What Does This Switch Do "Coil to Garage"
#1
06-21-20, 09:31 PM
What Does This Switch Do "Coil to Garage"
Hello. I have moved into a new house, about 20 years old. In the laundry room, there is a switch that doesn't seem to control any lights or outlets. The house wiring diagram labels the switch as "Coil to Garage". What could that be? Many thanks for your help!
#2
06-21-20, 09:43 PM
Group Moderator
Welcome to the forums.
What house wiring diagram ?
The house wiring diagram labels the switch as "Coil to Garage".
#3
06-21-20, 10:28 PM
Thanks for asking. The house wiring diagram was in an envelope that was taped to the door of the circuit breaker box. It is a top-view of the house, like a blueprint, with each switch and outlet labeled by its circuit breaker number. Most switches have a line drawn from the switch to the device that it controls, but this one switch in the laundry room has no line. It has only a label that says "coil to garage". The switch is on the wall, adjacent to the door into the garage.
Perhaps the answer is simple, such as a coil of wire that sits somewhere in the insulated roof space above the attic, but is just capped off for future use and not now attached to anything. But I am ignorant about such things. I guess I just wanted to know. It would be nice to hear if anyone else had ever seen the phrase "coil to garage".
Thanks again.
Perhaps the answer is simple, such as a coil of wire that sits somewhere in the insulated roof space above the attic, but is just capped off for future use and not now attached to anything. But I am ignorant about such things. I guess I just wanted to know. It would be nice to hear if anyone else had ever seen the phrase "coil to garage".
Thanks again.
#5
06-22-20, 06:47 AM
Thanks for asking, Pilot. Yes, the box has live power coming in. The switch controls the hot wire (110V AC). When the switch is on, the controlled end of the hot wire is live (110V AC). The controlled hot wire exits the box along with a neutral wire and a bare ground wire, all in a white sheathing. Where it goes after that, I don't know.
#6
06-22-20, 06:48 AM
Perhaps the answer is simple, such as a coil of wire that sits somewhere in the insulated roof space above the attic, but is just capped off for future use and not now attached to anything. But I am ignorant about such things. I guess I just wanted to know. It would be nice to hear if anyone else had ever seen the phrase "coil to garage".
Tell us more about the garage. Does it have wiring? Does it have a switch controlled light? Could it have been for a future accessory like a car lift? What size breaker is it in the panel? Is it on? What else goes off if you turn it off?
#7
06-22-20, 06:53 AM
If you have crawl space in the garage, poke you head up there and see if you can locate a coil of wire. In the meantime if that switch has it;s own breaker I would keep it off. If not I would remove wall switch and cap off the wire leads and put a blank cover over it.
#9
06-22-20, 09:03 PM
Thank you all for the input. The garage is attached and wired with a ceiling light, some receptacle outlets, and an electric garage door opener. There is a ceiling and a hatch to climb through it into the roof space, but I can't do that myself. My daughter has said that she'll climb up when she visits in July. I'll bet you're right that I'll find a light or a junction box that contains an unused wire from the mystery switch.
Thanks again for your help.
Thanks again for your help.
