My light fixture's bulbs burn out quickly. I have to frequently replace the lightbulbs in our light fixture/fan. It has a bulb in the center and then four bulbs around it that are candle-shaped bulbs. The candle-shaped bulbs burn out extremely quickly, and I'm wondering if this is typical for those fans/lights or if there is something wrong. If something's wrong, is it more likely the fixture or is it the wiring that leads to the fixture? Thank for any help you can give me.
By Tina Siegl
I don't know about the bulbs you use, but I use regular light bulbs in my ceiling fan because I want bulbs that put out enough light to see with. I don't care what they look like, it is me that lives with them. I use the frosted bulbs and they don't look that bad.
The vibrations from the fan will cause the delicate filament in the light bulbs to break more quickly. You can ask at your home supply store or search on line for "Heavy Duty" bulbs- thy actually are different and will stand up to vibration better.
There are candle/flame shaped bulbs specifically for ceiling fans and some for wall light fixtures. Make sure you are using the right kind; hopefully, they'll last longer.
I had one in my kitchen that the bulbs kept blowing out. I had my husband check it to see why and there was a wire shorting out, which could have been dangerous.
I've had that problem before too. There are special 'ceiling fan bulbs' that can handle the movement. You can find them at hardware stores but I've even found them at my grocery market and pharmacy on occasion.
Another thing to do is check and see if the screws on the fan blades have loosened because even a little bit can cause the blades to become 'wobbly' and creating erratic movement. Do not tighten so tight that you might strip the screws! It's a really easy fix to tighten the blades but I would still use ceiling fan bulbs even after tightening the screws.
Are the bulbs the correct wattage for the fan?
Because of Ceiling fan vibration you must use bulbs intended for that use.If your ceiling fan wobbles during operation,it needs to be re-balanced.Preferably by an Electrician. Another possibility is the "flame" bulb sockets might be mis-wired.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I have one light that keeps blowing out incandescent bulbs. If I replace it with a CFL what will happen? I know the light probably needs a little attention from an electrician or to be completely replaced. The line it's on is maybe a little overloaded. They seem to have wired half the house to this one breaker. Thanks for your advice!
By emgoodrich
I think you've answered your own question about perhaps having a professional look at the problem. Personally, I would rather pay an electrician to remedy the overall problem than taking a chance of spending oodles of money for replacing expensive CFL bulbs over and over again. The fact the incandescents burn out so often is also going to happen with a CFL.
Also, CFL's contain mercury and must be disposed of at specific recycle centers because mercury is highly poisonous to all living beings and it contaminates air, soil and waterways if not disposed of properly for Lord only knows how long :-(
