problem in our house, could have chucked a second Fibaro module behind there to remotely control a lamp we have plugged into a wall socket.