On 10/22/2011 12:38 AM, Evan wrote:
On Oct 19, 9:27 am, wrote:
On 10/18/2011 9:01 PM, Rebel1 wrote:



This apartment has strange problems. Incandescent bulbs burn out too
fast, usually when a switch is turned on. I monitored line voltage with
a plug-in meter that displays voltages in the range of 90 to 130. The
needle stays pointing in the green zone (110 to 125 volts). I don't live
there, but I left the meter there and the renter says it stays in the
green zone.

Aside from that problem, the kitchen has a ceiling fan with three light
bulbs (standard base). The bulb in one position burns out, again when
power is switched on, much more often than the other two.

I've tried using bulbs rated at 130V. Seem to give better life, but
there is still a definite problem that I can't blame on simple high
voltage. There is no flicker that could indicate that the bulb isn't
fully screwed into the socket.

This is an "illegal" apartment, which means that there can be many code
violations.

Thanks for you suggestions/comments.

R1

Up until 9 years ago, the entire apartment was a single room in a large
building with 3 other rental units in it. The owner divided this room
into an apartment for a fourth tenant, my friend.

It turns out that the bulbs in the bathroom, bedroom, and closet do NOT
burn out prematurely. The problem is confined to the kitchen, dining
nook and hallway. As far as my friend knows, the bulbs in any of the
other rental units do not burn out prematurely.

My friend's apartment is on the second floor, along with one other
rental unit. A circuit breaker panel in the common hallway controls
power to the two rentals. I now suspect that one of the breakers feeds
the circuits that have the short-lived bulbs, even though I can't figure
how a defective breaker could do this. I asked her to turn off each
breaker and map out which breakers control the various outlets and
lights in the apartment. I may not hear from her for a few days.

R1

You shouldn't be touching anything in this "apartment" your friend
should report the issue to the landlord who can either rectify it or
eventually have the issue reported to the building inspector who
would probably immediately condemn the entire building for the
illegal occupancies...

The landlord has someone they can vilify (a.k.a. YOU ) as someone
who was tampering with the wiring without any authorization if
the building suffers any sort of electrical fire in that unit...

If your friend is that concerned about the cost of light bulbs he can
do one of several things:

1.) Leave the offending socket with a dead lamp in it and not
worry about it until it catches on fire...

2.) Demand that the landlord either fix the problem or keep him
supplied with free light bulbs...

3.) Report it to the building inspector and watch as his landlord
gets in serious trouble...

~~ Evan

Problem is, the tenant is a life-long friend of the landlady. She even
went so far as to say she would give her life for the landlady. I don't
know what event, decades ago, created such a strong bond. Even though
the landlady lives in the same building, my friend and her rarely see
each other. Yet that bond remains. So calling the building inspector is
not an option.

Yesterday, I replaced a closet light fixture. Cost only $5.97+7% sales
tax. My friend wouldn't even deduct that trivial amount from the next
rent check.

It will be interesting when the town undergoes a complete revaluation.
There is a deck and shed added without permits. Then there are illegal
apartments. I don't know if any town-wide revaluation is scheduled. But
I certainly wouldn't want to be in the landlady's shoes.