Flickering lights are one of the most common electrical problems you can face in your home, and they can have many different causes. These causes can range from something very simple to a serious electrical fault, so it’s important to know how to act when the issue presents itself.
In this article, you’ll learn how to assess the situation in a few easy steps!
1. Tighten the Bulb
Thankfully, one of the most common causes of a flickering light is simply that the bulb has not been screwed in properly. Turn the light off at the switch and also at the main fuse box or circuit breaker, and then wait a few minutes for the bulb to cool down.
Once it has done, carefully and gently wiggle with bulb to see if it’s loose: if it screws in any further, you’ve likely solved your problem. Switch the light back on to see if the flickering has stopped.
2. Try a New Bulb
If tightening doesn’t fix the issue, try a new bulb. Old bulbs commonly flicker when they’re nearly spent.
If you’re still using traditional incandescent bulbs, now would be a good time to switch to something more efficient; LEDs are a much better option, and you can buy color-changing ones now that sync with your smartphone to create different moods and ambiance.
3. Inspect the Switch and Fixture
If the problem has nothing to do with the bulb, then you’re looking at a more complicated electrical fault. While you shouldn’t take the fitting or light switch apart yourself (this should be tackled by an electrician), you can still have a quick look at the safe exterior to see if anything is obviously broken.
Wiring can degrade and fray over time, causing an intermittent connection between your electrics and the bulb. Regarding the switch, this is something that’s in use every day: wear and tear will happen, and with the switch being made up of many small components, it’s easy for things to get broken.
4. Calling in an Electrician
If you find anything to be obviously broken or degraded, or need to get to the bottom of what may be a bigger electrical fault, then it’s time to call a qualified electrician to come and take a look.
They’re trained to handle the electrics safely and get to the root cause of the issue: they’ll likely take the light switch apart and remove the light fitting itself to see if there are any obvious faults, and if there are, they’ll replace the necessary parts so that you’re back up and running.
If more than one light in your home is flickering, they’ll need to take a wider look at the electrical infrastructure in the house, but they’ll usually always be able to find the source of the problem.
Wrapping Up
Fixing a flickering light is usually a straightforward problem, and even if it’s a little more complex, an electrician should be able to fix things in no time. Just remember, electricity can easily kill, so don’t try anything yourself other than changing the bulb.
