Three-way Switch Removal for Dummies

three-way switch

Apparently, no matter how many times we say it around the Antisocial Network, the point still needs to be made: if you want to know how to do something, ask someone who knows. You wouldn't ask for financial advice from a middle-schooler, right? And if you wanted medical advice, you wouldn't ask your Uber driver, right? So why would anyone think that having an English degree qualifies them to write a how-to for electricians? More to the point, why did Jean Asta think she knew enough about "How to Remove a Three-Way Electrical Wall Switch" to write a how-to at eHow.com?

Asta, forced by Demand Media to "introduce" the topic, came up with the rather inane,

"When remodeling or redecorating, you may find that you have a three-way wall switch that you no longer need."

Sure, Jean... though it's a lot more likely that you find that you need a 3-way switch than don't need one. But you had to come up with some excuse, right? Of course, Asta's "how-to" would have been a lot more useful if she had had some knowledge of what electricians do and, especially, what the national electrical code says is permissible. If she had such knowledge, she wouldn't have said things like,

"Once you have removed the switch you can either wire in a simple switch, cover the outlet hole with a solid switch plate or fill in the hole entirely."

We aren't really certain what her "simple switch" is, but we know for a fact that it'd be a code violation to "fill in the hole entirely." Then again, our staff electrical DIY types were aghast at Jean's instructions:

"Remove the switch... label the wires with a piece of masking tape and a pencil... Screw... wire nuts onto the ends of the wires... "

No, Jean, that's not allowed by the code because it's a friggin' fire hazard! If you remove a switch or an outlet, you must ensure that the circuit is dead, either by removing the circuit from the breaker box or by disconnecting the wires up the line from the switch.

That, of course, is only the beginning of Asta's problems: other sticky points she fails to address include (at a bare minimum) what to do with the other leg of the switch and the light the 3-ways control, and what to do if this switch is not at the end of the run.
It's definitely a safe bet that Jean's last suggestion,

"[If] you want a single switch [sic] in this location... wire the new switch by screwing the wires down to the correct terminals..."

...Isn't going to be much help. After all, she says nothing about which wires go to which terminals, and what to do with the extra red wire. Didn't know about that, didja, Jean? In case you wondered, that's why you're the Dumbass of the Day...

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