Electrical – How to wire this bathroom fan

bathroomelectricalfanwiring

I am replacing a bathroom fan. The switch on the wall has three switches that were in use (one for the fan, one for the light, and one for the night light). I already took out the old fan and now when I go to install the new one, I'm confused as to how the old one was wired.

My new fan has 3 wires, one black, one green and one white. My home was built around 1970. The old fan had two conduits mapping to it. From one there is a red and a white wire. From the other there is a set of 5 white wires and 1 red. How do I wire this new fan?

Here's the non-contact test, this video is with only top switch on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VesH7Ium504

for just middle switch it's opposite, and just the bottom switch both those same wires have the slow beep.

I should note that on this particular non-contact tester the slow beep is 12-48 volts and the fast beep is 48-1000 volts.

here's the switch wiring (top is light, middle is night light bottom is fan):

Best Answer

You need to identify the line, the load, and each of the switched wires. When everything is disconnected and the power is turned on, the line is the wire that will be hot. Use a non-contact tester to locate this, and follow the appropriate safety precautions to avoid electrocuting yourself (if you don't know these, it may be time to hire an electrician). The line could be coming directly into the fan box, in which case it's likely the separate pair of two wires. Or it may be coming in at the switch.

Next, turn on each switch and see which wires become hot, again with a non-contact voltage tester. Note which wire belongs to which switch. If there's no current going to the switch, then the line isn't connected anymore and you can instead use a continuity test from the wires in the ceiling with each switch turned on individually. This can/should be done with the power turned off.

Finally, determine where your load is going, if you have any. This is going to be any remaining wires, and you'll know where they go by all the items that don't work when the power is switched on. If the pair of wires in the ceiling isn't the line, then it's the load.

My best guess, updated from your video's findings, but without being there to test anything or get a better look at how wires are tied together in the back of the switch is:

  • The line is connected at the switch.
  • From the switch, it is likely running a non-switched hot to the fan box to connect to the load inside the bundle of 6. There will also be a neutral running in that bundle of 6.
  • The other wires in the bundle of 6 are each individually switched hots. You'll need to test each one and label them. They should also be marked with a piece of black tape on each at the fan so there isn't any mistaking them for a neutral.
  • The 2 wires in the ceiling are likely the load to another location.

And to hook it up, if my guess is correct:

  • At the fan you'd wire the hot non-switched hot to the load. Pigtail the neutral from the bundle of 6, the neutral going to the load, and the neutral going to the fan. Then the switched wires are connected to the fan depending on each task.
  • If your new fan doesn't have the extra lights (and therefore doesn't use the extra switched wires), then you should disconnect them on each end, bind and cap all unused wires together, and label them as unused with an indication of where the other end of the wire is. I'd also replace the switch with one that only has the necessary number of switches (otherwise everyone will be trying to figure out what the unused switches do).
  • Since it sounds like your fan has a ground, and I don't see one in the picture, I'd strongly encourage you to add one. The conduit itself may be grounded (you'd detect continuity from neutral to the conduit in that case). But modern wiring practices, along with the fan you purchased, expect a dedicated ground wire.