Electronic – wiring a 3 position toggle switch for two devices

powertoggle switch

I am building a plastic vacuum molding device that requires a heating source and a vacuuming source. For safety reasons I want to install an On/Off/On toggle switch so I, or whomever, am forced to have either the heating element on OR the vacuum source on…and in the middle position both devices are Off. In this mode…after the heated plastic is ready for molding, I must switch on the vacuum…and by doing so I am automatically turn over the heating element. (I have read too many times where people leave their heating source on and forget about it…I want to eliminate this hazard).

Both heating element and vacuum each use a standard 110 plug and each is connected to a separate single standard 3 pronged home wall-outlet. The wall-outlet is not the 2-in-1 type outlet you find in homes, mine are separate, single plug outlets – one each.

My 3-position toggle switch has 6 connectors at the base. And lastly, I am using a 6ft extension cord that will connect to the 3-position toggle switch on one end and into the a wall-outlet on the other end. The exposed wires on the toggle-switch end of the extension cord are black/white/green. I also have 3 feet of 16 gauge copper stranded wire (3ft of black/white/green each) to connect between the two outlets and the toggle-switch.

A. How do I wire each single port/plug outlet to the toggle switch to achieve the desired outcome?
B. How do I wire the exposed end of the extension cord to the toggle switch?

Toggle Switch Diagram:

Designation:      Heat     OFF     Vacuum
TOP 3 Toggle:       ON     OFF     ON 
Bottom 6 Pins:       o      o      o
                     o      o      o

Here is a link to the toggle switch I am using: Home Depot Toggle Swtich

Here is the link to the crude image of what I need to accomplish. Crude Drawing

Could you please fill in the blanks of which wire connects to which toggle switch pins?

Thanks in advance.

Best Answer

Here is the diagram with pins connected. Basically, the toggle switch PINS 3 and 4 are from the source. So when then HEAT is on, current will flow from 3 to 1 and return 2 to 4. Similarly, when VACUUM is on, the current will flow from 3 to 5 and return 6 to 4.

Black wires are typically HOT and whites are NEUTRAL. Make sure all black wires are on the top (pins 1, 3 and 5) and white wires are on the bottom (2, 4 and 6).

I still recommend to connect the power plug to a power strip.

Let me know how it goes.

Sanity check: With an ohmmeter and switch not connected, check continuity between 1 and 3, then 2 and 4 with the HEAT on position. Do the same for pins 3 and 5, then 4 to 6 with VACUUM on position.

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