As we all know when the advancements came in the field of interior designing, there were many changes in the things and it gave us a new thing i.e. the electrical switch. In this article we will be discussing about the electrical switches and its types.
Let’s begin then.
An electrical switch is a now days a very common device used for operating the functioning of other appliances like light, fan, television etc. Some switches are operated manually while others by remote controls. They make come in different shape, size and designs. It is a standout amongst the most fundamental yet imperative electrical gadgets in the home. Despite the fact that they all look the same once the face-plate is on, they can work in an unexpected way.
There are different types of switches. Let’s get an overview about them. There are 4 major types of switches.
- Single pole switch: It is basically the simple on/off switch and is the universally useful workhorse of switches. Single post switches turn a light, container or gadget on and off from a single location. What makes it different from other switches is that these switches have an on/off marking on them. It has two terminals but only one action. In the switch, one terminal is for input and other for output. One of the terminals is wired to the black or hot wire. You must know one thing that you cannot wire the terminal with a neutral or white wire. This switch does not come with a ground terminal.
- Double pole switch: it is similar to single switch circuit in the way that it also has on/off markings but is different in the sense that it has four brass terminals. It means that instead of one, it can be wired to two hot or black wires. This also means that it will give two inputs and two outputs which were not present in the case of single pole switch. Due to the fact that it has four brass wires and can attach to 2 hot wires, it can switch to 240 Volt circuit and hence can replace the switches and appliances using 240 Volts. This switch comes with ground terminal.
- Three way switch: Three way switches are different from single and double pole switches as it does not have any on/off markings. It is always used in pairs and the position of on/off markings may change in accordance with the way in which switch is used. This is the reason that these switches cannot have on/off markings. It has 3 terminal screws. The hot wire is attached to the main or common terminal screw. Common is also denotes as COM, while the other two are called travelers. It doesn’t matter which traveler wire goes to which terminal switch, it is one and the same thing. It also comes with a ground terminal and hence shows a characteristic common to double pole switch. One important thing to be kept in mind is that these switches cannot be paired and used with any other kind of switch and thus, must be used with their pair.
- Four way switch: To keep control of light fixture, a four way switch is used between two three way switches. Unlike single pole switches, these switches do not have on/off markings. It has four switch terminals. They show dissimilarity from three way switch in the sense that there is no COM or Common terminal. It works simply as a switching device for the traveler wires between the three way switches.
This article gave a briefing about the types of switches which can be used in different places according to their function and requirement. There are many companies which provide these kinds of switches.