Yet Another Case of Flickering Lights
- Knightly Electrical Services
- Jun 18
- 3 min read
If it seems like we talk a lot about flickering lights, it’s because we do. As we’ve said before, it’s one of — if not THE — most common reasons homeowners contact us.
But the interesting thing is that there are so many issues that may cause flickering lights, ranging from problems with the electric meter to electric panel short circuits to faulty switches. Some of these are pretty simple problems that aren’t cause for panic, while others can represent a pretty serious fire hazard.
So, we always recommend contacting us when your lights flicker. We’ll not only fix the issue and ensure your electrical system is safe, but we can often recommend simple and affordable upgrades too.
In fact, we did exactly that for one of our recent customers in the Peachtree Corners area.
Replacing A Customer’s Undercabinet Lights
A homeowner named Danielle contacted us a few weeks ago because the undercabinet lights in her kitchen were flickering. So, Ryan saddled up and headed right over to check out her lights and electrical system.
It didn’t take long for Ryan to figure out the issue.
The lights themselves were pretty old and worn out, so a few of them simply needed to be replaced. And because it’s virtually impossible to find undercabinet lights that’ll match those installed more than a few years earlier, we recommended that she let us swap out all the existing lights.
This would not only ensure that all of the lights would match each other and look good, but it also meant that she could upgrade to new LED lights, instead of sticking with the old-school fluorescent fixtures she currently had.
There are a number of benefits LED lights provide over fluorescent tubes, including better light quality, greater energy efficiency, and a longer lifespan. They also turn on immediately, unlike fluorescent lights, which rely on a ballast system.
Honestly, LED lights are so much better than fluorescent lights that we always recommend our customers upgrade them when possible. The cost difference is minimal, and the extended lifespan easily covers this difference over time.
Wait, What About the Flickering?
Replacing the lights may have reduced the flickering, but Ryan wanted to investigate further and ensure that it would be effective. As it turns out, he found something that proved otherwise — something that may have even been responsible for the flickering in the first place.
And unfortunately, it’s a pretty common problem for older homes like Danielle's.
In contrast to modern homes, houses that are more than 30 or 40 years old often have insufficient grounding. That doesn’t always cause obvious problems, except when you have dimmer switches installed, as Danielle did.
Insufficient grounding plus dimmer switches often equals flickering lights.
So, because rewiring the entire home and bolstering the grounding system wasn’t something Danielle wanted to pursue at the moment, Ryan suggested the only other thing that may stop the flickering: Removing the dimmer switches and replacing them with conventional on-off switches.
Ryan was able to do that quickly, so he then tested the lights. Voila! It had been a success, the lights no longer flickered, and Danielle had new, upgraded light fixtures under the cabinets in her kitchen.
Contact Knightly Electrical Service for All of Your Lighting Needs!
Whether your lights are flickering or you’d simply like to explore the other home lighting options available, we can help. We provide a range of lighting installation and repair services, including most kinds of lights modern homes use. From security lights to ceiling fan lights to recessed lights and more, we can help ensure your home is well lit and solve any lighting problems you may be experiencing.
Head over to our contact page or simply schedule a knight today!
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