Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

On Jun 1, 10:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:
Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

I'd start at the switch. Just being connected is a good start, but
maybe the switch is intermittently faulty. It could happen. Tom

Jeffy3 wrote:
Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?



Make sure the metal body of the fixture itself is grounded. Lack of
grounding there can cause hard starting.

If it is grounded, and you can test for and find line voltage at the
power leads coming into the fixture when the switch is on, then change
out the ballast.

There isn't much more that can go wrong, bulb sockets usually don't fail
unless they're abused by someone forcing a bulb into place.

HTH,

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

Jeff Wisnia wrote:
Jeffy3 wrote:
Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?



Make sure the metal body of the fixture itself is grounded. Lack of
grounding there can cause hard starting.

If it is grounded, and you can test for and find line voltage at the
power leads coming into the fixture when the switch is on, then change
out the ballast.

Don't compact fluorescent bulbs contain their own ballast??


There isn't much more that can go wrong, bulb sockets usually don't fail
unless they're abused by someone forcing a bulb into place.

HTH,

Jeff

Ken wrote:
Jeff Wisnia wrote:

Jeffy3 wrote:

Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?



Make sure the metal body of the fixture itself is grounded. Lack of
grounding there can cause hard starting.

If it is grounded, and you can test for and find line voltage at the
power leads coming into the fixture when the switch is on, then change
out the ballast.


Don't compact fluorescent bulbs contain their own ballast??


There isn't much more that can go wrong, bulb sockets usually don't
fail unless they're abused by someone forcing a bulb into place.

HTH,

Jeff


Guilty as charged....I saw only the words "rectangular shaped" and
thought that was describing the shape of the whole fixture.

If they are CF bulbs you are correct of course.

And, if that's the case, it does sound like the problem is either a bad
switch or a "loose disconnection" in the wiring. G

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
The speed of light is 1.8*10^12 furlongs per fortnight.

On Jun 1, 11:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:
Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

Some CFL's are not self ballasted. If yours is not then the
ballast(s) need to be changed. See figure 1 on the attached website.

On Jun 1, 9:34 pm, wrote:
On Jun 1, 11:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:

Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

Some CFL's are not self ballasted. If yours is not then the
ballast(s) need to be changed. See figure 1 on the attached website.

Oopps...here is the web site.

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/he...94/941114.html

On Jun 1, 11:35 pm, wrote:
On Jun 1, 9:34 pm, wrote:

On Jun 1, 11:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:

Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

Some CFL's are not self ballasted. If yours is not then the
ballast(s) need to be changed. See figure 1 on the attached website.

Oopps...here is the web site.

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/he...94/941114.html

Thank you all. I'll continue my investigation, although it's been
working fine for 3 days now, but I am sure it won't be long until it
acts up again!

On Jun 1, 11:35 pm, wrote:
On Jun 1, 9:34 pm, wrote:

On Jun 1, 11:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:

Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

Some CFL's are not self ballasted. If yours is not then the
ballast(s) need to be changed. See figure 1 on the attached website.

Oopps...here is the web site.

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/he...94/941114.html

I'm not sure what I am looking at in figure one. My bulbs do look
like the ones in that picture though, although the base is sideways,
not up or down.

On Jun 1, 11:35 pm, wrote:
On Jun 1, 9:34 pm, wrote:

On Jun 1, 11:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:

Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

Some CFL's are not self ballasted. If yours is not then the
ballast(s) need to be changed. See figure 1 on the attached website.

Oopps...here is the web site.

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/he...94/941114.html

Now the light has stopped working again, and this time it was making a
loud buzzing sound from the fixture. I assume this effectively rules
out the wall switch

wrote:

SNIP HAPPENS


Oopps...here is the web site.

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/he...94/941114.html


Nice reference. Thank you, that went into my bookmarks.

Jeffy3 wrote:
On Jun 1, 11:35 pm, wrote:
On Jun 1, 9:34 pm, wrote:

On Jun 1, 11:30 am, Jeffy3 wrote:
Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?
Some CFL's are not self ballasted. If yours is not then the
ballast(s) need to be changed. See figure 1 on the attached website.
Oopps...here is the web site.

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/he...94/941114.html

Now the light has stopped working again, and this time it was making a
loud buzzing sound from the fixture. I assume this effectively rules
out the wall switch


You should still check the connections and the switch. If the
connections were poor (high resistance), you could have too low a
voltage at the fixture. That might explain the intermittent nature of
the lamp.

On Fri, 01 Jun 2007 16:17:44 -0400, Jeff Wisnia
wrote:

Ken wrote:
Jeff Wisnia wrote:

Jeffy3 wrote:

Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?



Make sure the metal body of the fixture itself is grounded. Lack of
grounding there can cause hard starting.

If it is grounded, and you can test for and find line voltage at the
power leads coming into the fixture when the switch is on, then change
out the ballast.


Don't compact fluorescent bulbs contain their own ballast??


There isn't much more that can go wrong, bulb sockets usually don't
fail unless they're abused by someone forcing a bulb into place.

HTH,

Jeff


Guilty as charged....I saw only the words "rectangular shaped" and
thought that was describing the shape of the whole fixture.

Me too. He should have said cf if they are cf. You're not guilty.

If they are CF bulbs you are correct of course.

And, if that's the case, it does sound like the problem is either a bad
switch or a "loose disconnection" in the wiring. G

Jeff

On Fri, 01 Jun 2007 16:17:44 -0400, Jeff Wisnia
wrote:


Guilty as charged....I saw only the words "rectangular shaped" and
thought that was describing the shape of the whole fixture.

If they are CF bulbs you are correct of course

Never mind. He did say cf, in full words.

In article ,
Ken wrote:
Jeff Wisnia wrote:
Jeffy3 wrote:
Our kitchen ceiling fixture is driving us crazy. Its the kind that
uses two compact fluorescent bulbs (rectangular shaped). It has
worked fine for a few years but recently has been really hit or miss
as to whether it fires on or not. It wouldn't come on for two days
(we don't leave the switch in the on position, though, just keep
trying it) and then suddenly this morning it turned right on foor us,
then later it wouldn't turn on again. How do you troubleshoot these
things? I put a new bulb in last night but it didn't work. I checked
the wiring on the fixture and the switch and everything is connected.
If it is part of the fixture itself, is it fixable or not worth it?

Make sure the metal body of the fixture itself is grounded. Lack of
grounding there can cause hard starting.

If it is grounded, and you can test for and find line voltage at the
power leads coming into the fixture when the switch is on, then change
out the ballast.

Don't compact fluorescent bulbs contain their own ballast??

Are the bulbs screw base or pin base? Most pin-base ones, and all
pin-base ones that I have seen, lack ballasts and require external
ballasts.

- Don Klipstein )

In . com, Jeffy3 wrote:

Now the light has stopped working again, and this time it was making a
loud buzzing sound from the fixture. I assume this effectively rules
out the wall switch

Most likely a bad ballast, a short in the fixture, maybe a broken wire.
Slight chance of a poor connection arcing. If it is the ballast, then I
would replace the ballast immediately or before further use of the fixture
- the ballast could possibly now be a fire hazard.

See if removing the bulb makes the buzzing stop - that indicates a bulb
with a built-in starter (typically 2-pin base) with a shorted starter, and
that can cause the ballast to overheat.

- Don Klipstein )