Surgical options for broken light-AGP

[GregandDenise]

The non-pool rated bulb a previous owner had in the socket was a rusty mess, and broke all apart when I removed it-as I figured it would.
Has anyone ever managed to use the two tiny electrical "nubs" left and soldered in a new socket for a modern bulb.
I am afraid to pull the wire from the niche and risk a leak from the conduit that runs under the concrete surrounding the pool. I have pulled on the wire and there is zero "give".

 

[familytr33]

Hi,

The conduit designed to contain water. It's not under much pressure so should not leak.

Some pool builders plug the conduit at the cable entry which may be why there is not much give. In that case you need to carefully hack/drill out whatever was used to plug the conduit if you decide to replace the lamp.

Can't tell from the pic - is your water level currently below your niche (it could just be the shadow)?

FWIW I would bite the bullet and look to replace the lamp.I had to mess with my incandescent lamp a LOT over the past few years and never got it right. I recently invested time to switch to a new LED, and will hopefully experience less maintenance and lower electric bills in future.

ft.

 

[GregandDenise]

I was filling the pool yesterday-so its under water now.
I think I'll probably try to solder a little bulb onto the tiny bits left before I risk pulling the wire-and the water is way to cold to get into, now, anyway.
I wonder what the odds are of having the conduit leak after man-handling the wire.....

 

[familytr33]

If the niche does happen to be leaking from the cable hole at the back there are several products you can use. This butyl tape from aquabond is supposed to be clean, easy and is about 8 bucks. There are also putty-sealants available which can be applied underwater.

You can use a dropper with some food coloring to confirm that the leak is exactly where you think it is (but you will have to get in the pool with a mask ).

But I wouldn't fret it When I started to replace my light, before realizing it was solidly sealed in the conduit in with some kind of hard compound, I pulled on the light cable with ALL my strength, from both deck and junction box. It did not cause any problems.

In the end I needed to drain to below the niche but that was to drill out and replace the light, and do some remedial electrical work to bring it all to code. The only good thing about that process was it got me into this site and I now follow Trouble Free Pool Method. My pool looks great and with way less cash spent on products

ft.