Light Bulbs

[cecil39]

we have all low energy bulbs in our house, is it normal that when one 'goes' that it puts all the other lights out in the house as well? this is the first time i've had this happen and not sure if something else is wrong.

[Canary42]

Not in my experience, and have several of the allegedly "long life" low energy one blow.

[Mattk]

By 'puts all the other lights' do you mean it fuses them?

[leahbee]

Must be something else. I have had one of these bulbs fail and it did'nt affect the others.

[DTCwordfan]

welcome to here, leahbee......

no something more is wrong..........

[tonyav]

I think that you mean that it trips the switch at the consumer unit, if so then yes that is quite normal when a bulb blows.

[FredPuli43]

Seems to be. The circuits here have the old fashioned fuse-wire protection. The bulbs are now all low energy. Sure enough, one blew just now and blew the fuse in the lighting circuit for it. That is not the first time that has happened. The only time that I can recall the fuse blowing on the circuit before, when we had mostly the older bulbs, was when a friend tried to put a small bayonet cap bulb into a standard bayonet cap socket !

If it's not coincidence, I wonder whether any fuse in the low energy bulb itself is the fault.

[Prudie]

I don't have any low energy bulbs in my ceiling lighting because they're crap but if a bulb does blow (old fashioned type I mean) it still trips out all of that circuit, think that's normal.

[tonyav]

Yes it is normal, Prudie.

[leahbee]

DCTwordfan- Thank you very much for the welcome, you've made my day.

[tonyav]

Hey, leahbee has DT says welcome to the site, come and join in over on Chatterbank.

[cecil39]

thanks, you have put my mind at ease, I could imagine something sizzling away in the loft, but yes it did blow the 'trip' .

[tonyav]

Don't worry cecil, it is normal honestly.

[EDDIE51]

Happens to us as well, every time a bulb blows ( standard or low energy) it trips the consumer unit. I just click the switch back on again.

[Old_Geezer]

Minor issues tripping the main fuse or RCD seems to be a common enough complaint. I'd not say it was 'normal' though, in the sense that one ought to expect it. Either there is something the experts can do something about, or the industry has yet to find a solution to the defect. Folk really ought not have to put up with a totally dark house for the sake of a single bulb blowing.

[EDDIE51]

Old geezer It only trips the circuit the lamp is on , the rest of them keep running.

[tonyav]

Eddie is right, if its a down stairs bulb that blows then it is the down stairs ring that trips and vice versa with the upstairs ring.

[Prudie]

and all you have to do is flip the switch back up again anyway.

[BRIGHT SPARK]

OG...yes the manufacturers can install a 500Ma fuse link into the fitting..some do but its not a requirement in all lamps.The alternative is to install a 'c' type mcb in the board ...(thats if the earth fault loop values allow .)

[Old_Geezer]

Well ok Eddie, but in fairness if your floor is in the dark while you try to fix the problem the other floor being lit isn't really going lift your spirits much.

Nice to know, Spark, that it can be sorted. One might have thought that would be the usual practice.

[EDDIE51]

We have 5 circuits
Lights , Sockets upstairs , sockets downstairs, oven , Heating unit.
If a light blows the circuit we can still see by a table lamp plugged into a socket.