Freaky! Just went upstairs and turned the lights on in the bedroom. As I was sat in there, one of the bulbs just exploded – not as I turned it on, TBH it’d been on a while – showering the room in little bits of glass, but – most oddly – left the filament-y bit still glowing stuck out of the socket.

I’m used to bulbs popping and blowing – old house, plus heffalump-footed child means that the bulbs in the downstairs lights don’t last that long, but this was something different. Didn’t half give me a shock.

It’s an angled fitting using a standard bayonet fitting ‘incandescent’ bulb (i.e. the ones that replaced the tungsten filament ones – think it’s a halogen light inside a standard bulb shape).

The bulb has been in there probably a couple of years too!

Now just got to figure out how to get it out…. (yes, I will turn off the power before sticking sharp metal objects into the socket!) 😛

If you have an RCD on the board you can still trip those out with the circuit switched off if you short it.

I might actually undo the wires at the ceiling rose and work on it at ground level if it were me.

Wow. You must have turned it off just in time the last time.

half a potato to get it out, works a treat, cut raw spud in half jam on broken bits and twist…

mahowlett – Member
half a potato to get it out, works a treat, cut raw spud in half jam on broken bits and twist…

😀 Great tip – even if it doesn’t work, I’ll end up with a roasted spud!

Cold house? long nose pliers also work. And change to LED and save some power!

The Christmas lights in George square used to suck in water and reseal and still operate fine for the two months.

Ours did that a while ago and the bulb blew with such force that it also blew up the little glass shade round it.

I had a halogen G9 capsule go like that. I’d just put my pancakes on the dining room table for breakfast, went back to get my coffee and BANG! Glass all in my pancakes. Didn’t enjoy them, too crunchy.

Must have been a faulty bulb, all before and after were fine, changed the fittings not long after, screw in less are loads better.