Electrical Help Needed

[pastorables]

The electrical problem seems to be in the switch to our garage lights, but the problem could be in the lights themselves? The switch will only activate the two florescent lights about 10% of the time. The rest of the time the lights will either not come on, come on dimly, come on one at a time, etc... The problem seems to be a faulty switch, but I'm no electrician. Any help?

pa

[Alan]

I'd suspect the lights myself. Especially when the lights sometimes come on one at a time, if it was the switch either they would come on or they wouldn't come on at all, not one then the other. If the lights have replaceable starters, that is probably the culprit.

[macgulley]

Unless they're really old, I don't think they'll have starters (although Mississippi is its own little world ) but I suspect you have a problem with the ballast. Often the fixtures in garages are so inexpensive it pays to replace the whole fixture rather than fool around with the ballast. This might be a good time to upgrade to more energy efficient lights also.

[Pianoman]

I'd agree with replacing the fixtures as well. More than likely - you'll notice the problem getting even worse as colder weather begins moving in.

You could replace the ballasts - but quite often you can buy
a new fixture for the cost of a ballast (unless you've got
a really fancy fixture).

Sometimes it can be a bad bulb (you'll typically notice black
areas on the ends of them) - but if it's both fixtures - sounds
like that's probably not the case.

[scooter]

Sometimes it can be a bad bulb (you'll typically notice black
areas on the ends of them) - but if it's both fixtures - sounds
like that's probably not the case.

Response: It is quite the common problem with those types of bulbs.

[MacUser]

It's the ballasts. But like stated earlier.. it's probably cheaper to go and get whole new lights as that will only costs $20.00 at Home Depot/ Lowes and the ballast are $18.00 replacement.

Grab an electrical book, electrical nuts, screw driver and ladder. Assemble on the floor and install. Save the cash.. it's super easy.

Oh yea. Turn the switch off. Get Dena to hold a bright light with an extension cord from another room.

[TW]

It's the ballasts. But like stated earlier.. it's probably cheaper to go and get whole new lights as that will only costs $20.00 at Home Depot/ Lowes and the ballast are $18.00 replacement.

Grab an electrical book, electrical nuts, screw driver and ladder. Assemble on the floor and install. Save the cash.. it's super easy.

Oh yea. Turn the switch off. Get Dena to hold a bright light with an extension cord from another room.

Better yet, turn the circuit breaker off, or pull the fuse (whichever you have) and kill the electric to that entire circuit. Electricity is not very forgiving.


TW

[macgulley]

It's the ballasts. But like stated earlier.. it's probably cheaper to go and get whole new lights as that will only costs $20.00 at Home Depot/ Lowes and the ballast are $18.00 replacement.

Grab an electrical book, electrical nuts, screw driver and ladder. Assemble on the floor and install. Save the cash.. it's super easy.

Oh yea. Turn the switch off. Get Dena to hold a bright light with an extension cord from another room.

Actually, you need to find the breaker and turn it off. Usually the power is fed to the fixture, then a hot wire goes to the switch and back. Turning off the switch will not disconnect the power to the fixture.
Pick up something like this to make sure the power is off before you start.
http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100081850&N=10000003+90401&marketID=401&locStoreNum=8125

[macgulley]

TW beat me to the post.

[MacUser]

Unless your carport is wired with a constant hot ( for ceiling fans motion lights etc ).. it will turn it off. But I will digress that a voltmeter is best route to take. I even change some with it HOT.. just do one wire at a time..

Anyway.. a 110 shock will just wake you up.. hehe. Ask me how I know.

Don't waste the money on a handyman. It's a snap.

[Full Quiver]

Hey Pastor Ables, If you do not have a tester you can pull the switch out of the wall, loosen one of the wires from the back of the switch, and then touch it to the other wire. The switch is simply breaking the circuit. Your prob is probably not here but you may find a loose wire of faulty switch. If you have a tester just test between the two contacts/screws for voltage with the switch in the on position.

When ballasts go bad they get very hot and sometimes they leak a black, tar like substance. These lights are usually pretty cheap and therefore they don't last as long as they should. Some do have a small starter built in that powers the transformer or boosts it but probably this is not the type you have in your garage. These are very cheap and troublesome fixtures. Normally you'll find a light like this in a closet or above a kitchen sink. It's a $10 light fixture and the ballast cost more than a new one.

What you probably have is a 2 lamp fixture with a 120 volt ballast that is very easy to change. The ballast will probably run you about $12-20 and you will need a few orange wirenuts. If the switch is off then the power to the fixtures is off. Cut the wires close to the ballast, unscrew the ballast, replace, and match the colors.

Of course this is if the lights are indeed bad. It could just be the lamps, most commonly called bulbs (bulbs are planted and flowers come forth). Stay away from the lamps with green ends. They are supposed to be "environmentally friendly" and more efficient but they actually require more energy to fire. Been there done that!

Without a tester you can not properly diagnose this problem if it is beyond the switch. You can replace the lamps and if that doesn't work then replace the fixtures. If I were going to replace the fixtures with the same type of light then I would go for a sealed lens fixture being that they are located in the garage and are subject to insects, dampness, etc. These cost more but last a long time. Everything about them is better as far as ballasts, tombstones (the parts the lamps attach to), and the fact that they are dust proof/water-tight or sealed.

You could just pull the lights out and replace with a simple "A-type" fixture. The problem with this is that the electrician that wired the original fixtures probably did not install junction boxes but just left a wire for the fixture to be mounted around. If you opt to go with normal residential fixtures then you would have to cut junction boxes into the ceiling. This isn't hard but a bit more work. Also you would probably have some holes to patch or spackel where the original lights were mounted to the sheetrock. Of course I am assuming that there is a sheetrock ceiling in the garage.

Hope this helps some.
BTW, 110-120 volts usually just wakes one up but can be fatal if you are grounded well. The three things that determine the severity of electrical shock are voltage, ground, and the path the current moves through your body. If the voltage enters one hand and crosses your body to the other hand which is grounded (usually) then the current crosses your heart and can be fatal and most certainly will be remembered. Been there, done that, too many times! It happens when you do this stuff day in and day out for 14 years.

[macgulley]

Unless your carport is wired with a constant hot ( for ceiling fans motion lights etc ).. it will turn it off. But I will digress that a voltmeter is best route to take. I even change some with it HOT.. just do one wire at a time..

Anyway.. a 110 shock will just wake you up.. hehe. Ask me how I know.

Don't waste the money on a handyman. It's a snap.

I usually work hot, also but I wouldn't recommend it to someone who is not accustomed to working with electricity. If you touch a hot wire while you are grounded, you will have a very bad day and your widow may want to sue whoever gave you that advice. Play it safe and turn off the breaker, then check to make sure the power is off before making any repairs.

[turbotim]

Unless they're really old, I don't think they'll have starters (although Mississippi is its own little world ) .

That is funny since he lives in Alabama...

[macgulley]

Unless they're really old, I don't think they'll have starters (although Mississippi is its own little world ) .

That is funny since he lives in Alabama...

Just barely! I hope you know I'm just pickin' on ya pa.

[MacUser]

Unless your carport is wired with a constant hot ( for ceiling fans motion lights etc ).. it will turn it off. But I will digress that a voltmeter is best route to take. I even change some with it HOT.. just do one wire at a time..

Anyway.. a 110 shock will just wake you up.. hehe. Ask me how I know.

Don't waste the money on a handyman. It's a snap.

I usually work hot, also but I wouldn't recommend it to someone who is not accustomed to working with electricity. If you touch a hot wire while you are grounded, you will have a very bad day and your widow may want to sue whoever gave you that advice. Play it safe and turn off the breaker, then check to make sure the power is off before making any repairs.

I HAVE had some accidental jolts while putting some receptacle in hot. It does hit you a BIT harder while grounded. Just don't have any sharp objects in your hands because they can move all by themselves.. ask me how I know..