Basic Electric problem

[mintymark]

Ok, this is really off topic, but its baffling me!.

I have an out building (yes, it houses the bitcoin mine but thats not at all the point.)

I wanted to move the light switch, the building is like a corridor, and I wanted to move the switch to the door instead of having it in the middle where it is now and where I suspect the previous owner of the house installed it.

To actually make the connection of my new wired switch I wanted to switch of the electricity.
I could not find the breaker to switch it off. Eventually, I switched of most of the breakers in the house. I went to check. The light is on! Worse, the switch no longer works.  Its on sort of like half-brightness. Its a small flourscent tube. 

So turning most of the breakers in the hose off, causes the light to come on half-brightness, and the switch to not work. How could that be?

Turning the breakers back on restored normal operation with the switch working as normal.

Can anyone explain a possible fault scenario? I mean I suspect the wiring was done wrong, something like the live is taken to the neutral and when switched off it runs through other connected loads in the house backwards as it were, but I cannot in my own mind imagine a scenario that works like this.

Help please!!

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[mintymark]

Ok, well I solved it, and the solution is not at all what I expected, in fact I was looking in completely the wrong direction.

In the end I turned of the electric supply to the entire house.

Imagine my surprise when the light was still on!!! The switch made no difference, as before.

Now I finally understood. The light must be one that contains a backup battery for fire escape purposes, but dont ask me why that is installed in my outhouse!!

So gingerly did I cut into the wire, with scalpel and gloved hands!! But there was no sign of any live wires.

Once my new switch was connected and the electricity turned on again, all worked exactly as expected!!

[Phinnaeus Gage]

The light must be one that contains a backup battery for fire escape purposes, but dont ask me why that is installed in my outhouse!!

That was my first guess.


Don't forget to turn off the light, dear!

[kjlimo]

The light must be one that contains a backup battery for fire escape purposes, but dont ask me why that is installed in my outhouse!!

That was my first guess.


Don't forget to turn off the light, dear!

Double decker outhouse?  that seems like a bad idea... haha

And good to hear of your backup battery discovery.  I'll keep that in mind for future electrical work!

[TheHeroMember]

Ok, this is really off topic, but its baffling me!.

I have an out building (yes, it houses the bitcoin mine but thats not at all the point.)

I wanted to move the light switch, the building is like a corridor, and I wanted to move the switch to the door instead of having it in the middle where it is now and where I suspect the previous owner of the house installed it.

To actually make the connection of my new wired switch I wanted to switch of the electricity.
I could not find the breaker to switch it off. Eventually, I switched of most of the breakers in the house. I went to check. The light is on! Worse, the switch no longer works.  Its on sort of like half-brightness. Its a small flourscent tube. 

So turning most of the breakers in the hose off, causes the light to come on half-brightness, and the switch to not work. How could that be?

Turning the breakers back on restored normal operation with the switch working as normal.

Can anyone explain a possible fault scenario? I mean I suspect the wiring was done wrong, something like the live is taken to the neutral and when switched off it runs through other connected loads in the house backwards as it were, but I cannot in my own mind imagine a scenario that works like this.

Help please!!

I'm suspecting that the connection is in "Series" when it's turned "Off". When its turned "On" it's connection is on parallel.

[TheHeroMember]

The light must be one that contains a backup battery for fire escape purposes, but dont ask me why that is installed in my outhouse!!

That was my first guess.


Don't forget to turn off the light, dear!

Cool rest room. 

[Phinnaeus Gage]

The light must be one that contains a backup battery for fire escape purposes, but dont ask me why that is installed in my outhouse!!

That was my first guess.


Don't forget to turn off the light, dear!

Cool rest room. 

I designed it myself. The way it works is that the seat is upstairs and I wait for a pretty woman to go up and use it. At that time I sneak it at the bottom (secret door) and I look up while she's pooping and...and...hmmm! My other idea is...

[TheHeroMember]

The light must be one that contains a backup battery for fire escape purposes, but dont ask me why that is installed in my outhouse!!

That was my first guess.


Don't forget to turn off the light, dear!

Cool rest room. 

I designed it myself. The way it works is that the seat is upstairs and I wait for a pretty woman to go up and use it. At that time I sneak it at the bottom (secret door) and I look up while she's pooping and...and...hmmm! My other idea is...

LOL, and the view of the world below is as beautiful as watching a 3D movie.