Can light not working

[MiamiValleyelec]

4 can lights on 1 dimmer switch.

Customer tells me sometimes 1 light will go out. Flip the switch off and back on and everything starts working again. I’ve been here for an hour and can’t get replicate it.

Any ideas?

Lamps are dimmable

 

[MiamiValleyelec]

1 light does it more often than others. I moved lamps around to see if it’s a bad lamp

 

[Dennis Alwon]

There is a thermal protector in the fixture that is going off. There may be a higher wattage bulb or there may be insulation over the can with a non ic can

 

[MiamiValleyelec]

There is a thermal protector in the fixture that is going off. There may be a higher wattage bulb or there may be insulation over the can with a non ic can

It’s a 13 watt led light bulb. The light bulb was pretty hot but the light was still working. If the light stops working then the switch is flipped right away would there thermal protector have time to cool down enough to rest?

 

[roger]

Who's the manufacturer

 

[LarryFine]

Who's the manufacturer

No, Who's on first!

 

[hbiss]

It’s a 13 watt led light bulb. The light bulb was pretty hot but the light was still working.

Really?? Never seen a LED bulb get hot. Those thermal protectors were from the incandescent bulb days which did get hot. No way an LED is going to trip one. Then of course it could be intermittent. If it is, just remove it and splice the wires together (not the neutral!) so the bulb lights. Put a sticker on the fixture that says "LED lamps ONLY".

-Hal

 

[MiamiValleyelec]

Who's the manufacturer

Of the can or the light bulb? Not sure on either. I’ll look next time I’m there.

 

[MiamiValleyelec]

Really?? Never seen a LED bulb get hot. Those thermal protectors were from the incandescent bulb days which did get hot. No way an LED is going to trip one. Then of course it could be intermittent. If it is, just remove it and splice the wires together (not the neutral!) so the bulb lights. Put a sticker on the fixture that says "LED lamps ONLY".

-Hal

I was surprised by how hot the bulb was too. Maybe I’ll get a different light bulb and see if it heats up too.

 

[ptonsparky]

The LED lamps get hot, but shouldn’t be causing an issue with thermals. Sometimes those lamps just fail.

 

[ActionDave]

If there is a "trim" adjustment on the dimmer, sometimes those need messing with on led lamps.

 

[MiamiValleyelec]

The LED lamps get hot, but shouldn’t be causing an issue with thermals. Sometimes those lamps just fail.

That was one of my thoughts

 

[MiamiValleyelec]

If there is a "trim" adjustment on the dimmer, sometimes those need messing with on led lamps.

The adjustment was turned all the way up. I don’t think it’s a switch issue because all the lights don’t go out at the same time. One will go out then when the switch is turned off then back on it comes on. I don’t think it’s a thermal protector issue because there isn’t enough time for it to cool down before it will work .

 

[roger]

Of the can or the light bulb? Not sure on either. I’ll look next time I’m there.

The lamp. I have known of Utilitech (Lowes) causing problems throughout a house, after they were changed to a well known brand there were no more problems.

 

[LarryFine]

I'm thinking LED/dimmer incompatibility. I'd try a standard switch first to see if the issue remains.

Most LED manufacturers have a list of compatible dimmer models.

 

[kwired]

The LED lamps get hot, but shouldn’t be causing an issue with thermals. Sometimes those lamps just fail.

Yes. Some can be almost too hot to want to touch. They still don't give off near the heat an incandescent with similar light output gets though.

Some those incandescent replacement lamps are not designed for use in enclosed fixtures, heat build up gets to them though it is not enough heat to be much of a fire hazard, especially if located in a luminaire designed for incandescent lamps.

 

[ramsy]

Really?? Never seen a LED bulb get hot.

Can lights require bulbs listed for use in totally enclosed fixtures, which accumulate enough LED electronics heat over time to burn fingers.

Cheep LED bulbs will eventually self destruct, if not accumulating enough heat for thermal sensors.

 

[brycenesbitt]

It’s a 13 watt led light bulb. The light bulb was pretty hot but the light was still working. If the light stops working then the switch is flipped right away would there thermal protector have time to cool down enough to rest?

I've had a ton of bulbs do that, and it's seemly random though temperature related.
The cheap LED bulbs are going the way of cheap CFLs -- price competition leading to disposable product.
It takes careful attention to layout, heat and capacitors for LEDs to last, and there's no regulatory or market pressure for that in the commodity LED bulb market.

I suggest replacing all the bulbs, or half the bulbs, and go from there. Cree maintains quality.

 

[LarryFine]

Again, a switch would immediately point to either dimmer incompatibility or the bulbs themselves.