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Flickering lights on one circuit James 04-11-2008
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Posted by James on April 11, 2008, 3:27 pm
In my study, my lamps will flicker every few minutes or so. I assume that
I have some defect in the wiring on this circuit, or that there is a problem
with my circuit breaker connection, or the breaker itself.

So, today I went to the breaker box and made sure that the wire connecting
to the breaker were screwed down as tight as possible. I was able to turn
the screw a full 1/2 turn, so I thought this might have cured the problem.
But, it didn't.

This is a 15 amp, 120 volt circuit, and breaker. Is it very likely that
the breaker itself is bad, or may I have a wiring problem somewhere in this
circuit ? As far as I know, it provides power to just my one room study.

I can tell that when I turn on a heavy-current device such as my fax
machine, these lights will flicker when the machine operates. So, the
flicker can be triggered with a heavy load. I have never noticed this
before. But be aware that I get frequent flickering even when there is no
extra heavy load.

The house is 30 years old, and most likely, it is the original breaker.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank you.


James



Posted by HeyBub on April 11, 2008, 3:45 pm
James wrote:
> In my study, my lamps will flicker every few minutes or so. I
> assume that I have some defect in the wiring on this circuit, or that
> there is a problem with my circuit breaker connection, or the breaker
> itself.

Probably not the breaker, although you could test that by moving the wire
from the current breaker to an adjacent one (purists will tell you to
exchange the wires).

Next step is to check the connections at the outlet.

If the wires are back-stabbed, un-stab them and attach the wires to the
outlet's screws.



Posted by on April 13, 2008, 9:00 am
> James wrote:
> > In my study, my lamps will flicker every few minutes or so. I
> > assume that I have some defect in the wiring on this circuit, or that
> > there is a problem with my circuit breaker connection, or the breaker
> > itself.
>
> Probably not the breaker, although you could test that by moving the wire
> from the current breaker to an adjacent one (purists will tell you to
> exchange the wires).
>
> Next step is to check the connections at the outlet.
>
> If the wires are back-stabbed, un-stab them and attach the wires to the
> outlet's screws.

Just a caveat...while the old stab connections are notorious for poor
connections...the new "commercial grade" designs are excellent (with
copper wire).
(Hubbell, Leviton, P&S)

Posted by RBM on April 11, 2008, 4:43 pm

> In my study, my lamps will flicker every few minutes or so. I assume
> that
> I have some defect in the wiring on this circuit, or that there is a
> problem
> with my circuit breaker connection, or the breaker itself.
>
> So, today I went to the breaker box and made sure that the wire
> connecting
> to the breaker were screwed down as tight as possible. I was able to turn
> the screw a full 1/2 turn, so I thought this might have cured the
> problem.
> But, it didn't.
>
> This is a 15 amp, 120 volt circuit, and breaker. Is it very likely
> that
> the breaker itself is bad, or may I have a wiring problem somewhere in
> this
> circuit ? As far as I know, it provides power to just my one room study.
>
> I can tell that when I turn on a heavy-current device such as my fax
> machine, these lights will flicker when the machine operates. So, the
> flicker can be triggered with a heavy load. I have never noticed this
> before. But be aware that I get frequent flickering even when there is
> no
> extra heavy load.
>
> The house is 30 years old, and most likely, it is the original breaker.
>
> Any advice would be appreciated.
>
> Thank you.
>
>
> James

First thing you want to do is identify everything on that circuit. If
outlets other than the lights in that room don't cause flicker, the problem
isn't at the panel. If the lights are ceiling lights, and controlled by a
switch or dimmer, I'd check there. You need to give more info about the
lights, such as the type. If they're low voltage and controlled by a dimmer,
that could be an issue as well
>
>



Posted by Matt W. Barrow on April 11, 2008, 5:10 pm
>

>
> First thing you want to do is identify everything on that circuit. If
> outlets other than the lights in that room don't cause flicker, the
> problem isn't at the panel. If the lights are ceiling lights, and
> controlled by a switch or dimmer, I'd check there. You need to give more
> info about the lights, such as the type. If they're low voltage and
> controlled by a dimmer, that could be an issue as well

And, are they other lights in the house doing likewise? It might be that
it's only noticeable in that room. For example, my den shares a wall with
the kitchen and when the refrigerator kicks in there's a barely noticeable
dimming of the overhead light for about one second.

JAT.



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