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Why are my house lights flickering?

Why my house lights flicker

December 8, 2019 Electrical Safety Comments (1)

Why are my house lights flickering?

A lot of times our lights flicker and we wonder why our lights are flickering?

Flickering of lights in your house can be very unique event and might not repeat at all. Each time the lights are flickering it can be dangerous too. If the light flickering has become a routine in your house, it is advisable to investigate so that any bigger electrical issue be diagnosed and rectified.

Remember, the danger associated with the flickering lights is usually hidden behind a drywall and comes out as a much bigger threat.

There are certainly some questions that we must ask to evaluate the danger involved.

How many time the lights are flickering?

The very first detail to check is that how many times the lights are flickering in a day? Is it many times? Is it once or even less than that? Is it so random that you are unable to note when the lights flickered last time? Has it just started and repeats quite often? Did you observe that the light bulbs have started burning out very quickly?

How long the lights continue to flicker?

Once you see that your house lights are flickering, note how long do they continue to flicker? Is it instantaneous and then it stops! Or do the lights continue flickering until you touch something such as a wire, a bulb, a socket, an extension, a switch etc.

How many bulbs are flickering?

It is very important to note that how many bulbs are flickering once you observe that your lights flicker. Is it only one bulb in a group of 3 or 4? Or, are all the bulbs in a group are flickering? Or, is light flickering happening on an entire floor or level of the house? Also important to note is whether the flickering is happening always in a same light fixture?

What types of bulbs are you using?

Whenever you see your lights flicker, note down what types of bulbs you are using? You might be using incandescent, fluorescent, CFL or LED bulbs. Note down if it is always the same type of bulbs that are flickering. Don’t assume that you have same type of bulbs in the entire house. Usually if you go through details, you will find that kitchen, or outside or laundry room might have different light bulbs as compared to the rest of the house.

Are the lights flicker only when you power on some appliances?

If your light are flickering only at the time when your major power appliance(s) such as AC or a electrical stove are turned on, it is better to verify voltage and other components of circuit. Give us a call and we will check it for you.

Simple reasons why your lights flicker

The simplest reason is that the bulb is loose in the holder or socket.

The bulbs that are in simple fixtures are easy to check and tighten but the bulbs that are in recessed fittings and behind sealed covers are hard to access. If you are trying yourself, ensure that your switched is turned off and you are following required safety steps. Don’t touch any conducting part of the bulb. Just tighten if you can reach safely to the bulb. After tightening, try switching on the light and if it still flickers, don’t over-tight.

Call our professional electrician and we will check it for you as your issue must be somewhere else.

Another normal reason is associated with the florescent (tube) lamps. These lamps usually flicker during the first 30 seconds of startup. But if they keep flickering as long as they are on, call us.

Decorative lights normally flicker

This is just a mention so that it is not slipping out of memory. Most decorative lights are designed to flicker. If you know your decorative lights are not supposed to flicker but they do, give us a call.

Some faulty switches, plugs, wires, sockets, power extensions, breakers, loose wires, broken solder joint etc. are very simple and easily fixable reasons of light flickering.

When these issues are diagnosed and fixed in-time, it is almost certain that we are avoiding a major future issue.

Don’t delay, if your lights flicker give us a call at 780-476-1413 any time! Our professional electrician is available to help 24/7!

1 thought on “Why are my house lights flickering?”

Hannah J Parrish says:

December 28, 2020 at 2:22 am

Most common issue with this barring start up loads, or dirty power consuming devices is loose conductors. Have a qualified electrician check and reset all of the bus and breaker connections in your panel, and then again at the meter, especially if you have aluminum conductors

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