[Shop-talk] How to change a light bulb

[Scott Hall]

They're metal halide bulbs. Or at least they look like metal halide bulbs
from the ground and from about eight feet below them, swaying precariously
on the top of a ladder.

It's funny you say that about the switch. I want to swap the bulbs exactly
because I don't know how--or even if--they're switched. There are three
light switches in the house that do nothing as far as I can tell. But when
I bought the house, every single bulb save three (all on the same fixture)
were bad. I spent a an hour screwing with the two breaker boxes *sure*
there was a breaker issue before I tried swapping bulbs. It was just bad
bulbs.

All the breakers at this point are on. The three switches--as far as I can
tell--do not control the lights, but like you said, if they're sensor-ed I
can't tell. I figure if I swap the bulbs then I'll know it's something
else. I've tried flipping the switches at night, and I even ran around in
the back yard once, running from the yard to each of the switches inside
and back as I threw them. I don't see any sensor box.

I suspect the bulbs only because they literally couldn't be bothered to
clean the stove (and all the other bulbs were out). If they can't do that,
there's no way they're climbing up there to swap a bad bulb. But you're
exactly right, it could be something else entirely and I'm out of ideas to
figure out how they come on. My plan was new bulbs and throw switches at
night. If that didn't work...ask you guys.

I spent a few months doing just as Michael suggested--they're just 'gone'
now and there are no lights. I really, really tried. But after a deep
period of soul searching, I don't think I can deal with just accepting that
they don't work now, forever. I'd have to climb up there to remove them in
that instance. And if I'm going up there...might as well just replace the
bulbs.

On Fri, Feb 15, 2019 at 1:32 PM Steven Trovato <strovato at optonline.net>
wrote:

> OK, so I am not convinced that it's the bulbs.  Maybe it
> is.  Obviously I can't tell from here.  But two light fixtures both
> not working make me suspect that there is a switch or breaker or
> something that you don't know about.  For "commercial-esque"
> fixtures, they may be mercury or sodium vapor.  They may not come on
> instantly.  There may also be a photo sensor, so make sure you are
> doing your testing after dark.  It would piss me off to hire someone
> or rent equipment only to find that I didn't have the right switch turned
> on.
>
> -Steve
>
> At 10:48 PM 2/14/2019, Scott Hall via Shop-talk wrote:
> >I keep thinking there's a joke in there and I just can't find it.
> >
> >New house has two...commercial-esque light fixtures pointing out
> >over the back yard. They don't work and I assume it's the bulbs
> >because I had to switch all the other bulbs in this house, so why
> >not those too? Plus they're probably expensive (so the previous
> >owner wouldn't have wanted to do it), and (the real reason for my
> question):
>
>
> ---
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