cant get 2nd flouorescent bulb to work!

[elsmore1]

Hi I had 2 x 100watt bulbs in loft that worked fine. Coming into the loft the first light goes into a pendant fitting and I wired a cable off to another as in parallel. I replaced the 2nd bulb with a fluorescent and it worked with the 100w still in place, then when I added the 2nd the 2nd one just flickers. I replaced the bulb and the little diffuser thingys and they both work ok in garage light so its either the light unit or my wiring!

I can doubel check by changing the garage unit that works and put this in the loft but if it does not work what could be wrong the buld at the end of the line i.e the 2nd one always works and the 1st bulb just flickers. In the pendant join I have 3 earths in the earth screw, 3 lives in the live and 3 nuetrals in the neutral, the bit that says loop with 3 screw terminals is unused. So really its cable in and back out to 2nd light I have just teed off to my othe flourescent or should I just go into the 1st flourescent and then back out to 2nd light! Also the wire in is just from a switch.

Any advice would help, I will swap light tomorrow as this evening was spent problem solving already!

regards

 

[ColJack]

your description is hard to follow and a little confusing.
can you do us a picture of the wiring connections at wherever you've connected .. and the switch too..

 

[securespark]

I suspect he has replaced the main fitting (which works) but has tapped off a feed to a second which doesn't.

Either the fitting, lamp or starter are suspect or the wiring is.

If you put your batten back on the end of that wire which is currently feeding the flu that does not work, does it light up?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

More to the point, does it light up at full brightness?

 

[elsmore1]

I will put it in simple terms if i can! I had a pendant loft light which worked off a switch put in by the builders. I just added another 100w bulb from the 1st one by running a piece of cable from pendant joint.

This worked fine but I just wanted to swap the 100w bulbs with flourescent lights i did it first to the 2nd pendant I put in and it worked fine when I added the 2nd flourescent to the original pendant fitting it just flickers but the 2nd light stays on.

I have swapped tube and diffuser and both are fine, so must be wiring or actual fitting. I will swap fitting today to be sure but if its the wiring I dont know what i have done wrong.

Thanks

 

[ban-all-sheds]

The diffuser won't have any effect on it

If it's a striplight, have you tried swapping the starter?

But as ColJack said - a proper wiring diagram and photos are needed.

 

[Lectrician]

And as it is a 100w tube, have you used the correct starter?

 

[electronicsuk]

What's all this about 100w tubes?

The way I read it, OP had single pendant light installed in loft by builders, and subsequently added a second pendant supplied from the original one. Up until recently both were fitted with 100w GLS lamps, but OP has decided to change them to some form of fluorescent lighting. It seems like a strip light has been wired into the original pendant flex, but in any case the ceiling roses have remained in place and the wiring there hasn't changed.

OP fitted fluorescent light to the pendant he had previously added himself first, and it worked fine. He then went on the original pendant added by the builders, only to find that the tube will not light and only flickers. The fitting he fitted first is, however, still working fine.

If that's the case then it does simply sound like a dodgy fitting, unless OP has somehow managed to end up with the fittings wired in series, but had never noticed this with GLS lamps as they would simply be at reduced brightness. The latter seems unlikely as they state that one fitting still works fine.

 

[fireman22]

lets get back to basics ok, in the light installed by the builer how many grey pvc cables went into it before you started extending it?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Let's just wait for diagrams and photos...

 

[sparkyspike]

I still haven't worked out whether we are talking about pendants or strip lights.

 

[Space cat]

In the pendant join I have 3 earths in the earth screw, 3 lives in the live and 3 nuetrals in the neutral, the bit that says loop with 3 screw terminals is unused

They aren't in series and the wiring is OK because it worked with filament bulbs. The only thing I can think of that might stop it working with two fluorescents is if there is some kind of electronic device in the circuit - like a dimmer.

Even so, I'm disinclined to believe that because one of the two fluorescents works. The prime suspect has to be a dodgy fitting. A faint flickering from a fluorescent is a sign that the starter is faulty or missing. If it's the kind of dramatic flicker where the tube keeps on trying to strike (ends heating up between flashes), that usually means that the tube is worn out but it could also indicate a faulty starter.

Just a thought ---

Elsmore1, is the working fluorescent as bright now as it was when you had it in parallel with the filament bulb?

 

[elsmore1]

Wow, I did not expect so much interest over my lighting problems! I think electronicsuk has the jist of problem as the original builders put in a 100w bulb and had 1 grey cable going to pendant with earth, neutral and live I just extended to form another one and that all worked ok at good brightness.

The new lights are 4ft 36w. I am about to swap the garage one which works fine, also bulb and starter are ok as I have swapped this already, if thats ok I will need to look at the wiring, not sure how to get a wiring diagram posted but I will let you know hoe I get on.

Regards

 

[elsmore1]

The solution is FAULTY BALLAST UNIT as the one in garage works in loft but the one not working in loft does the same in garage, well done to those who guessed the correct answer. I swapped bulb and starter and still same problem! I will return to Toolstation!

Many Thanks

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Good-oh.

And this is not having a go:

The fact that you weren't sure enough of your wiring to know that it could only be a faulty unit means that you should probably do a bit more studying...