# Switches: Up is On/Off? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 20, 2009, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341 "2009-11-20T21:40:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BunnyTVS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BunnyTVS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BunnyTVS)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/21 "2009-11-21T00:56:13Z")
> [@rockypg](#): > > Thought that was always the left side? no? I always thought so until my brother moved back to the area. He and his family used to live in Birmingham (NOT MA). All the houses where he lived there had the hot tap on the right. On reflection it was probably down to cheap construction, or colour blind plumbers. So try this one… Which side of the steering column are the windscreen wipers on? I know that threw me the first time I drove a Suzuki. And yes I now know I should never drive a Suzuki with more than two wheels ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/22 "2009-11-21T01:00:28Z")
> [@norinew](#): > > As to the OP, there are a couple of switches in my house (well, apartment) where ‘up’ _might_ mean ‘off’. But in both cases, it’s a situation where there are _two_ switches for the same fixture. For instance, in my living room, there’s a switch by the front door, and another by the kitchen door. If I turn the light ‘on’ by flipping the switch by the kitchen door ‘up’, then to turn it ‘off’ by the front door, I have to flip it whatever way it isn’t already. So. . .is that clear as mud, or what? 😉 > My point is that it’s not _always_ a case of ‘up is on and down is off’, especially if there are two toggles for the same fixture. both 3 and 4 way switches operate this way and are unmarked on the face. single switches are frequently marked on the front and if the legend is readable down is off. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/23 "2009-11-21T01:22:31Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > i have also heard that a downward direction is for safety purposes. That’s what I heard. Something falls on the switch, it’ll turn stuff off instead of on. Makes sense to me. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/24 "2009-11-21T03:00:37Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > The ‘up’ position requires some sort of force to keep it there. In the down position, it is at rest or ‘off’. That’s my train of thought. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/25 "2009-11-21T03:26:44Z")
Some early electic lights were operated by a key instead of a switch. Turn the key, lights go on/off. You could remove the key, to “lock” the light on or off. ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/26 "2009-11-21T08:42:51Z")
> [@Fubaya](#): > > I’m glad down is off in the US. I sometimes take off my shirt and throw it at the wall a little higher than the switch so that, when it comes down, it turns off the light. It’s like remote control for the lights when I’m lazy. If done correctly, it can be romantic. I do that with my underpants but quite often they stick to the wall 😉 ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/27 "2009-11-21T14:33:20Z")
In my apartment in Norway, up is on. That goes for old switches, new switches and the switches on my Ikea floor lamps, one of which I snapped at the base trying to find the country of origin. I suspect the rest of Norway is mostly the same, since I can’t remember anyone telling me I’ve got funny switches. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/28 "2009-11-21T15:09:03Z")
> [@](#): > > both 3 and 4 way switches operate this way and are unmarked on the face. single switches are frequently marked on the front and if the legend is readable down is off. Well, provided the switch was installed consistent with the label. Up is on for the non-multiple switches in my house, but one in the kitchen is mounted upside down, and is labeled “NO” rather than “OFF”, should you care to peer at it to inspect the label. Most houses have a light or two controlled with multiple switches, and I’m not sure a standard (or a label) is really that helpful, since those can be in either orientation, and you manage to cope with them. “flip the switch to change the light” is clear enough, and I’m not sure that I would really notice if the non-multiple ones were all the other way around. ---
**Author:** ![Bagistan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Bagistan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bagistan)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/29 "2009-11-21T16:25:04Z")
Up is on in Sweden too. An electrician gave me a similar explanation as the one **gotpasswords** offered. Does the OP have any cite for “Most places around the world have down-on”? If a North American asks the rest of the world in English which side they drive on, he’d find they mostly drive on the left… ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/30 "2009-11-21T16:27:39Z")
You all would be surprised at how many people think that a receptacle should be mounted with the ground lug at the top. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/31 "2009-11-21T16:32:56Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > You all would be surprised at how many people think that a receptacle should be mounted with the ground lug at the top. Sadly, this appears to be code in North Carolina. Drives me batsh!t. ---
**Author:** ![Bagistan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea5d25/32.png) [@Bagistan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bagistan)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/32 "2009-11-21T16:41:23Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > You all would be surprised at how many people think that a receptacle should be mounted with the ground lug at the top. Yes, China and India are surprisingly populous.😛 ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/33 "2009-11-21T16:52:15Z")
My grandfather’s house had the very old fashioned push button switches. IIRC, the top button was the ‘on’ button while the bottom button was, of course, the ‘off’ button. Could there be any carryover from those old switches; was it just precedent based on the old push button switches? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2009, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/34 "2009-11-21T19:29:43Z")
> [@Bagistan](#): > > Yes, China and India are surprisingly populous.😛 Point taken. I seem to recall that European standard is ground lug on top also, but my memory may be hazy. British cord plugs have fuses in them, also. I used to have arguments with other electricians here in the US about the ground lug subject. Basically, as long as the installation is uniform throughout, it’s not all that critical: i.e., all switches turn on in down position, all outlets in lug up position (or sideways, for that matter). An inspector might raise an eyebrow at the unconventional nature of it, but I doubt that it’s against code, just not common practice. ---
**Author:** ![chromaticity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@chromaticity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chromaticity)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/35 "2009-11-22T11:10:44Z")
> [@rockypg](#): > > Just to shake things up, [wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_switch)says: > > “In countries prone to earthquakes, such as Japan, most switches are positioned sideways to prevent the switch from inadvertently being turned on or off by falling objects” There is no citation though. I just checked all the switches in my house are sideways. Or they are push buttons. Also, I have to press on the right side to turn stuff on. I never thought that this was the reason. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/36 "2009-11-22T11:21:56Z")
> [@BunnyTVS](#): > > So try this one… > > Which side of the steering column are the windscreen wipers on? _Generally_ it’s on the left here- except in the Holden Astra (which is a German design), where they’re on the right. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/37 "2009-11-22T12:56:15Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > _Generally_ it’s on the left here- except in the Holden Astra (which is a German design), where they’re on the right. My cars have all had the wiper arm on the left but my friends relatively new Focus has it on the right. Says she spent months putting the wipers on when she wanted to indicate a turn. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341/38 "2009-11-22T13:08:41Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > My cars have all had the wiper arm on the left but my friends relatively new Focus has it on the right. Says she spent months putting the wipers on when she wanted to indicate a turn. The Focus is also a German (ie originally left-hand drive) design, I believe. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/switches-up-is-on-off/518341.md?page=1)