[Butikofer]

here is my set up. I have 3 outdoor garage lights, 3 driveway lights with photosensor hooked up to programable wall switch. The old one was EJ 500 which was set on manual. The new one is Utilitech TM-097.
After replacing the switch only the garage lights work not the driveway light with photosensor ( I waited til dark) the new switch made me use the white wire, where the old one didnt. Both are set to manual.
Thanks

 

[chandler48]

Do you have a neutral in the switch box? Post a picture of the inside of the box with the switch pulled.

 

[Butikofer]

I will try to upload a pic, what i have is black coming from another switch it is hot, a red wire i hooked up to the load, white went to neutral and a ground. the old switch had 3 wires red, black and blue. red was not connected blue went to black (hot wire) black went to red which i assume is the load.

 

[chandler48]

white went to neutral and a ground

The white cannot go to the neutral AND ground. They are separate. Is there a separate white neutral in the box? I feel you only have switch loops, making it impossible to use the new programmable switch without a neutral.

The EJ500 required no neutral.

 

[joed]

The other end of the white wire may not be hooked to the neutral if it was not used in the original installation.

 

[Butikofer]

Sorry, the ground went to ground on new switch, white went to neutral. Yes white is in the box, old one wasnt hooked up.

 

[Butikofer]

I will take white wire off

Thanks

 

[chandler48]

Tape over the photocell(s) and allow time for them to react. Then turn the switch to on. Picture of your set up would really help.

 

[Butikofer]

Ok, so I disconnected the white wire and taped the photocell. now driveway lights with photocell come on and garage light doesn't? with the white wire hooked up garage light came on?

 

[chandler48]

Why did you disconnect the neutral? What happens when you re connect it?

 

[Butikofer]

Joed, said it might help to disconnect the white wire, which made sense because the old switch didnt have the white wire hooked up. when i put the white wire back on, driveway light with photosensor will not come on but garage light will.

 

[joed]

No I said the white wire might not be connected to neutral at the other end.
You need to find the other end of the three wire cable and see how it is connected.

 

[Butikofer]

ok sorry, i misunderstood. but I can either hook it up or disconnect it, either way, one set of lights work while the others don't. I don't know what else i could do.

 

[Butikofer]

Up date, when i trip the breaker, the driveway lights stay on???

 

[joed]

I suspect what you have is one hot coming in(maybe the white) and two hots going out(one to each set of lights). This is why I would like to know how the other end of the cable is connected.

Do you have a volt meter? Can you measure volts from each wire to ground?

 

[Butikofer]

Sorry to be such a pain, when you say other end, do mean at the driveway?

 

[Butikofer]

Here are two pictures of the wiring

 

[Butikofer]

Another picture

 

[joed]

Here is what I think I see.
A bundle of white; these are the neutral. Add your timer neutral to the bundle.
A black that connects to the other switch. This will be your LINE - power in feed.
A red and a black which are probably your two sets of lights. One is garage lights. The other is driveway lights. Connect one of them to LINE black and see what comes on. Try again with other one.
You need to connect both of these to the LOAD wire of your timer.

 

[chandler48]

Connect the black to the line of your switch. The red to the load. and the neutral to the neutral bundle you see there. What you have is a non switched post lamps. If you want them to be on the switch, then you will have to wire them through it. I would leave the lamp posts as photocell switched. That way they come on when they are supposed to. No need for switching.

Edit: Joed types faster than me.