home Fix label D.I.Y label_important Lighting

12v halogen downlighters intermittently not lighting but bulb ok?

In my 3 year old flat I'm having real problems with the 12v downlighters throughout the flat. 3 specific bulbs (all in different rooms) are giving me problems, and I know the bulbs are fine - they work in other fittings. One light will not now work at all. The other 2 work fine for a while then will slowly flicker on/off sometimes and eventually go off alltogether. If I poke a pencil into the ceiling void and push the wires/transformer around (mainly the transformer) I can sometimes get them to work again.....for a while! It's driving me nuts. Can anyone please help? I'm worried that someone will need to make big holes in my ceiling to troubleshoot/fix these.

sherlocklh, November 2008

home Fix label D.I.Y label_important Lightingdone

Assuming all else is well then the problem is with the ceramic connector. The heat resisting low voltage cable that goes into the ceramic connector sometimes makes a poor contact, and the banned wiggling the wires works and then fails because the connection is temporarily made and then breaks. New LV leads are available but for saftey's sake don't bodge, buy new downlighters.

Boris, January 2009

Please do not do this

If you start 'wriggling' wires around you could electrocute yourself

1) turn off electricity to the lights and then test the connections to the transformers and lights.
2) with the transformers out of the hole in the ceiling turn on the electricity and see if the same lights go out after a while - if so then the transformer is damaged and needs to be replaced. If not turn off electricity and replace everything in the whole and test again, if the light goes out again then the transformer is overheating and needs replaced

NEVER NEVER NEVER wriggle with live wires

Mr handy Andy, November 2008

Take out the downlighters and gently pull on the wires to bring the transformer through the hole in the ceiling.

Switch on and wriggle the connections - you will discover where the bad connections are - take any specialist connectors to a decent lighting store (the sort that sell to the trade) and they will sell you what you need.

Peccavi, November 2008