Hello,
Last night I turned on the ceiling light in the hallway and it made a popping noise, with a small blue flash at the light, exactly like when a light bulb has just burned out. There are three bulbs in the light fixture and after that none would come on. I changed all three bulbs and the light does not work. I put the original bulbs in another light to test them, and they all work, so obviously the sound and light flash I saw was not a bulb burning out. I believe it is a Hampton Bay fixture. It's decorative with palm trees and an ocean scene and was fairly expensive. I'm a single homeowner and don't know if I need an electrician due to an electrical problem, a handy man to install a new light fixture, could it be a faulty dimmer switch? Any suggestions? Thanks.

Helen in Tarpon Springs, Florida

Most likely a wire shorted out in the fixture and burned off. It may have popped the breaker too, or burned off too quick for that. Good chances it is a simple fix. With the power off, try to take the fixture apart. You may be able to splice the wire, or splice in a new piece. If you don't want to tackle it, anybody that is handy at all should be able to fix it. I am guessing the bulb sockets all looked OK. Sometimes they burn up. You may even have to replace one if the wire is burned off too close. If so, take it out, and take it to a good hardware store and ask for a new one. You are more likely to find good people at an Ace or Top Value than Lowe's or Home Depot.

LabMan,
Thank you. The first thing I did was check the circuit breaker, but it had not tripped. I will check it out and see if I can fix it. If not, I'll get a handy man. I'm not that handy... :p :p

Helen

I also heard a pop and one light bulb burned out of our Hampton Bay, we replaced it but now the 3 lights just stay on dim. Could it possibly be a potentiometer? Or a burned wire. I assume if it is a burned wire the bulbs would not be lit at all.
Thanks, Timmy