plastic light fittings / bulb holders Ask questions and find answers to many subjects relating to electrics and electrical work

[bradford rose]

I'm a housing trust tenant and since my house was modernised and rewired 10 years ago the light fittings/bulb holders keep burning and crumbling away whenever a bulb blows and needs changing. An Electrician that came out to me recently said its because i should only use 40 watt bulbs (i use 100 watt) When I said it never used to happen before rewiring and in those days i used 150 watt bulbs, he said thats because they used metal fittings and they no longer manufacture them, only plastic ones. Can anyone tell me if this is true? I think its because the housing trust only buy cheap rubbish materials.

[kbrownie]

bradford rose,
Sounds like an over heating problem.
Is it at every lighting point or just one particular one?
You need to have the terminal connection checked.
Check the fuse rating of the circuit and the cable size.
Every lamp holder should be designed to carry a maximum of 100watts but no more.
The accessories (light fitting etc..) should be to an approved standard.
I don't quite get what your electrician is getting at regarding plastic and metal fitting. (other than the metal ones won't melt but still get hot)
KB
PS up the bantams!

[sparx]

hi, I'm with you on this one !

[collectors]

Hi, the electrician maybe right if the lamp holder is in an enclosed fitting. You haven’t mentioned what type of light it was.