First of all, before choosing and purchasing, you need to decide what it is - a pass-through switch, what it is needed for, and how it differs from the usual one, two and three-key switches.
A single-key pass-through switch is necessary to control one circuit or lighting line from several points located in different parts of the room or the entire house. That is, with one switch you turn on the lighting when entering a room or corridor, and with another, but at a different point, you turn off the same lighting.
Very often this is used in bedrooms. I went into the bedroom and turned on the light near the door. I lay down on the bed and turned off the light at the headboard or near the bedside table.
In two-story mansions, he turned on the light bulb on the first floor, climbed the stairs to the second and turned it off there. 
Selection, design and differences of pass-through switches
Before assembling such a control scheme, here is what you should pay special attention to:
1 To connect pass-through switch light is needed three-wire cable - VVGng-Ls 3*1.5 or NYM 3*1.5mm2
2 Do not try to assemble a similar circuit using ordinary switches. The main difference between regular and pass-through ones is the number of contacts. Simple single-key ones have two terminals for connecting wires (input and output), while pass-through ones have three! 
In simple terms, the lighting circuit can be either closed or open, there is no third option.
It is more correct to call a pass-through not a switch, but a switch.
Since it switches the circuit from one working contact to another.
By appearance, from the front they can be absolutely identical. Only the pass key can have an icon of vertical triangles. However, do not confuse them with reversible or crossover ones (more about them below). These triangles point in a horizontal direction. 
But with reverse side The difference is immediately visible:
- the pass-through has 1 terminal on top and 2 on the bottom
- a regular one has 1 on top and 1 on the bottom
Due to this parameter, many people confuse them with two-key ones. However, two-key ones are also not suitable here, although they also have three terminals. 
The significant difference is in the operation of the contacts. When one contact is closed, pass-through switches automatically close the other, but two-key switches do not have such a function. 
Moreover, there is no intermediate position when both circuits are open at the gateway.
Connecting a pass-through switch
First of all, you need to correctly connect the switch itself in the socket box. Remove the key and the overhead frames. 
When disassembled, you can easily see the three contact terminals. 
The most important thing is to find the common one. On high-quality products, a diagram should be drawn on the reverse side. If you understand them, you can easily navigate through it. 
If you have a budget model, or for you any electrical circuits dark forest, then an ordinary Chinese tester in circuit continuity mode, or an indicator screwdriver with a battery, will come to the rescue.
Using the tester's probes, alternately touch all the contacts and look for the one on which the tester will “squeak” or show “0” at any position of the ON or OFF key. It's even easier to do this with an indicator screwdriver. 
After you have found the common terminal, you need to connect the phase from the power cable to it. Connect the remaining two wires to the remaining terminals.
Moreover, which one goes where does not make a significant difference. The switch is assembled and secured in the socket box. 
Do the same operation with the second switch:
- look for the common terminal
- connect the phase conductor to it, which will go to the light bulb
- connect two other wires to the remaining ones
Connection diagram of the pass-through switch wires in the distribution box
Scheme without grounding conductor
Now the most important thing is to correctly assemble the circuit in the junction box. Four 3-core cables should go into it:
- power cable from lighting circuit breaker
- cable to switch No. 1
- cable to switch No. 2
- cable for lamp or chandelier
When connecting wires, it is most convenient to orient them by color. If you use a three-core VVG cable, then it has two most common color markings:
- white (gray) - phase
- blue - zero
- yellow green - earth
or second option:
- White gray)
- brown
- black
To choose a more correct phasing in the second case, follow the tips from the article "" 
Connect the neutral conductor from the cable of the input machine and the neutral going to the lamp at one point using the terminals of the car. 
Similar to the neutral wires, you combine the “ground” from the input cable with the “ground” of the outgoing cable for lighting. 
This wire is connected to the lamp body. 
The phase from the input cable must be connected to the phase of the outgoing wire to the common terminal of the pass-through switch No. 1. 
And connect the common wire from pass-through switch No. 2 with a separate wago clamp to the phase conductor of the lighting cable. 
Having completed all these connections, all that remains is to connect the secondary (outgoing) conductors from switch No. 1 and No. 2 to each other. And it doesn’t matter at all how you connect them. 
You can even mix up the colors. But it’s better to stick to the colors so as not to get confused in the future.
The basic connection rules in this diagram that you need to remember:
- the phase from the machine must go to the common conductor of the first switch
- and the same phase should go from the common conductor of the second switch to the light bulb
- the remaining two auxiliary conductors are connected to each other in the junction box
- zero and ground are supplied directly to the light bulbs without switches
Changeover switches - lighting control circuit from 3 places
But what if you want to control one lighting from three or more points. That is, there will be 3, 4, etc. switches in the circuit. It would seem that you need to take another pass-through switch and that’s it.
However, a switch with three terminals will no longer work here. Since there will be four connected wires in the junction box.
Here a changeover switch, or as it is also called a cross, cross, or intermediate switch, will come to your aid. His key difference is that it has four exits - two from below and two from above. 
And it is installed precisely in the gap between two passageways. Find in the junction box two secondary (not main) wires from the first and second pass-through switch.
You disconnect them and connect a changeover between them. Connect the wires that come from the first to the input (follow the arrows), and those that go to the second to the output terminals. 
Always check the diagram on the switches! It often happens that their entrance and exit are on the same side (top and bottom). For example, the connection diagram for a Legrand Valena changeover switch: 
Naturally, there is no need to stuff the changeover itself into the junction box. It is enough to lead the ends of a 4-core cable from it there. Meanwhile, you place the switch itself in any convenient place - near the bed, in the middle of a long corridor, etc. You can turn the light on and off from anywhere. 
The most important advantage of this scheme is that it can be changed indefinitely and added as much as you like. changeover switches. That is, there will always be two passing ones (at the beginning and the end), and in the interval between them there will be 4, 5 or at least 10 crossover ones. 
Connection errors
Many people make a mistake at the stage of searching and connecting the common terminal in the pass-through switch. Without checking the circuit, they naively believe that the common terminal is the one with only one contact.
They assemble a circuit in this way, and then for some reason the switches do not work correctly (they depend on each other).
Remember that on different switches the common contact can be anywhere!
And it is best to call it, what is called “live”, with a tester or an indicator screwdriver. 
Most often, this problem is encountered when installing or replacing pass-through switches from different companies. If everything worked before, but after replacing one circuit the circuit stopped working, it means the wires were mixed up.
But there may also be an option that the new switch is not pass-through at all. Also remember that the lighting inside the product cannot in any way affect the switching principle itself.
Another common mistake is incorrectly connecting crossovers. When both wires are placed from pass-through No. 1 to the upper contacts, and from No. 2 to the lower ones. Meanwhile, the cross switch has a completely different circuit and switching mechanism. And you need to connect the wires crosswise. 
Flaws
1 The first of the disadvantages of pass-through switches is the lack of a specific ON/OFF key position, which is found in conventional ones.
If your light bulb burns out and needs to be replaced, with such a scheme it is not immediately possible to understand whether the light is on or off.
It will be unpleasant when, when replacing, the lamp may simply explode in front of your eyes. In this case, the simplest and reliable way turn off the automatic lighting in the panel.
2 The second drawback is the large number of connections in junction boxes.
And the more light points you have, the greater the number of them will be in the distribution boxes. Connecting the cable directly according to diagrams without junction boxes reduces the number of connections, but can significantly increase either the cable consumption or the number of its cores.
If your wiring goes under the ceiling, you will have to lower the wire from there to each switch, and then lift it back up. The best option here, the application of pulse relays.
In the article “Switch Connection Diagrams” I did not have enough space to show in detail how to make a switch from a switch. I show it in detail here.
Task
So, the task. You need to assemble a lighting control circuit from two places. I only have key switches at hand, what should I do?
What is the difference?
The functional difference between a conventional and a walk-through switch is the lighting control capabilities. A simple switch, after pressing a key (or keys), opens or closes the phase circuit going to the lighting device. The pass-through switch not only opens (or closes) the phase circuit, but also simultaneously closes (or opens) the second phase circuit, connecting the second pass-through switch of the circuit to operation.
It is important to understand the terminology. A pass-through switch is often called a switch. It has three contacts and is used for, as well as from three places, occupying extreme positions 1 and 3.
There are also pass-through switches (crossover switches or double pass-through switches) that have six contacts and are used to control lighting from three locations at location 2, between switch positions 1 and 3.
The design difference between a simple switch and a pass-through switch (switch) in the number of contacts for connection. A simple single-key switch has two of them. In a simple two-key switch there are four of them by design, but two of them are closed. There should be three of them in the pass-through switch, but there is only one key.
As we can see, according to theory, the two-key switch is structurally closest to a pass-through switch. Three contacts work here and there, and this will help us make a switch out of a switch.
How to make a switch from a switch
Let's look at the connection diagram for a two-key switch. The switch has contacts 1-2-3-4. In fact, contacts 1 and 3 are closed, the phase comes to them. The phase going to lighting is removed from contacts 2 and 4. Closing/opening of contacts 1-3 and 2-4 independently, which allows you to independently control lamps A and B.
To make a switch from a switch, contacts 1-2 and 3-4 need to operate in opposite modes, that is, when contacts 1-2 are closed, 3-4 must be open and vice versa. Moreover, switching should be done with one key.
Practice
In practice, to make a switch you will need, for control from two places, two single-key switches and two two-key switches of the same company and one series. One series is needed to match the key sizes.
- Next, we take the two-key switches and disassemble them, removing the keys;
- The general task is to turn one contact group 180 degrees and install one common key instead of two;
- Not every switch will allow itself to be damaged, so for these homemade products you need to choose the simplest switch models possible.
Note: Most often you have to be smart in making a pass-through switch with open wiring. Pass-through switches for open wiring are difficult to find. The photo shows a pass-through switch for hidden wiring.
After rotating the contact group 180 degrees, all that remains is to assemble the switches and install one instead of two keys.
- Next, the resulting two pass-through switches are mounted according to the diagram in the place where it is necessary to control the lighting from two places.
For example, in the bedroom, placing one switch at the entrance, and the second at the bed. Or in the house, placing one switch in the hall and the second on the second floor. Or in a long office corridor, placing switches at different ends of the corridor. Here good example, though without a corridor:
lighting control from two places Connection diagram for pass-through switch, by many people belongs to the category of aerobatics electricians.
In fact, anyone can complete its installation from start to finish; to do this, you just need to have a visual and
detailed guide. This is exactly the guidance outlined in this article. In order to understand how it is structured and performed pass-through switch connection diagram, let's look at its installation in detail from the very beginning to the end.
The principle of operation of the switch is based on being able to control the switching on and off of the lighting in one room from two different places. Let's give an example, it could be some kind of large walk-through room, when you enter it, use one switch to turn on the light, pass through it and at the exit, use the second switch to turn off the light, or vice versa. From this example we learned that a pass-through switch, contrary to many misconceptions, cannot operate with one mechanism; there must be at least two of them in the circuit.
Let's start studying the material on this issue.
We mount wires and installation elements of the circuit
Installation begins with a junction box, in which we will soon collect all the wires in series and then connect them. 
We will need a power supply that will supply electric current to the junction box through wires and a protection device.
Any electrical circuit must be protected from currents short circuit. Also, it should be possible to turn on or turn off the supply of electricity to this circuit. In our example, all these functions are performed by one device, a two-pole circuit breaker.
There is already voltage on it, so powering our junction box will not be difficult. To do this, you need to lay a wire from the circuit breaker to the junction box.
It is better to leave a reserve of wires for connection with a margin of 10-15 centimeters; it will be more convenient to connect wires and connect equipment. 
Next, we will need two socket boxes (mounting cups) into which we will install the switches.
Now, we lay the wire from the first mounting cup to the junction box. 
Then from the second.
Last necessary part circuit, is a lighting element (lamp, chandelier, sconce), which will be turned on and off from different places using our switches. In our example, we use a regular socket with a light bulb for these purposes; it will demonstrate the operation of lighting in a circuit as clearly as possible.
We connect the wire for further connection of the lighting element. 
All elements are prepared, let's move on to connecting them.
Connecting switch circuit elements
We continue to analyze the topic of pass-through switch connection diagram. At this stage we need to connect the circuit elements.
These include:
- circuit breaker
- pass-through switch - 2 pieces
- bulb
Let's start with connection to a two-pole circuit breaker wires going to the junction box. We prepare the wires and remove the outer insulation.
We measure out the required amount of wire for connection, strip the wires and connect. The connection of a two-pole circuit breaker is discussed in more detail.
Before carrying out work on connecting wires to live contacts and terminals, in order to avoid damage electric shock, we turn off the complete power supply to the apartment. We make sure that there is no voltage, with help, and only after that we begin to work.
Pay attention to the colors of the wires, blue zero, white phase. The top and bottom of the machine must match. The ground wire, yellow with a green stripe, in our example we do not use it, we insulate it and put it aside.
Our switches have plug-in contacts; to connect them you will need 1 centimeter of stripped core of each wire. There is usually a wiring diagram on the back of the switch. The arrow at the top indicates the appropriate or outgoing contact of the phase wire, and the arrows at the bottom indicate the contacts along which the phase will switch along the two outgoing wires.
In our example, the phase is white. We connect it to the upper suitable (outgoing) contact. Blue and yellow with a green stripe, we connect to the switching contacts; it doesn’t matter which one is connected where.
We install it in the socket box (mounting cup).
The second pass-through switch is connected in the same way as the first.
The switches are installed. You can see more details on how to connect other electrical wiring elements (sockets, light switches with and without backlight, chandeliers and lamps).
Let's move on to connecting the electric cartridge. We also strip the wires and connect them. We do not use the grounding wire, yellow with a green stripe, insulate it with electrical tape and put it aside. Alternatively, it can be used as grounding for the lamp body if it is metal, this is especially true in rooms with high humidity.
All elements are ready and connected.
Connecting wires to a pass-through switch circuit
There are four wires in our box, let's go through them again:
- Light (light bulb with socket).
- Nutrition.
- Lower left - switch 1
- Bottom Right - Switch 2
Let's start by cutting the power wire and the wire going to the light bulb, and remove the outer insulation.
We don’t need the grounding conductors, yellow with green stripes, so we immediately insulate them with electrical tape.
We clean all other wires, remove the insulating layer, the bare core should be 3.5-4 centimeters.
We remove unnecessary wires inside the junction box so that they do not interfere with us.
We connect two blue wires together using the twisting method.
Now we prepare the wires going to switch 1 and 2. Remove the outer insulation. 
Here we need all three cores of each wire. We clean 3.5-4 centimeters on each.
We connect the white phase power wire to one of the white phase wires of the switch. You can use any white wire from both switches 1 and 2, it doesn’t matter.
We connect the second remaining white phase wire of the switch to the white phase wire of the light bulb.
Now we connect the switching wires, the phase will move back and forth along them. Twist the two yellow wires together.
The pass-through switch circuit is ready.
Checking the work
Screw the light bulb into the socket.
Apply voltage to the circuit breaker. We turn it on (raise the lever up), voltage is applied to the circuit.
We turn on the first pass-through switch, the connection diagram is brought into operating mode, the light comes on, we turn off the switch, and the light goes out. Let's try the opposite. Everything is working. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that, unlike the ones on which there is a top and bottom installation rule, there is no such difference on the switches. It can be turned on or off in any position.
Turn off the electricity. To do this, simply move the circuit breaker lever to the down position. We make sure that there is no voltage using a voltage indicator for this purpose. Use insulating tape to insulate all twists.
We put them in a distribution box.
The circuit is completed, tested and ready for operation.
Pass-through switch diagram.
A do-it-yourself pass-through switch circuit helped us save:
- search and call an electrician - 200 rubles
- installation of a two-pole circuit breaker- 300 rubles
- installation of an internal distribution box - 550 rubles
- connecting wires in a junction box, twisting method - 300 rubles
- installation and connection of a lamp, chandelier (450 rubles for 1 lamp, chandelier from 800 rubles) - average price 600 rubles
- installation of a socket box ( Brick wall 200 rubles - 1 piece), we have 2 pieces - 400 rubles
- installation of a pass-through switch for hidden installation (1 piece for 200 rubles), we have 2 pieces - 400 rubles
- laying open wire height up to 2 meters (35 rubles - 1 meter), for example, let's take 4 meters - 140 rubles
- laying the wire openly, height more than 2 meters (50 rubles -1 meter), for example, let's take 15 meters - 750 rubles
- wall gating 19 meters (120 rubles - 1 meter) - 2280 rubles
Our total savings were: 5920 rubles
You can view the cost of services for electrical installation work
Enjoy! I hope this information was useful to you.
Conventional switches that are installed in our homes are capable of turning lights on and off from one place. Agree that the chandelier, which is located in the bedroom, can only be turned on with the switch, which is located there.
But what to do if you need to control one lamp from different rooms simultaneously. It is difficult to assemble such a circuit using conventional switches. Pass-through switches, or switches as they are also called, will come to the rescue.
Such switches are used to organize control of lamps independently from several places. The proposed connection scheme is not only very convenient, but also allows for quite significant energy savings.
Let's consider in this article how to assemble in the junction box.
The use of walk-through switches to control the lighting of staircases is especially important. Often, circuits using time relays are used for this purpose, but it should be recognized that they are not so convenient to use, less reliable and economical.
Everyone moves up stairs at different speeds, and you yourself can climb light today, and tomorrow with a heavy suitcase. Setting large time delays taking into account the reserve means reducing savings.
The proposed scheme allows you to turn on the lamps below with one switch, and when going up the stairs, turn them off with another. If you need to go downstairs, you use the walk-through switch at the top to turn on the light and at the bottom to turn it off. It is also convenient to use a similar scheme for lighting long corridors.
However, pass-through switches will be useful not only for owners of long corridors and multi-storey buildings. They will also be very useful to the inhabitants small apartments. Typical situation. Your apartment has a walk-through room, when entering which you turn on the light, then go to the next room, turn on the light in it, and turn off the lighting in the walk-through room that has become unnecessary. Agree - very convenient. Eliminates unnecessary walking and saves electricity.
One more example. You go into the bedroom and turn on the light at the door. When you get into bed, turn on table lamp or a sconce to read a book before bed, but now you have to get up again, go to the door and turn off the chandelier! But you don’t have to do this if you have previously installed a pass-through switch at the head of the bed.
To implement such a control scheme, so-called “pass-through switches” are used, which, strictly speaking, are actually switches. Unlike conventional switches, they have not two, but three contacts and can switch the “phase” from the first contact to the second or third.
Any type of lamp can be used as a light source in such a scheme - from conventional incandescent lamps to fluorescent, energy-saving and LED. However, using the same scheme, you can connect not only lamps, but also any other load, the activation of which you need to control from several places.
How to connect a pass-through switch - control circuit for a lamp from 2 places
The procedure for connecting a pass-through switch is not much different from connecting regular switch. The only difference is in the number of contact terminals and wires supplied. The pass-through switch has three of them.
Please note in advance that you need to stretch a three-core wire from the junction box to such a switch.
Pass-through switch connection diagram - control of a lamp from 2 places
The circuit uses two pass-through switches and a distribution box into which wires from the controlled lamp and three-wire wires from the switches are inserted.
The phase wire from the junction box is connected to the common input contact of the first pass-through switch. The other two (output) contacts are connected to wires coming from similar contacts of the second switch. And the common (input) contact of the second switch is connected to the wire coming from the lamp.
The second wire from the lamp is directly connected to the junction box zero.
The cross-section of the three-core wire supplied to the pass-through switches must be selected in accordance with the power of the controlled luminaire.
How to connect a pass-through switch - 3-place lamp control circuit
In certain cases, it becomes necessary to provide not two, but more control points for lamps. For example, the light on the stairs multi-storey building should be turned on and off on each floor. The same situation occurs with a long corridor into which the doors of several rooms open.
It is possible to implement such a scheme, but in addition to simple pass-through switches, you will also need cross switches. Such switches no longer have three, but four contacts - two input and two output, representing two pairs of simultaneously switched contacts. Accordingly, a four-wire wire must be connected to such switches.
Pass-through switch connection diagram - control of a lamp from 3 places
In this control scheme, conventional pass-through switches are used at the first and last control points of the lamps and cross switches at all the others.
The number of control points is not limited; only the complexity of switching in the distribution box increases due to large quantity wires connected to it. And here you cannot do without proper marking of the wires when laying them, otherwise you will simply get confused in them.
The connection principle is as follows: the output pair of contacts of the first pass-through switch is connected to the wires going to the input pair of the next cross switch, and so on, up to the last pass-through switch, the common contact of which is connected to the wire going to the lamp. The phase wire is connected to the input contact of the first switch, and the second wire from the lamp is connected to the zero of the junction box.
We stretch a three-wire wire to each pass-through switch, and a four-wire wire to each crossover switch.
The diagram presented shows the connection of three lighting control points, consisting of one crossover and two pass-through switches.
A little clarification on the connection diagrams
Let's look at how it works. The presented diagrams use the following elements: connection box, lamp, pass-through switches and connecting wires, for which, during the installation process, cables of different designs are used.
The first of the proposed circuits represents the connection of a pass-through switch, in which control is carried out from two different locations; this type of circuit is considered quite simple to implement.
With this type of connection, one wire, which is neutral, is directed from the source of electricity to the lamp through the junction box. The second, which is phase, is also directed through the junction box to the switch contact.
Thus, two pairs of switch contacts are connected to each other. To light the lamp, the phase is supplied to the lamp from the common contact of the second pass-through switch.
The second diagram shows the connection of pass-through switches together with a changeover or cross switch. This scheme makes it possible to control lighting from three different places.
We’ve figured out the connection diagram, now let’s learn more about its installation. It consists of installing pass-through switches and further laying three-core cables from them. Lamps connected in parallel are also installed, from which a two-core cable extends.
At the same time, we also install a junction box, where we lay cables from: switches, lamps, and power supply, to connect them together, in accordance with the above diagram. In this case, you should pay attention to the choice suitable place installation of the junction box, taking into account the length of the cables used.
I hope this article “” helped you deal with all connection issues, if you have any questions or suggestions, ask them in the comments, I will be happy to answer.
The pass-through switch allows you to organize convenient control of the lighting system from two or three places at the same time. This is a very practical system for long rooms, corridors, staircases and other rooms in which it is inconvenient to return to one switch to turn the light off and on. Let's figure it out how to make a pass-through switch with your own hands and in what cases it is necessary.
Let's look at how to properly organize the connection process. To do this, you will need special switches with three contacts. That's what they're called - walk-throughs. They allow you to turn the light on and off from several places.
Connection diagram of two points
This is very convenient if you live in your own home, have large rooms or long corridors. Imagine - you need to walk a six-meter corridor at night. At the entrance you turn on the light, cross it, and at the exit you turn it off. The same can be done in the bedroom, turning off the lights in the bed, in the office and other rooms. Such a scheme will also help on the street for lighting paths, gazebos, areas, etc. It allows you to save effort, time and electricity. Of course, you can replace it with a motion sensor, but this is not always convenient, and in most cases it is not practical to spend money on purchasing one.
Types of switches
Pass-through switches are produced as a separate type - they can have one/two/three keys for control. But if you don’t want to spend money, you can always convert a regular device to it. In fact, everything depends only on the wiring.
In apartments they usually use a classic switch with one key. If you decide to createV big room, especially if it has several light sources, then you can choose devices with two or three power keys.
The main difference between the pass-through block and a regular one is the presence of three contacts and operation from a three-core wire. Take this into account when creating the wiring.
Note:when connecting, make sure that the phase opens and the zero goes to the light bulb. In this case, you will not be shocked when replacing it or during repairs.
The diagram looks like this:
- Zero from the box is supplied to the lamp.
- Through the switch, the phase goes to the input.
- There are two cables to the output, both go to the second switch.
- From the second switch there is a cable to the lamp.
In fact, there is nothing difficult in creating a diagram. Anyone can quickly figure it out by looking at the picture.
We do it ourselves
If your store doesn’t sell specialized switches, then don’t worry—you can make them yourself. Let's consider How to make a pass-through switch from a regular switch. To do this, you need to buy one classic one-button switch and one two-button switch. Choose devices from one manufacturer and with same size. Then, in the two-key mechanism, swap the terminals so that the circuits can be turned on and off independently. It turns out that in one position the first circuit is always turned on, in the second - the second. Then swap the two keys for one, and your switch is ready - it can be installed anywhere.
Scheme for converting an ordinary one into a checkpoint If you need to install three switches, you will need more complex systems 4 contacts - two for input and two for output. Such a circuit must be powered with a four-wire wire, connecting the contacts in pairs.
Now you know,To make all questions disappear, look at our device connection diagrams.
