20a Neon switch light goes on and off randomly

[alex_dis]

Hi,

A minor query...maybe someone knows the answer to?

Just replaced a rather battered switch unit with a new 20 amp neon switch which is attached to a 20 year old storage heater.

Thing is, although the heater works just as before and I wired everything correctly (I think!), the neon switch light has a mind of it's own and goes on and off at random.

Both the appliance and supply have L,N and ground and it was wired the same as the old switch. The switch itself is the same type as the old one (20a, 250v).

Does anyone know if there is a reason for this?

thanks,
Alex

 

[jj4091]

Which terminals of the switch is the neon connected across?

 

[Kes]

Does the neon have its own two tails - which should be either in their own housings or connected with the cable ends into the load side of the switch. These tails are fragile and easily damaged.

 

[alex_dis]

Does the neon have its own two tails - which should be either in their own housings or connected with the cable ends into the load side of the switch. These tails are fragile and easily damaged.

Kes/JJ,

Thanks for your replies. Sorry novice here - have replaced switches before but some of the terminology is over my head. The neon didn't appear to have any 'tails' and there was no mention of them in the supplied instructions. All the neon operations, if you like, are housed behind the switch itself. It's a £5 switch from B&Q so I guess it has to be suitable for installation from a weekend DIYer. The only wiring that appeared to need doing were the 3 wires on the load side and 3 on the supply side. There was no mention of any special wiring specifically for the neon.

I was wondering if variation of the output power needed by the heater itself may cause the light to go out? I haven't noticed any pattern though...

 

[Adam_151]

It's a £5 switch from B&Q so I guess it has to be suitable for installation from a weekend DIYer. ..

It is flawed logic to assume that anything you can buy in B&Q is an easy DIYable job... if you take a look round, you'll see they also sell consumer units and gas fires...

But if its not a loose connection to the neon then it'll be a faulty neon (quite often they'll go like that after a few years, I'd imagine its also possible to have a faulty one that did it from the start!)