pool light had water in it and may be broken now

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BasicTek

BasicTek

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Oct 9, 2016
870
Lake Mary, FL
Hi all,

I bought my house with 30 year old pool in 2016 end of summer. The pool light worked then but died a few months later. I googled how to replace and the bulb and it said I needed to buy a gasket (pn# 79101600) as well. The pentair label is below. Well it seemed to work and after putting the light back it was fine until a couple weeks ago. Well this time I pull out the light and there is water in the enclosure (not much maybe 10%). The gasket seemed fine and the light looks solid, I have no idea how water got in there.

I searched this site and found many posts about lights leaking, one to note that my 2017 conversion to SWG may be causing issues with the steel in the light (although I don't see or feel any corrosion). I wanted to change the bulb anyway because I have a new LED bulb I bought on amazon. I'm not sure what to do. Should I try to seal it again and use my new bulb (not cheap btw) or is there something wrong?

I notice my seal had a z at the end of the pn# but that was all I found on amazon and it was on over a year working so it much be close... I tested the old bulb and it's dead but I can't get any bulb to work in the enclosure while it's out of the water. I seem to remember that was the case last time but I'm not sure if something shorted out somewhere as well. I have a light switch for it but I don't know if there is a gfci anywhere, I checked my fuses and saw a pool motor (that's on, and one for all the patio lights and they are all working minus the pool one. Any ideas would be appreciated before I make another mistake. Thanks!

pentair.jpg
 
A lot of times it’s not the main seal that’s leaking, but the rubber boot that surrounds the wire when it enters the can. (If that’s the type of light you have) If thats the case, you would need a new light housing.

I just read the label in your pic and it does seem you have the type of light I was thinking of. That little rubber boot drys out over time from the chemicals in the water and starts to leak. So you would need to get a new housing.
 
Last edited:
Thanks Kim and Rob!

Here is some more info (pics). The light housing and wire seem to be in good shape

IMG_20180407_161416391.jpgIMG_20180407_161353240.jpg

I did read that I shouldn't have bought an after market seal and that an OEM might solve this issue, also looking at the seal I saw 1 side was white and clean while the other appeared to have mold or something in it and was all black.

To note this was my 1st ever pool light bulb change, I did it before I was active on TFP and may have made some noob mistakes...

IMG_20180407_161345284.jpg

inyopools appears to have a real OEM seal but it's 4x the price, is this really what I need or do I just need to take more care in ensuring it's on properly?
 
I saw that black spot, and don't know what to make of it. It doesn't seem worn more like something that is there on purpose. I could put rescue tape on it and try to reseal the light one last time. If it fails I guess I'll spring for a real LED light next and just replace the entire thing.
 
Tim, I did some research on putting in a “Real” led light, and I couldn’t justify the price vs getting a replacement light and just putting in a led bulb. IMHO there are pros and cons to both.
I went with the one below, and I love it. For the price of a “Real” one, I can buy 3 of these.
~Rob
 

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I think that is similar to the one I have (at least it plugs into the existing fixture), but aren't you saying my entire light fixture probably has to be replaced? I looked closely to that black spot on the line and it's doesn't appear to have any cracking or indication it's leaking.

I can't even get the light to come on, but I seem to remember that was the case last time that it only comes on once fully installed and screwed back in. Is there some type of ground connection I'd like to verify if the light even works anymore....
 
Yes, but if you do have to replace the fixture, I was suggesting you get the same type you have now, and not a fixture with the led built into it.

I’m not sure why your light won’t come on with it out of the water, mine did when I just wanted to check to make sure it worked before putting it back in.

Maybe someone else might know if there is a grounding issue.
 
Ya, that was my intent in the 1st place to avoid replacing the light and just add LED multi-function bulb, but now if replacing the light anyway, I'll probably go full LED. I'll try to get my current one working 1st and see what happens.
 

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BasicTek said:
Hi all,

I bought my house with 30 year old pool in 2016 end of summer. The pool light worked then but died a few months later. I googled how to replace and the bulb and it said I needed to buy a gasket (pn# 79101600) as well. The pentair label is below. Well it seemed to work and after putting the light back it was fine until a couple weeks ago. Well this time I pull out the light and there is water in the enclosure (not much maybe 10%). The gasket seemed fine and the light looks solid, I have no idea how water got in there.

I searched this site and found many posts about lights leaking, one to note that my 2017 conversion to SWG may be causing issues with the steel in the light (although I don't see or feel any corrosion). I wanted to change the bulb anyway because I have a new LED bulb I bought on amazon. I'm not sure what to do. Should I try to seal it again and use my new bulb (not cheap btw) or is there something wrong?

I notice my seal had a z at the end of the pn# but that was all I found on amazon and it was on over a year working so it much be close... I tested the old bulb and it's dead but I can't get any bulb to work in the enclosure while it's out of the water. I seem to remember that was the case last time but I'm not sure if something shorted out somewhere as well. I have a light switch for it but I don't know if there is a gfci anywhere, I checked my fuses and saw a pool motor (that's on, and one for all the patio lights and they are all working minus the pool one. Any ideas would be appreciated before I make another mistake. Thanks!

View attachment 74594
Click to expand...
Did u put some silicone around the new gasket? Before putting it back?
 
I had similar issues with water getting into my (same) fixture. I bought the OEM gasket and used Pool Lube when installing. I also cleaned the wire boot and wire and added silicone sealer around it to ensure a good seal. 9 months later and all is well.

Your light will come on out of the pool. Fix this first. You can use a standard bulb for the troubleshooting.
 
Make sure the GFCI is reset. Play around with a cheap lamp bulb, it will turn on if the light housing is outside of the water.

Most likely the seal wasn't sealing properly around that black area. I switched my in-laws bulbs a few years ago and used a cheap non OEM seal and haven't had any problems since. I can't answer if it was the seal or installation process that went wrong.
 
Thanks everyone! I ordered the gorilla silicon, and a new screw. I got an estimate to replace with real LED would run about $800 with install and told to watch for sales this month as my final option...

ping said:
Make sure the GFCI is reset.
Click to expand...

I've read repeatedly about this GFCI but I can't for the life of me find it. my patio light and pool light are on the same switch, the patio lights still work fine. I can't find anything on the main breaker panel or the pool panel by the motor. I'll keep checking and test with a regular bulb!


EDIT: Found the GFCI!!! and apparently my bulb never burnt out either so now to replace it without it leaking... I'll update after I get the gorilla silicone probably will try again this weekend
 
In the hardest place to find it (right in front of me) I actually looked right at it earlier (on the panel for my pool equipment). For some reason that switch had a "TEST" underneath it, so when it was off my brain thought "it must just be a test breaker" (whatever that is) and I didn't even try to reset it.

IMG_20180409_192132503.jpg

So I turn it on and bam light works. Luckily I turned the light off because it just rained again putting water back in it. I dried it out again and will be installing the new LED later this week after I get the silicone. It's funny I'm an electronics/software engineer and can do some amazing things with technology, but when it comes to standard electric work I make some of the dumbest mistakes.
 

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