How to Wire Multiple Light Fixtures With Two Three-Way Switches With Power Going to Second Fixture

Switch off the power to the circuit on which you will be working. Never work on a live circuit.

Unscrew the face plates and fixture covers to expose the wiring for the switches and fixtures. Remove the mounting screws holding the switches into the junction boxes.

Cut the 3-wire plus ground cable to the length you need to connect the two switches.

Cut the 2-wire plus ground cable to the length you need to connect the power to the first switch, the second switch to the first fixture and then between each of the fixtures.

Remove the last six inches of sheathing from the ends of the cables and strip the final half-inch of insulation from each of the individual wires.

Cut a six inch length of ground wire out of some of the cable. Strip off the insulation, if there is any, from the ends.

Twist the ground wire from the power source with the ground from the 3-wire plug ground cable and the short length you cut. Secure the connection with a wire nut.

Bend the other end of the short ground wire into a hook and loop it over the green screw on the three-way switch. Tighten the screw. All the terminal connections will be made in this manner.

Connect the black wire from the power source to the black terminal on the switch.

Splice the white wire from the power source to the white wire from the 3-wire cable with a wire nut.

Connect the red wire from the 3-wire cable to the right brass terminal and the black wire to the left brass terminal.

Reinstall the switch in the junction box.

Move to the second switch location. Repeat the ground wire splice so that the third, short ground connects to the green terminal on the switch.

Connect the red wire from the 3-wire cable to the right brass terminal and the black wire from the 3-wire cable to the left brass terminal.

Splice the white wire from the 3-wire cable to the white wire from the 2-wire cable.

Connect the black wire from the 2-wire cable to the black terminal on the switch.

Reinstall the switch in the junction box.

Cut a short length of white and black wire from a cable to attach to the first light fixture and strip the ends of the wire.

Splice the three black wires together in the first light fixture so there is one coming from the switch, one going to the next fixture and the short one you just cut.

Splice the three white wires together in the first light fixture so there is one coming from the switch, one going to the next fixture and the short one you just cut.

Splice the two ground wires.

Secure the splices with wire nuts.

Connect the short, black wire to the hot terminal on the light and the short, white wire to the common terminal on the light. Not all lights designate a difference between the terminals.

Repeat the process for attaching the first light fixture for each additional fixture you want to control with the three-way switches, except for the last fixture.

Wire the final fixture by connecting the black wire from the incoming 2-wire cable to the hot terminal on the light and the white wire to the common terminal. Connect the ground wire to the ground screw in the junction box or to the ground terminal on the light if there is one.

Reinstall the lights and switch the circuit breaker back on.