Hall lights not working

[jackg]

Electics were installed 30 years ago.

Two downlighter in the hall with large pear shaped screw in bulbs

Switch either end of hall

Suddenly stopped working today. No flash or bang.

Fuse is fine as are other lights on the circuit.

Wire connections on the rear of the switches are ok.

Downlighters are a pig to remove from the hall.

Any suggestions?

 

[deadshort]

Are your downlighters 12v and are they on one transformer ?

It's possible that they are at that age !

Regards,

DS

 

[deadshort]

Hi, just noted you state screw in bulbs so, not 12v I would check the wiring at the first fitting, sorry, removal from ceiling
is required!

DS

 

[JohnW2]

Hi, just noted you state screw in bulbs so, not 12v

(click here) (one of hundreds/thousands)

Kind Regards, John

 

[ericmark]

My thoughts are two down lighters unlikely both blow bulbs together. Screw so unlikely using a transformer. Other lights still working so unlikely a fuse or MCB. Wiring rarely goes. So most likely is the switch. If so unlikely both contacts will fail but not impossible. As to which switch has gone hard to tell.

Likely best way to work out which switch is all three wires together first at one then at other clearly power off when work is done. Switch on to test which ever causes lights to work that is the faulty switch.

 

[deadshort]

Hi, just noted you state screw in bulbs so, not 12v

(click here) (one of hundreds/thousands)

Kind Regards, John

You omitted Christmas lights, John are you going for BAS's crown ?

Kind Regards,

DS

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Two downlighter in the hall with large pear shaped screw in bulbs

Sounds like R80s.

Were it not for the sudden complete failure, i.e. no preceding flickering, I'd say they've done their usual trick of working loose. But presumably you've tried tightening them up?

One thing to check is with the use of a torch, look at the condition of the centre contact in the lampholder - if it looks damaged, particularly if there's a hole in it, then the light is probably toast.

 

[JohnW2]

You omitted Christmas lights, John...

... and some torch bulbs, and many car bulbs, and inspection light bulbs, and .... I mentioned it mainly because (a) when I moved into my present house, many years ago, for some inexplicable reason many of the lights were 12V E27 'GLS' ones running off massive wirewound transformers, and (b) I have a number of inspection lamps which use the very same lamps/bulbs.

Kind Regards, John

 

[jackg]

Thanks for your advice.
The bulbs are R80s.
I checked the switches with a multimeter and they seem ok.
Maybe I have to remove the light fittings and check them.

 

[JohnW2]

Were it not for the sudden complete failure, i.e. no preceding flickering, I'd say they've done their usual trick of working loose.

Although one would not really expect two of them to suddenly work loose simultaneously, would one? I suppose they could be two 110V ones wired in series, one of which has worked loose!!

Kind Regards, John

 

[Taylortwocities]

I am going to guess that the 30-year ol wiring to the connector block (often on the top of the lamp) has fried and failed, causing both lamps to stop working.

I'm afraid that removal may be the only course of action to analyse the problem.


Note: if its the sort of fitting that I have run across, they are held in either with a devilish spring clip thing, that bends out of shape, or a pair of plastic clips that break after 30 years of being next to a 60W lamp.

 

[ericmark]

If some one has wired using a non standard system on a forum it would be impossible to work out a fault.

With fault finding the major problem is suggesting a method without knowing the skill of the person doing the repair.

One would assume having a multimeter means they do have some skill but there is a huge jump between testing with the ohm range to working on live circuits specially if there are people in the house who could touch something while the tests are being carried out.

Should anything more than a tube or battery fail on my landing light even with my knowledge to test would be a problem. Off hand I could not remember how I wired it other than knowing the guts were ripped out of the florescent lamp and the four wires were routed into a box containing the HF ballast and battery which provides two way lighting and emergency lighting should we have a power cut.

I did at one time consider doing the same for the control gear for a 70W metal halide lamp but never got around to doing it. I did suffer blown fuses when my wife replaced a E27 spot lamp with a SON bulb. The E27 screw fitting can be used for many types of bulbs.

Years ago I would do anything to improve my house. Today I consider if I die who could repair it? My son still fits the hitec systems and I ask who he would find to work on his nest thermostat should he fall ill and as far as his wifi TRV's all controlled from the server in the loft well I could not jump in and correct any faults and I wonder who could if he was not available.

30 years ago I had no idea of wifi or PLC or any other modern system so unlikely some odd system. But I have no idea of when the simple two way dimmer switch started to use slave and master. It is sometimes quite a surprise to find the dates when some systems started to be used. Without looking up if asked when the FAX machine was invented I would have said around 1990 but in fact it was 1843.

In 1990 I was using packet radio and had an email address GW7MGW@GBAOR it was some 10 years latter when I got a email address using telephone lines.

We can only guess at what was done in 1984 when this system was installed.

 

[sparkwright]

Is there a dimmer switch?