Why do my bathroom light switches keep failing?

[sammy7boy]

Sorry people keep replying so quickly that i miss the current one (no pun intended) before i've finished typing, but Sintra that sounds excellent. I'll try a 20A switch and see what happens.

 

[Guest77]

This may well be adequate, you will have to shorten the cabling though as mentioned

Crabtree 1-Gang 1-Way 16A White Ceiling Pull Switch | Departments | DIY at B&Q

 

[Richard Burns]

I would agree that anything compressing the physical switch mechanism may cause problems.
Another one is that most of them do not like being pulled at an angle so if the switch is located in a position such that you have to pull the cord sideways rather than straight down this can cause the mechanism to stick, it seems like a slight change but I have seen it a few times.
It may also be worth applying some (non conductive) lubricant to the switch to allow the mechanism to move more freely.

 

[Paul.M]

What an interesting thread and a very good "DIYer".


It may seem daft, it may seem silly and it might not look right but...... Change it for a 40A or 50A shower pull cord without the neon light. That will handle anything your LED lights have to throw at it! Use an Appleby dryline box/plaster board recessed back box with a patress support for the ceiling and see how that works out?

About £15 in parts and an hour to fit. Bend over/double over the solid strand of wire so each has a good contact with the terminations in both the supply and load side of the switch. May also be worth while checking the terminations of each light fitting that may be the cause of the fault.

(this is me telling the teacher to suck eggs but...) If you have a poor termination on the switch Live to the lights from the switch, this may cause a higher current for the switch itself. Ok they are rated @ 6A and the MCB is rated the same? I bet the switch contacts are not as well made as the MCB's??? Check the terminations of each light fitting, install another bog standard pull cord switch and see how you go.

I'll be bold and say:- If this is not a faulty termination at the switch or a light fitting, I'll donate £5 to whichever registered UK charity of your choice Sir! If I'm wrong photographic evidence is required. A Yorkshireman does not part with cash easily LOL.

 

[Guest77]

What an interesting thread and a very good "DIYer".


It may seem daft, it may seem silly and it might not look right but...... Change it for a 40A or 50A shower pull cord without the neon light. That will handle anything your LED lights have to throw at it! Use an Appleby dryline box/plaster board recessed back box with a patress support for the ceiling and see how that works out?

About £15 in parts and an hour to fit. Bend over/double over the solid strand of wire so each has a good contact with the terminations in both the supply and load side of the switch. May also be worth while checking the terminations of each light fitting that may be the cause of the fault.

(this is me telling the teacher to suck eggs but...) If you have a poor termination on the switch Live to the lights from the switch, this may cause a higher current for the switch itself. Ok they are rated @ 6A and the MCB is rated the same? I bet the switch contacts are not as well made as the MCB's??? Check the terminations of each light fitting, install another bog standard pull cord switch and see how you go.

I'll be bold and say:- If this is not a faulty termination at the switch or a light fitting, I'll donate £5 to whichever registered UK charity of your choice Sir! If I'm wrong photographic evidence is required. A Yorkshireman does not part with cash easily LOL.

Get your money out, it is due to the cables being too long lol

 

[telectrix]

have to concur with mike here. but only on this issue. politics and jointing cables in trunking is still liable to argument.

 

[Paul.M]

Get your money out, it is due to the cables being too long lol

Money where your mouth is .... £5 to charity for the looser to cough up. Are you up for it Mike?

Long wires for you. Dodgy terminal for me. Have we got a bet?

 

[sammy7boy]

Haha. We may all have to wait a little while for this conundrum to be solved and the bookies to pay out, because the quickest, cheapest, easiest option for me today was to take the switch mechanism back to Screwfix and get them to give me a replacement which i was simply able to connect and screw back into the same casing. It's working fine now, of course. Took the opportunity to sort cables out, so IF long cables were the problem, they shouldn't be now. I did ponder the idea of buying a 45A shower pull cord switch, but i'm not convinced that LED inrush current really is the source of the problem. Firstly, i couldn't find anything that said LED inrush current can be "hundreds" of times greater that the running current, although i can't say i researched it that extensively. But secondly, even if excess inrush current is the cause of the problem, i don't understand how that could possible damage the spring mechanism. Yes, it may fry the contacts after a while, but the contacts looked good as new. I guess the best way to find out could be to switch back to 40W halogen GU10 spotlights for a couple of months and see if the problem stays or goes. For the moment we'll have to watch this space and see what happens...

 

[NDG Elecs]

I have had the same issue with BG pulls a couple of times in last six months. Initially just swapped the first one for same as assumed a dodgy one off switch. After second switch I changed to a Hager instead. No callback as of yet on that one. I realise you have tried different brands but thought I would mention it that's all. Personally not fully getting the long conductors reason. They would have to be bloody crammed in good and proper to push hard enough against the switch mechanism. And this will be 1.5mm cables which are pretty pliable.

 

[Guest77]

I have had the same issue with BG pulls a couple of times in last six months. Initially just swapped the first one for same as assumed a dodgy one off switch. After second switch I changed to a Hager instead. No callback as of yet on that one. I realise you have tried different brands but thought I would mention it that's all. Personally not fully getting the long conductors reason. They would have to be bloody crammed in good and proper to push hard enough against the switch mechanism. And this will be 1.5mm cables which are pretty pliable.

The cables push against the mechanism which makes it fail, very common issues we electricians encouter from day to day.

 

[NDG Elecs]

Never came across this as far as I know, although only be sparking 8 years. Will remember this for future. Still a bit surprised though as the switch mechanism is obviously encased in a hard, near brittle, plastic. Cheers.

 

[Guest77]

Never came across this as far as I know, although only be sparking 8 years. Will remember this for future. Still a bit surprised though as the switch mechanism is obviously encased in a hard, near brittle, plastic. Cheers.

Still a novice then :devilish: seriously the quality of switches these days are poor in relation to years ago and that is dictated to by price and manufacturing in eastern asia, the contacts are flimsy and as Marvo mentioned earlier a higer rated switch than 6 amp like a 20 or at least a 16 amp would aid the life of the unit.

Edit Sintra lol

 

[Paul.M]

BG pull cords aarrhh! Bought a box of ten a couple year back as they were on special offer. Lego bricks are better constructed! 4 out of the 10 broke within 2 months. Time wasted going back changing them etc, never buy them again.

 

[markc123]

Still a novice then :devilish:

We're not all old and grey you know Mike lol :wink5::leaving:

 

[NDG Elecs]

Still a novice then :devilish: seriously the quality of switches these days are poor in relation to years ago and that is dictated to by price and manufacturing in eastern asia, the contacts are flimsy and as Marvo mentioned earlier a higer rated switch than 6 amp like a 20 or at least a 16 amp would aid the life of the unit.

Edit Sintra lol

The more I learn about this trade/profession, the more I realise I know very little! Manufacturing is pish poor these days; half of stuff made should not get through quality control IMO.