Lighting problem, please help!

[humphworld]

I still have problems with the new light fittings I have put in. I have double checked all wiring at the fittings and switches for both lights which work perfectly. Unfortunately, all the upstairs lighting is not working at all. Have I overloaded something? Nothing is tripping out at the fuseboard. There are three 6A RCBs? fitted, is this correct? We are now at day 5 without any upstairs lights. I agree this is quite amusing, but other people in the house are starting to have sense of humour failures!

 

[breezer]

dont want to appear to be alkward, but if you have tried turning off/ on the mcb's and this is after you have changed a light you have a loose / bad connection. you will just have to keep looking till you find it.

I would start by looking at the cu follow the cable (as best you can) for the upstairs lights, for them all not to work, in must be at the begiining of the circuit, because if it were at the middle or end all previous lights would work

 

[Damocles]

You say you have 3 6A mcb (row of little switches?). have you tried switching off each in turn and seeing what lights do work?

You said you were working on a downstairs light (kitchen), but now upstairs lights are not working? Have you checked that the same MCB operates the kitchen lights and the upstairs lights.

Flickering means a bad connection. If the only thing you have touched is the ceiling connections in the kitchen, then most likely that is the fault. This could be explained if power goes to the kitchen light, then goes on (upstairs?) to the lights which are not flickering. If several wires are twisted together and inserted in one screw, it might be that a wire has broken so it is not connected properly, but still looks connected.


If the kitchen light and upstairs lights are operated from different mcb, then it does not seem likely that fiddling with the kitchen light would affect it. Somehow the wiring for the different circuit must have been disturbed. Did you move anything else? Just conceivably there could be a bad connection to the mcb which has been loosened by flicking the switches. Did you take down and lights of covers upstairs to have a look at the wiring, could have disturbed a loose wire.