I recently installed 5 recessed lighting fixtures on the same circuit and all these lights turned off at one time after a few minutes. They did not trip the circuit breaker. I then turned the light switch off for a few minutes and then the lights could be turned on for a few minutes. The light switch is rated for 15 amps. Will installing a 20 amp light switch solve this problem or is there another problem?

Really need to know the wattage of the lamps to give an appropriate answer.


If the circuit is a true 20 amp circuit complete with #12 wire and a 20 amp circuit you can load the circuit up to a total of 1920 watts, you can use a 20 amp rated switch. If the circuit is anything else, then only a 15 amp rated switch can be used.

Would really like to know the total wattage, get back with this info and we can go further from there.

While it is odd that they would all shut off at the same time, the cans will shut off if they are overheating. Are they in an insulated ceiling?

Thanks for responding. There is no insulation where the recessed lighting is installed so I don't think that there is an overheating issue. The circuit is 15 amps and I used 14 gague wire for this project. The total watts for the 5 lights is approximately 325 so the circuit should be able to handle the load. In addition I will be using compact fluorescent bulbs in the future which should reduce the load ever further.

I plan on adding 2 more pendant lights to this particular circuit and switch which should add another 120 watts in total. Any problem with having 7 lights for a maximum of 445 watts on one switch?

Another interesting fact. I purchased a 1000 watt dimmer switch and the lights worked fine. However, I understand that it is not a good idea to use a dimmer switch with compact fluorescent bulbs. I want to install a regular switch but don't want the lights going out after 10 minutes. Again, will a 20 amp switch solve this mystery?

Thanks for your input.

A 15 Amp 120 Volt circuit can handle 1440 watts, so your 445 watts should be no problem.

If the lights go out for no apparent reason, the circuit breaker or the switch may be defective, or there can be a loose connection anywhere in the circuit. First I would go back and check each splice and terminal connection for a poor connection, then try a new switch and/or a new circuit breaker.

Even thou very rare, there could be a break in a wire in the cable, a manufacturing defect in the cable.. This can be very difficult to find, and I have only had this happen maybe 6 times in 30 years, but it can happen.

Do you have the wires at the switch on the screw terminals? Or did you use the push in style terminals? This is where you strip the wire about a half inch, and push into holes on the back of the switch. These connections are very poor and a cause of many service calls. I never use these connections on any of my installations, however, I have made a nice living going back and troubleshooting. Locating, and repairing them when used by other people.

You are correct, standard incandescent dimmers will not work with compact fluorescent lamps. There are dimmable CF lamps, however, you must use the specifed dimmer rated to handle CF lamps.

The only what replacing the 15 amp switch with a 20 amp switch is if the existing switch is defective or the connections are poor. The switch seems to be the culprit since you state using a dimmer in place of the switch all works fine.

A new switch has been installed and all appears fine. It still seems odd that my old switch would go bad at the same time that I made these changes.

In any event all is well and I appreciate your thoughts on this matter.

It all ways happens when you use something new with something old. You end up changing everything!!

You said "old" switch... how old was it?

The switch has to be more then 3 1/2 years old, because that's how old this post is.

Chuck