I have a 3-way circuit that controls a pair of pot type recessed lights at the bottom of a stair well from the top and bottom. The stairwell itself does not have a light in it, so I am attempting to add one.
The lights at the bottom of the stair well get their power through a 12/2 wire that branches from a junction box. This 12/2 wire has its black wired to the common (white) from the second switch and the white wired to the white to the switch closest to the power. The wire from the sub-panel is a 12/2 and the wire to the junction box is 12/3, but the wire to the second switch is 14/3. I have access to the junction box but not the recessed lights. The house was already wired this way, I did not mix the wires. I don't know if this is contributing to my problem or not, but I thought it might be useful info.
I installed a mounting box in the stairwell and ran a 14/2 wire from the second switch to the new box. Previously the second switch had a red and black wires hooked to the traveler poles and the white wire hooked to the common.
At the switch I hooked my new black wire to the common pole and and the white to the existing common. At the new box, I hooked the light up - black to black and white to white.
Now the lights all are dim like I am getting a drop in amperage or volts (I don't understand series and parallel well enough to know which). I removed the new light fixture and wired the black and white together and capped the box, the old recessed lights are now working fine, but I do not have my stair light.
What is wrong with what I am trying to do? Does this have to do with series and parallel? Most importantly, how do I fix it?
The lights at the bottom of the stair well get their power through a 12/2 wire that branches from a junction box. This 12/2 wire has its black wired to the common (white) from the second switch and the white wired to the white to the switch closest to the power. The wire from the sub-panel is a 12/2 and the wire to the junction box is 12/3, but the wire to the second switch is 14/3. I have access to the junction box but not the recessed lights. The house was already wired this way, I did not mix the wires. I don't know if this is contributing to my problem or not, but I thought it might be useful info.
I installed a mounting box in the stairwell and ran a 14/2 wire from the second switch to the new box. Previously the second switch had a red and black wires hooked to the traveler poles and the white wire hooked to the common.
At the switch I hooked my new black wire to the common pole and and the white to the existing common. At the new box, I hooked the light up - black to black and white to white.
Now the lights all are dim like I am getting a drop in amperage or volts (I don't understand series and parallel well enough to know which). I removed the new light fixture and wired the black and white together and capped the box, the old recessed lights are now working fine, but I do not have my stair light.
What is wrong with what I am trying to do? Does this have to do with series and parallel? Most importantly, how do I fix it?