Wiring question (not tool related).

[crokett™]

Checking the screws on the light switch against a ground, there's roughly 120 volts AC to one of the screws when the switch is off, both when the switch is on.


To Crockett

There is 120 volts to both screws on the light switch when it's on (tested with the disposal-which has it's own circuit--and the circuit for the receptacles off).  I assume that means power comes into the box with the two switches and the receptacle. The disposal is fed by the 12/2 coming out of the top of the junction box directly to the disposal, and the DW is fed by the cable coming out of the left of that box.  I assume that means that the power is coming from the feed coming out of the switch/receptacle box.  That is the white cable.  The dishwasher is always on (power is available when DW is turned on).

Thanks,

Ok.. so power comes into the switch box and powers the receptacle and the light. You said the disposal has it's own circuit. Does that power come into the   box where the switches are or the junction box? Are the light and dishwasher powered off this same circuit or are there two circuits?

[theeviltwinn]

Some things are missing.

Where does the power come in? The only wire not self contained in the drawing is to the outlet. If this doesn't connect to anything else, where does the power for the DW, disposal and light come from?

Where is the wire that goes to the light? If the switch controls the light, it must some how be connected to the light.

Twinn

[Tony (Charleston WV)]

OK, remove the wire nuts and carefully separate all the wires.  Use the AC volts on your meter, check the black and white to each other, from the white cable coming in the right side of the junction box.  The disposal circuit breaker should give you 120 volts between those 2. This assumes that blue cable goes to the disposal switch. If the white cable has no voltage when the breaker is on, check the black and white wires from the blue cable.

BH:

I get 120V across the black and white from the white cable coming into the right side of the junction box.  Nothing from any of the other three sets of b/w cables.  I double checked using an AC Voltage Detector and confirmed the results.  

Does that mean that both the DW and the disposal both take power from that white cable?  If so, why are there two circuits labeled on the panel--one for the disposal only and another for the DW only?  Before I separated all the wires, with the disposal breaker on, the disposal would run, although the switch had been changed from "Up" is on, "down" is off, to the opposite.

What now?

Thanks

[blackhat]

Is the disposal hard wired to the cable indicated in your drawing? Does that cable go to a box with a receptacle for the disposal and are there other cables going to that receptacle box? The light switch is fine, there is a cable coming down to the switch and nothing else here is involved in that. The white cable coming in the side of the junction box is a power supply from whichever breaker you had to turn on. If there are separate breakers feeding the disposal and DW, we need to figure out where they are, hence my questions about the disposal wiring. If the disposal has a seperate breaker from the DW, it will change how the connections in the junction box are made. We are getting real close to sorted out.

[Tony (Charleston WV)]

BH (you have a real name? ;>) )

There is 120V across the black and white wires in the white cable that comes into the junction box. I turned off the breakers for 1. disposal/diswasher (both on the same circuit, I think I might have said they each have their own circuit but they don't) 2. kitchen receptacles and 3, kitchen/dining room lights. I turned each breaker on one at a time, and only when the disposal/dw circuit was on was there power across the wires in the white cable coming into the j. box.

I don't know enough to know whether this is as it should be or just plain weird, but the light switch in the switch/receptacle box is connected to a white cable, the disposal switch is fed by a BLUE cable, as is the receptacle. Power is to the white cable wires when the disposal switch is in either position-up or down. Flip off the receptacle breaker and the receptacle in this box doesn't work.

I assume that power to the DW is provided by the power fed from the disposal switch into the JB. If there's power across the wires in the white cable, why doesn't the disposal run all the time.? (It didn't before I installed the DW). t honestly can't say whether the disposal switch controls the dishwasher (disposal switch is source of power to the JB regardless of whether it's on or off) as well as the disposal. Typically, we don't start the dishwasher while the disposal is operating, so I can't be sure.

Tony

[blackhat]

Ok.  This isn't too bad.  The incoming white cable is the power supply.  The black wire in that cable will connect to the DW black and the black going to the disposal switch.  The white wire in that cable connects to the DW white and the disposal white.  The white wire coming from the disposal switch connects to the disposal black.  Just 3 wire nut splices.  That should allow the DW to run any time and the disposal any time controlled by the switch.  Don't fret the cable jacket colours, its not important.  The light switch and receptacle have nothing to do with this junction box.

Ian Douglas

[Tony (Charleston WV)]

Bingo!

Thanks so much, Ian.  Couldn't have done it without you! 
  

If you're ever near Charleston,  W Va., come buy for dinner, or lunch, or lunch and dinner, or breakfast . . . .  

Have a great day.

Tony Sade

[blackhat]