Is there an electrician in the house?

[Jujo-jo]

Wondered if anyone can tell me what could be the cause of these lights to do this...

The last 50 of the 100 strand of bulbs have blown, everyone of them and one bulb looks like it burst all together.

The first 50 lights still work is it safe to still use this strand of lights?

(From time to time we have lighting issues, I do have my electrician coming in 2 weeks he was just here in December all was good but we'll have him check things out AGAIN...)

 

[Jujo-jo]

Quote

 

You can see a bit better in this photo how these ones are clearly all burnt the last 50 bulbs all look like these ones.

[moonman]

Power surge caused that. Throw them away, you're lucky it didn't start a fire.

Edited February 14, 2020 by moonman

[Jujo-jo]

28 minutes ago, moonman said:

Power surge caused that. Throw them away, you're lucky it didn't start a fire.

Oh boy, ok thank you! Yep they're in the trash now.

Power surges, I know nothing...

Why do they occur and how? Are some places more likely to have surges then other places? If yes what causes this?

 

[+Desertrat56]

36 minutes ago, Jujo-jo said:

Oh boy, ok thank you! Yep they're in the trash now.

Power surges, I know nothing...

Why do they occur and how? Are some places more likely to have surges then other places? If yes what causes this?

 

How old is the wiring where you had them plugged in?  Probably you either don't have grounded wiring there.  Occassionally the power company (if they have old infrastructure) can create a surge after the power has gone off.  That used to happen a lot in the 80's when I used El Paso Electric, but it shouldn't be happening in the U.S. anymore.

[Jujo-jo]

1 hour ago, moonman said:

Power surge caused that. Throw them away, you're lucky it didn't start a fire.

Now thinking about this, why didn't all the 100 light blow during the power surge?

[Jujo-jo]

Just now, Desertrat56 said:

How old is the wiring where you had them plugged in?  Probably you either don't have grounded wiring there.  Occassionally the power company (if they have old infrastructure) can create a surge after the power has gone off.  That used to happen a lot in the 80's when I used El Paso Electric, but it shouldn't be happening in the U.S. anymore.

It is the outlet that our basement washer is plugged into, it has never given us problems in the past. My grandfather was an electrician so when he had problems he'd fix them correctly but after we bought the house a few years later we had all new electrical wiring put in, I'd say maybe about 10/ 12 yrs. ago we also replaced the fuse box in the basement 2 to 3 yrs. ago (and just did the one out in the garage one year ago then they added another one in the garage when we had a heater installed in December that was when we also changed a few fixtures in the basement over to L.E.D and added plugs & lights down there) 

[+Desertrat56]

6 minutes ago, Jujo-jo said:

It is the outlet that our basement washer is plugged into, it has never given us problems in the past. My grandfather was an electrician so when he had problems he'd fix them correctly but after we bought the house a few years later we had all new electrical wiring put in, I'd say maybe about 10/ 12 yrs. ago we also replaced the fuse box in the basement 2 to 3 yrs. ago (and just did the one out in the garage one year ago then they added another one in the garage when we had a heater installed in December that was when we also changed a few fixtures in the basement over to L.E.D and added plugs & lights down there) 

Then I would think it is a short in the light string.  If they are old it is time to replace them anyway.  Now you can get led light strings for a fair price.

[Jujo-jo]

2 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

Then I would think it is a short in the light string.  If they are old it is time to replace them anyway.  Now you can get led light strings for a fair price.

Thank you and for sure! I just put them up in late November they were new maybe defective, who knows this is actually my second strand the first one was only 50, not 100,  they lasted about 3 weeks.

Yes they are nice I have had some and I also have battery operated ones as well. These one I plug in at night and unplug them in the morning.

[+Desertrat56]

1 minute ago, Jujo-jo said:

Thank you and for sure! I just put them up in late November they were new maybe defective, who knows this is actually my second strand the first one was only 50, not 100,  they lasted about 3 weeks.

Yes they are nice I have had some and I also have battery operated ones as well. These one I plug in at night and unplug them in the morning.

Well, if they were new and you had problems with 2 different strings in that same outlet I would have an electrician come check the outlet.

[Jujo-jo]

8 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

Well, if they were new and you had problems with 2 different strings in that same outlet I would have an electrician come check the outlet.

Agreed he'll be here in 2 weeks do you think its safe to use my washer?

[+Desertrat56]

13 minutes ago, Jujo-jo said:

Agreed he'll be here in 2 weeks do you think its safe to use my washer?

I don't know since I am not sure what the problem is, it could be the whole wiring for that outlet or it could be just that one socket.

[Jujo-jo]

8 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

I don't know since I am not sure what the problem is, it could be the whole wiring for that outlet or it could be just that one socket.

Ok thanks, I'm going to try it, this has been going on for awhile now and our electrician did check it out in Dec. and it was good then and I have used the washer since then and there were no issues (we do have a stackable in another part of the house that we mainly use) this one we use for work clothes and cat blankets and rags, etc. That kind of laundry, extra large blankets.

But I was concerned if I am using the washer and there is that kind of power surge then what might happen... ? 

[Grim Reaper 6]

3 minutes ago, Jujo-jo said:

Ok thanks, I'm going to try it, this has been going on for awhile now and our electrician did check it out in Dec. and it was good then and I have used the washer since then and there were no issues (we do have a stackable in another part of the house that we mainly use) this one we use for work clothes and cat blankets and rags, etc. That kind of laundry, extra large blankets.

But I was concerned if I am using the washer and there is that kind of power surge then what might happen... ? 

You could try plugging some in using a surge protector and see if trips. Then you will know for certain you are getting surges through that plugin receptacle. If you are getting surges then there may be a problem with the fuse box or the circuit protector in the fuse box, in fact it may not be grounded correctly or the ground could be loose. 

peace

[+Desertrat56]

21 minutes ago, Jujo-jo said:

Ok thanks, I'm going to try it, this has been going on for awhile now and our electrician did check it out in Dec. and it was good then and I have used the washer since then and there were no issues (we do have a stackable in another part of the house that we mainly use) this one we use for work clothes and cat blankets and rags, etc. That kind of laundry, extra large blankets.

But I was concerned if I am using the washer and there is that kind of power surge then what might happen... ? 

Until the electrician checks it you can get a surge protector and plug that in to the outlet then plug the washer into the surge protector.  You will know if there was a surge because the protector will flip off.

[Habitat]

Where is psyche 101 when you need him ? He's an electrician.

[Grim Reaper 6]

If your problems are from power surges from outside your home, you can have a Whole House Surge Protector installed between the meter and your circuit breaker box. This will protect the entire house from outside power surges, these devices aren't really all that expensive, they cost between $50 & $150. 

Before I would do anything I would certainly have a qualified electrician check out that receptacle like I said above, it may not be ground correctly or it could be powering to much, but if that's the case the circuit breaker in your breaker box should also be tripping

I am not an electrician but I do have a small amount of knowledge concerning electrical circuits.

Heres an example of one:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/GE-1-Outlet-1520-Joules-Home-Office-Surge-Protector/3637964

Peace

Edited February 14, 2020 by Manwon Lender

[Crikey]

Electricity is funny stuff, I switched on my electric cooker last night like I've done a thousand times before but it tripped the circuit breaker in the fuse box, plunging my flat into darkness, so I grabbed a torch, switched off the cooker and turned the breaker back on and got all my lights back. I tried the cooker again and got blacked out again, so I suppose the ancient cooker needs replacing.

[Kaikou]

1 hour ago, Manwon Lender said:

You could try plugging some in using a surge protector and see if trips. Then you will know for certain you are getting surges through that plugin receptacle. If you are getting surges then there may be a problem with the fuse box or the circuit protector in the fuse box, in fact it may not be grounded correctly or the ground could be loose. 

peace

Absolutely. Surge protectors are a godsend everyone should have at least one.

Edited February 15, 2020 by Kaikou
drunk.

[Jujo-jo]

1 hour ago, Manwon Lender said:

If your problems are from power surges from outside your home, you can have a Whole House Surge Protector installed between the meter and your circuit breaker box. This will protect the entire house from outside power surges, these devices aren't really all that expensive, they cost between $50 & $150. 

Before I would do anything I would certainly have a qualified electrician check out that receptacle like I said above, it may not be ground correctly or it could be powering to much, but if that's the case the circuit breaker in your breaker box should also be tripping

I am not an electrician but I do have a small amount of knowledge concerning electrical circuits.

Heres an example of one:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/GE-1-Outlet-1520-Joules-Home-Office-Surge-Protector/3637964

Peace

Thank you, good to know, so I wonder if I should be plugging the white Christmas lights into the other plug, not the one that has all the power for a washer? or maybe that's really not a factor? lol I just dont want the lights to cause a fire if we have another power surge. 

Would this also cause my vacuum sweeper to turn on all by itself? (I take breaks in between vacuuming rooms to help the lodge back out.)

& thanks for the link!

Edited February 15, 2020 by Jujo-jo

[Grim Reaper 6]

11 minutes ago, Jujo-jo said:

Thank you, good to know, so I wonder if I should be plugging the white Christmas lights into the other plug, not the one that has all the power for a washer? or maybe that's really not a factor? lol I just dont want the lights to cause a fire if we have another power surge. 

Would this also cause my vacuum sweeper to turn on all by itself? (I take breaks in between vacuuming rooms to help the lodge back out.)

& thanks for the link!

I would try a different receptacle, but then you wouldn't know for sure if that one is bad. Like I said before, I would plug in a surge protector and plug the lights in to that and see if the protector trips, if it does the receptacle is bad. As far as your vacuum cleaner, I think you may have a faulty switch because a surge of electricity wouldn't turn it on, or maybe you just have a magnetic personality.

Peace

[Jujo-jo]

lol Oh ok I see now, so that's the importance of plugging in a surge protector lol thank you for making that make sense for me. ok will do!

& yeah I do, no doubts about that : )

[jmccr8]

5 hours ago, Jujo-jo said:

Now thinking about this, why didn't all the 100 light blow during the power surge?

Hi Juju-jo

The second string of lights might have shorted out for reasons like a crack in the wiring letting moisture in not to mention exposure to the elements if they were outside.

jmccr8

[Jujo-jo]

1 minute ago, jmccr8 said:

Hi Juju-jo

The second string of lights might have shorted out for reasons like a crack in the wiring letting moisture in not to mention exposure to the elements if they were outside.

jmccr8

Ok thanks, good thought. They are in my basement which is heated 65 to 70 degrees. 

[Alchopwn]

13 hours ago, Jujo-jo said:

It is the outlet that our basement washer is plugged into, it has never given us problems in the past. My grandfather was an electrician so when he had problems he'd fix them correctly but after we bought the house a few years later we had all new electrical wiring put in, I'd say maybe about 10/ 12 yrs. ago we also replaced the fuse box in the basement 2 to 3 yrs. ago (and just did the one out in the garage one year ago then they added another one in the garage when we had a heater installed in December that was when we also changed a few fixtures in the basement over to L.E.D and added plugs & lights down there) 

Can you rule out a short circuit from water damage?