[wendybvt]

This is so stupid, but I'm having a heck of a time trying to replace the philips 120v 50wfl25 A7 bulbs in my ceiling fixture. I got the old bulbs out, and now I can't get the new ones in correctly. One is stuck but not lit, the other I can't get to stay in.

I can't seem to pull the glass shade off the fixture - each shade is shaped like an old Caddy tailfin light - so I've got no room to work with. It's like trying to dock the LEM to the Capsule of Apollo 11!

Is there some kind of trick to this?

Thanks in advance -
Wendy

[hkstroud]

Can you show us a pic. Don't handle halogen bulbs with bare hands. Oil from skin on the glass will shorten life of bulb.

[stanfortyman]

A lot of these home center brand fixtures leave a LOT to be desired from a mechanical design standpoint. They are not the most well engineered things.

Many like you describe come with a rubber suction cup since you literally can't get your fingers on the bulb.

[wendybvt]

Thanks, guys!
I'll get my husband to take a pic of the bulb and socket.

[wendybvt]

I've posted these to my husbands website so here are the URLs to see pix:
Bulb -- http://www.janbrittenowen.com/images/bulb.jpg
Socket -- http://www.janbrittenowen.com/images/socket.jpg
Fixture -- http://www.janbrittenowen.com/images/fixture.jpg

Here's what my husband says about trying to change this bulb:

The bulb on the right works, and has it's circular piece of wire a bit "outside" and in front of the bulb to keep it in place.

For the middle one, I was able to easily remove the wire reinforcement, and the burnt-out middle bulb (close-ups below), by pushing the bulb in a bit (though it was this pushing-in process that allowed me the only way to "grip" and maneuver the bulb),
Then making a quarter-turn rotation (somewhat like installing or removing a long fluorescent light), and the bulb fell out into my hand.

But every time I tried to put a new one in, it was nearly impossible. Logically, I just did the opposite of the removal process:

I lined up the new bulb's 2 prongs with the widest end of the socket's 2 arced "female"'s [See 2nd and last photos], and tried�
To push it in and make the�proper quarter-turn. But the bulb (even when it "felt" like it was in place) never connected, and always�
Fell right back in my hand.


So I gave upon the middle one, and tried the one on the left. The old bulb came out easily, and the new one seemed�to lock into�
Place quickly and easily, but�it didn't light when I turned the wall switch on. And now, that bulb is impossible to remove.�Thus, I�
Have no idea if I didn't get the left bulb (a brand new one) in correctly, or if the bulb is bad or if that housing's socket doesn't work anymore.
The big�problem with this particular fixture, is that it is nearly�impossible, in the teal housings, to get your fingers (or pliers, etc) around both ends of a bulb, to grasp�it, in order to rotate�and get the bulb out; �and being a pain in the a** trying to get a bulb in properly.�


So: the middle won't let me put a bulb in; �and the left has a bulb stuck in there (possibly incorrectly, or whatever) � that's not lighting up, and I've no way to take it out and find out exactly WHAT isn't working.


Maddening.


Hope the descriptions are understandable.

[wendybvt]

Ps - if you need any advice on guitars or amps, he's your man!
:-)

[Stratmando]

Those are the GU 10's, it's not quite a quarter turn, look inside the socket and make sure contact points are not bent out of place, it should turn and lock in, try the bulb that fits and try the other sockets. Be sure old and new are GU 10's

[stanfortyman]

Exactly what Strat says.

These are also the fixtures I was referring to that come with the weird suction cup used to replace bulbs.

[wendybvt]

Darn! I don't think we got any suction cups! The hardest thing is that there is no finger room. You have to just push it into the socket and hope you have lined up the holes because you can't the shade off the fixture.

I'll make sure they're the right bulbs and try again!

Thanks so much! :)

[hkstroud]

How about a "handle" made of duct tape?

[Stratmando]

Do you have a kid that has an arrow with a suction cup on the end?
Dollar stores, and many stores carry suction cups for hanging things?

[wendybvt]

We're looking for suction cups that came with our spotlight bulb replacement kit from home depot, and we're also going to try the Harold duct tape method!

:-)

I'll report back!

Thanks!!

[Stratmando]

If you use tape or whatever, try to remove any gum, oils or contaminants.

[Alan99]

I used the duct tape method. I gave it a few minutes to adhere as in the diagram
And the stuck bulb screwed right out.