Wiring New Push Button Light Switch into Range Hood. How to?

[slackmax]

This is a continuation of my previous thread about my range hood. I got the fan out of the way, went in through that hole, unscrewed the light switch and the fan switch, and pulled the wiring through the fan hole. It's just the light switch I want to replace, but I had to get the fan switch out along with the light switch.

I can now cut wires, or disconnect/reconnect wires at their joining points, depending what's easier for a non expert like myself. 

See pics.  It's the switch hanging down on on the left that I need to replace. Notice it has 3 wires of different colors. They go into 2 different melty plastic blobs. I don't want to mess with those 2 blobs, so I thought it would be smarter and easier just to cut all 3 wires, and connect  my new light switch's 3 wires to the existing 3 wires, with 3 wires nuts.

How's that for an idea? 

Another question I have is will the new switch come with the 3 wires already attached? Will I have to take the existing switch assembly apart, or just cut it off when I cut the wires?

Online shows the switch alone with no wires, and sometimes with wires.

I googled my range hood model number   J  N334  003AD  and it's nowhere to be found. Seems to be 'memory holed', lol.  The GE website (it's a GE range hood)  doesn't even have it.  I googled the number on the actual switch, and nothing useful to be found. Sigh...

I did find one Youtube video about a guy replacing a switch on a similar range hood, and he did not cut any wires. He somehow hooked the existing wires into the new switch, which came without wires.
 
Going to hardware store with drawing of my switch, to see what they have, and get advice.   

Any clues welcome ! 

[slackmax]

Went to the hardware store. All they had for me was a toggle switch, which would be low for left, off for middle, and high for right. It had 3 nice brass terminals on it where I could put the three wires. Even had screws on the terminals. So it looks easy to hook up. Supposedly there is some way to figure pout what wire to hook where, using a multimeter.

My process would be 1. cut the 3 wires to the existing switch. 2. Trim the ends. 3. Hook the 3 wires up to new toggle switch. 4.  Install toggle switch and be back in business.

Haven't bought the toggle switch yet. ( Only $4.64 )  Will look around for a push button switch some more, at other stores.     

[lthenderson]

I would wait until you get the switch in before you start cutting any wires. If it does come with wires, I would use heat shrink butt connectors over wire nuts for this application. I find wire nuts can come loose with heat (right above your stove) applied and can cut in and out.

[Bartlebooth]

Your hood has regular light and night light functions, according to the labels.  So one wire for each of those, and then the third wire is either hot or ground (doesn't really matter, I'm going to call it hot for the rest of the post).

Any symmetry of the switch is a good clue.  It looks like there is the hot wire on one end, and then one wire for each light function in a symmetrical arrangement on the other end.  Tough to tell from the pictures.  Another clue is the wire color.  Black for hot would be typical, and then other colors such as your blue and yellow for functions.  It is just a clue though.

You could test with a multimeter to be sure.  You could also cut/strip the wires and touch them to each other to be sure.  I suspect blue/yellow will do nothing, blue/black will illuminate one light function, and yellow/black will illuminate the other light function.  Whichever wire is present in both pairs that result in illumination is the hot (again, I suspect black).  Then you can use this information along with the new switch schematic to connect them.

Don't shock yourself.

There is a chance that the existing switch connects just one light for night light, and adds a second additional light for regular light.  In that case throw my whole post in the trash.

[slackmax]

Your hood has regular light and night light functions, according to the labels.  So one wire for each of those, and then the third wire is either hot or ground (doesn't really matter, I'm going to call it hot for the rest of the post).

Any symmetry of the switch is a good clue.  It looks like there is the hot wire on one end, and then one wire for each light function in a symmetrical arrangement on the other end.  Tough to tell from the pictures.  Another clue is the wire color.  Black for hot would be typical, and then other colors such as your blue and yellow for functions.  It is just a clue though.

You could test with a multimeter to be sure.  You could also cut/strip the wires and touch them to each other to be sure.  I suspect blue/yellow will do nothing, blue/black will illuminate one light function, and yellow/black will illuminate the other light function.  Whichever wire is present in both pairs that result in illumination is the hot (again, I suspect black).  Then you can use this information along with the new switch schematic to connect them.

Don't shock yourself.

There is a chance that the existing switch connects just one light for night light, and adds a second additional light for regular light.  In that case throw my whole post in the trash.

Thanks, Bartlebooth.  It's looking like the toggle switch I saw at the first hdw store is a good candidate. 

Nobody on the planet has the original switch or a copy thereof.  Spent 4 hours at stores, on the phone, and searching internet. Isn't that enough, lol?

By the way, it's only one light bulb, so your last paragraph does not apply, lol.     

[Bartlebooth]

Only one lightbulb...interesting.  A lot of what I said was wrong then.  I dug some more.

You seem to have a GE Deluxe 30 range hood.  Probably JN334*03AD based on the model number stuff you listed.   I'm guessing AD is for Almond. https://www.repairclinic.com/ProductDetail/56398
https://www.partselect.com/Models/JN334%2A03/

Great picture of the switch that they show for that model: https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Switch/WB24X5197/253608  Notice that it comes with some component on one of the wires, which would reduce voltage (?) to make the dim mode.  You would want to make sure that you end up with only one of those in your circuit after rewiring (don't accidentally wire in a way which leaves you with both the old and new one).

The light pushbutton should cycle between on/dim/off.  WB24X5197 (maybe WB24X170?) is the part number.  Kind of hard to find... The dim mode probably won't work with LED bulbs.

[slackmax]

Only one lightbulb...interesting.  A lot of what I said was wrong then.  I dug some more.

You seem to have a GE Deluxe 30 range hood.  Probably JN334*03AD based on the model number stuff you listed.   I'm guessing AD is for Almond. https://www.repairclinic.com/ProductDetail/56398
https://www.partselect.com/Models/JN334%2A03/

Great picture of the switch that they show for that model: https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Switch/WB24X5197/253608  Notice that it comes with some component on one of the wires, which would reduce voltage (?) to make the dim mode.  You would want to make sure that you end up with only one of those in your circuit after rewiring (don't accidentally wire in a way which leaves you with both the old and new one).

The light pushbutton should cycle between on/dim/off.  WB24X5197 (maybe WB24X170?) is the part number.  Kind of hard to find... The dim mode probably won't work with LED bulbs.

Thanks.

That is the first pic I have seen online, of the switch. Nice and clear, and yes, I see the blob on the end of one wire. Interesting. I'm going to surf the net for the part number, and hope to get lucky. Still leaning towards the toggle switch option. 

edit :  after some surfing and finding no exact match, I might check out my hdw store for a nickle plated push button they have, which only has 2 wires (or 2 connections) . So it would just be on/off, which would be fine.  Suppose I would just tape up one of the wires in that case, probably the orange wire since it has the voltage-reducing blob on it.     

[BudgetSlasher]

Went to the hardware store. All they had for me was a toggle switch[, which would be low for left, off for middle, and high for right. It had 3 nice brass terminals on it where I could put the three wires. Even had screws on the terminals. So it looks easy to hook up. Supposedly there is some way to figure pout what wire to hook where, using a multimeter.

My process would be 1. cut the 3 wires to the existing switch. 2. Trim the ends. 3. Hook the 3 wires up to new toggle switch. 4.  Install toggle switch and be back in business.

Haven't bought the toggle switch yet. ( Only $4.64 )  Will look around for a push button switch some more, at other stores.     

Before you go cutting and poking around with a multimeter, dig around a little deeper inside your hood. Almost every appliance I have opened from hoods to washing machines includes a wiring diagram somewhere inside. Sometimes it is a sticker and sometimes it is a folded up piece of paper stuck somewhere near the controls, unless it was removed in a prior repair and not put back I bet it is there somewhere. If you can read it (or post it here) it should be easy to figure out the wires without probing.

Also while your full model number might be memory holed, JN334*03 is not. Based in that I can quickly turn up this (obsolete and not in stock) result https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Switch/WB24X5197/253608. But now you have a part number. I also found this (again OOS), but it has cross references https://www.appliancepartspros.com/ge-switch-light-wb24x5197-ap2024493.html. I have not found that part anywhere.

From the images of the replacement parts it appears the wires are fixed to the switch and you make the connections somewhere inside the hood. From the appliancepartpro images there is also a component attached to the end of the orange lead I do not know what i it is, perhaps someone else can ID it correctly.

From the images you can tell it is a 3 amp - 125 volt switch. If your hood has Low-Medium-High it would be a 4 ways switch and if it was only two brightness settings it was probably a 3 way switch. Once you know that and the size of the opening in your hood a quick google will probably come up with an acceptable replacement.

For example, 3-way push button switch yielded this result for me https://www.1000bulbs.com/product/54223/PLT-10038.html. You can probably find more in different sizes and colors.

[slackmax]

Went to the hardware store. All they had for me was a toggle switch[, which would be low for left, off for middle, and high for right. It had 3 nice brass terminals on it where I could put the three wires. Even had screws on the terminals. So it looks easy to hook up. Supposedly there is some way to figure pout what wire to hook where, using a multimeter.

My process would be 1. cut the 3 wires to the existing switch. 2. Trim the ends. 3. Hook the 3 wires up to new toggle switch. 4.  Install toggle switch and be back in business.

Haven't bought the toggle switch yet. ( Only $4.64 )  Will look around for a push button switch some more, at other stores.     

Before you go cutting and poking around with a multimeter, dig around a little deeper inside your hood. Almost every appliance I have opened from hoods to washing machines includes a wiring diagram somewhere inside. Sometimes it is a sticker and sometimes it is a folded up piece of paper stuck somewhere near the controls, unless it was removed in a prior repair and not put back I bet it is there somewhere. If you can read it (or post it here) it should be easy to figure out the wires without probing.

Also while your full model number might be memory holed, JN334*03 is not. Based in that I can quickly turn up this (obsolete and not in stock) result https://www.repairclinic.com/PartDetail/Switch/WB24X5197/253608. But now you have a part number. I also found this (again OOS), but it has cross references https://www.appliancepartspros.com/ge-switch-light-wb24x5197-ap2024493.html. I have not found that part anywhere.

From the images of the replacement parts it appears the wires are fixed to the switch and you make the connections somewhere inside the hood. From the appliancepartpro images there is also a component attached to the end of the orange lead I do not know what i it is, perhaps someone else can ID it correctly.

From the images you can tell it is a 3 amp - 125 volt switch. If your hood has Low-Medium-High it would be a 4 ways switch and if it was only two brightness settings it was probably a 3 way switch. Once you know that and the size of the opening in your hood a quick google will probably come up with an acceptable replacement.

For example, 3-way push button switch yielded this result for me https://www.1000bulbs.com/product/54223/PLT-10038.html. You can probably find more in different sizes and colors.

Thanks for the info ! Yes, I have the part number, but it is leading to dead ends everywhere. So I started looking for alternatives.

Bought a toggle switch and tried to insert it, but it was too big. Turns out the hole in my range hood is only 3/8 inch diameter, and the one I bought (hardware store guy said don't worry, they are all the same size) was half inch.

So I have to find a 3/8 inch switch. Google ignores the '3/8' search parameter and floods me with half inch switches. I can't find any website that even mentions a 3/8 inch switch.   They're always half inch switches, or they don't even mention the diameter.

As of now, I'm looking for a simple 'on/off' toggle or push button, with only 2 screw terminals, to keep things simple and easy for me. No butt splices or wire nuts. 

By the way, someone said the thing on the orange wire might be a diode, to reduce the voltage. I plan to 'delete' the orange wire, so I can just have 'on full' or 'off'.

[slackmax]

Update: I found a 3/8 inch diameter switch at a hardware store ! Push button, SPST, with  only 2 wires. I have it working!  Just have to wire nut it securely, and install it.
The blue wire was the hot one. I hooked up blue and black to the switch. Light comes on full brightness, which I want.  I have the orange wire taped off at the end where I cut it. 

Thanks for the assistance.