So I used a different sort of indicator light instead as stand in. You can see in this screenshot that I used “EXIT” signs for my outlets because the outlet icons I found didn’t seem to be able to wire up to the grid nor indicate if they were live. The Constructor 12 ladder diagram circuit simulator trial vsn So I tried The Constructor software for wire circuit simulation, which is basically the same thing, but has some more AC single-phase power options to simulate, has a mode that you can switch in real time, and the vendor offers a free trial for 60 days. I couldn’t just click a switch to turn a bulb off/on, it had to be set up as a timed event and simulated. I would build a circuit, but then have to run a simulation and add in measuring devices to see if my light bulbs turned on. I tried make do with a couple different virtual circuit labs, but I’m no Electrical Engineer, and even though I understand some of the parallels (switches are switches/indicator lights are light bulbs, right?), none of them seem to have real-time switching.

There’re quite a few simulators for electronics or microcontroller builders, but when it comes to just plain old 120V home light switching simulators, I’m either not Googling correctly or they’re not out there. (3-way switch technique shown) In Need of Some SimulationĪ home wiring circuit simulator is surprisingly difficult to find – at least a free (or trial) version. In this day and age, we ought to be able to set up our virtual circuits and see if the light switches are going to work before a single wire is pulled. And then it turns into a trial-and-error troubleshoot. I hate to spend time pulling wire and making connections to then get to the moment of truth when you flip the breaker back on and flip your first light switch only to have it not work. I’m no electrician, and trying to get home wiring circuits to work without pulling any more wire than necessary can leave me feeling way dumber than a series of 2- and 3-wire twisted pairs should.īut I like to plan things out in advance and build according to plan.

House wiring software