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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?


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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

Gypsy Moth wrote:
When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?


Hi,
No. Is it luke warm or hot to touch? Maybe wires loose on the switch or
it's too old, worn out. Take a look.
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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

On Wed, 10 Oct 2007 20:16:23 -0500, "Gypsy Moth"
wrote:

When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?


If you have a dimmer switch, possible.


rj
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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

On Oct 10, 9:16 pm, "Gypsy Moth" wrote:
When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?


Potential fire hazard, leave it off until you ascertain the cause.

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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

Perfectly normal ONLY if it's a dimmer. The higher the wattage, the hotter
the dimmer. If it's a metal switch plate it'll be more noticeable than with
a plastic plate


"Gypsy Moth" wrote in message
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When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have
noticed that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?





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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

On Oct 10, 8:16 pm, "Gypsy Moth" wrote:
When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?


It sounds like your dimmer is running hot, you can cheaply increase
the wattage rating of a dimmer just by replacing the plastic wall
plate with an aluminum wall plate, that will act as a good heat sink,
(but still doesn't mean you should exceed the max rating of the
dimmer). Plastic wall plates really stress dimmers that are running
above 70 percent of their rating. Or put a 1000watt dimmer on a 3
bulb fixture and it will run real cool if you're worried, maybe the
builder installed one rated too low for the bulb watts you have.


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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

In article , "Gypsy Moth" wrote:
When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?

By any chance are we talking an aluminum-wired house? This is typical symptomology of an impending failure, aka fire hazard.

Art
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Default Hot cover on wall switch?

On Wed, 10 Oct 2007 20:16:23 -0500, "Gypsy Moth"
wrote:

When I have turned off the kitchen light at the wall switch, I have noticed
that the cover is very hot. Is this normal?


Since you said SWITCH, this is a very dangerous fire hazzard. I'd
disable the breaker for that switch till you find the cause, or work
on it NOW. Switches dont get hot, not even warm, unless there is a
fault. If however it's a dimmer, they normally get warm (not HOT).
What is it?

Either way, open the box and tighten all the screws (with power OFF).
Also look for broken wires and burn marks on the switch. Replace if
necessary. In fact, if it's just a common switch, spend the $2 and
replace it.

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