You dont need the other terminal on the three way switch so its fine to cover it over with electrical tape to ensure the terminals dont get mixed up. Metal switch boxes require a ground connection to the circuit wiring.
Single Pole Switch Wiring Methods Electrician101
How to wire a single pole switch with 3 wires. White black and red plus a bare ground wire. And connect the other hot wire to the other terminal. To use a three way switch as a single pole one connect the hot wires to the common terminal and the traveler on the same side of the switch body. The 14 3 cable has three insulated conductors. Connect one of the hot wires to one of the side switch terminals. Connect the ground green wire on the switch with the ground green label wire from the wall.
Feed a length of 14 3 type nm cable or 12 3 if youre connecting to 12 gauge wire between the two boxes. The difference between a single and 2 pole switch is a 2 pole is nothing more than two single pole switches built into one device. Connect the second lineload black wire on the switch to the line or load black label wire from the wall. Connect the wires to the new 3 way switches with ground screws using one of the two wiring diagrams fig. Cap the 3 waymulti way traveler wire if applicable. If youre installing a 3 way click here for instructions.
Both a single pole and 2 pole switch will have the words off and on on the handle while both 3 and 4 way switches do not. Make sure all of the connections are very tight.
Gallery of How To Wire A Single Pole Switch With 3 Wires
