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Light switch - loud pop and charring
jpsartre
Posts: 4,093 Forumite
The other day, our light switch made a loud pop and the mains fuse switched off. There's some charring to the wall below the switch. The light is still working in the room. Is it a blown fuse inside the switch or is it another problem? Is it something that needs to be addressed? Thanks!
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jpsartre said:The other day, our light switch made a loud pop and the mains fuse switched off. There's some charring to the wall below the switch. The light is still working in the room. Is it a blown fuse inside the switch or is it another problem? Is it something that needs to be addressed? Thanks!What kind of switch is it? The symptoms sound like an electronic component such as a capacitor failing, but you'd only have one of those in an electronic switch, rather than a traditional on/off switch.Also, can you post a picture of the "mains fuse" which switched off. Knowing the type will help diagnose the fault.0
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...and is the switch in question the only switch for that light? Or are there two switches for the one light?0
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Thanks for your help! It's a bog-standard light switch which operates a ceiling lamp. There are no other switches for the lamp. It was just the fuse for the affected room that had switched off. I switched it back on and the light switch was still working. I've added a photo of the switch and the fuse box.
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There won't be a fuse in the switch, it could just be a loose wire or failed contact in the switch itself. Either way it needs checking, and the switch may need replacing. Simple job for someone with a bit of electrical knowledge and little more than a screwdriver. Don't attempt it yourself unless you are confident enough to safely turn the power off and work with mains electrics.
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Thanks, very helpful.
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You should not leave that.No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?2
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Thanks, will call an electrician on Monday.
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Looks like there's been an Earth fault, probably a phase conductor touching the metallic plate. Not good.1
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It looks like the fault has "blown clear". Something shorted out, with sufficient energy to blow a hole in whatever wire caused the fault. It may well have been the earth wire, in which case it's now unsafe, even if it's wtill working.
If it sticks, force it.
If it breaks, well it wasn't working right anyway.1 -
Which 'mains fuse' switched off? Maybe circle on the pic.Living the dream in the Austrian Alps.0
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