# any electricians in the house? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 30, 2007, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280 "2007-11-30T04:39:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![anyrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anyrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anyrose)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/1 "2007-11-30T04:39:53Z")
I came home tonight (too late to call anyone) and flipped the switch for the hall light - the blub blew, so I shut the switch off, figuring I’ll wait till daylight to change out the bulb. But the switch won’t go off. I can feel the click as I flip it down (off) but when I let go, it springs back up (on). I live in a high ranch, mainly upstairs - the breaker box is in the garage. I have difficulty with the stairs due to one arthritic knee and one recovering replaced-with-titanium knee (with tendonitis :rolleyes: ). I will check the breaker on my way out in the morning, but in the meantime, does this sound dangerous or could it just be a faulty spring/lock within the switch? is my house likely to burn down while I am at work? I will call my electrician in the a.m., but I don’t want to have nightmares until then. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/2 "2007-11-30T04:46:42Z")
[QUOTE=anyrose] does this sound dangerous or could it just be a faulty spring/lock within the switch? [/QUOTE] It’s not likely to be dangerous, especially without electricity flowing to the bulb. But a switch that won’t turn off definitely isn’t right and should certainly be replaced. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/3 "2007-11-30T04:47:34Z")
Sounds like the switch is bad. In the meantime, there’s nothing to worry about. The situation is no more hazardous than simply leaving the switch on. The switch just closes the circuit, it doesn’t place a load on it. If the light is the only thing controlled by the switch, there is no current through the switch as long as the bulb is burned out. ---
**Author:** ![anyrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anyrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anyrose)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/4 "2007-11-30T04:51:16Z")
Thank you both. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/5 "2007-11-30T05:06:36Z")
I’ll bet the bulb blowing welded the contacts of the switch closed. ---
**Author:** ![anyrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anyrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anyrose)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/6 "2007-11-30T05:11:45Z")
yeah? odd. it never happened before in the 13 years I’m living here… but I guess anything is possible. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/7 "2007-11-30T11:42:21Z")
[QUOTE=beowulff] I’ll bet the bulb blowing welded the contacts of the switch closed. [/QUOTE] Highly unlikely. An incandescent bulb burning out doesn’t produce a ‘surge’ that powerful. In fact, it usually doesn’t produce a surge at all – that’s lightning strikes on electric company wires outside the house, or heavy motors inside the house (refrigerator, furnace blower, etc.) turning off. Besides, most current electrical switches don’t even have ‘contacts’ that could be welded – they use pools of liquid mercury to make the connections. It’s much more likely that the springs in the switch handle just wore out. ---
**Author:** ![anyrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anyrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anyrose)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/8 "2007-11-30T12:36:26Z")
[QUOTE=t-bonham@scc.net] . . . most current electrical switches don’t even have ‘contacts’ that could be welded . . . [/QUOTE] how about switches from 35-40 years ago? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/9 "2007-11-30T14:56:54Z")
[QUOTE=t-bonham@scc.net] Besides, most current electrical switches don’t even have ‘contacts’ that could be welded – they use pools of liquid mercury to make the connections. [/QUOTE] No, they do not. Older switches did, and doubtless there are millions of them still in buildings, since there wasn’t any effort to actively recall them–given the age of the structure stated by the OP, she may, in fact, have such a switch installed. However, no current light switches are being manufactured with mercury, due to hazardous waste concerns, and in most states their use is banned in new construction. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2007, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-electricians-in-the-house/428280/10 "2007-11-30T15:15:15Z")
[QUOTE=t-bonham@scc.net] Highly unlikely. An incandescent bulb burning out doesn’t produce a ‘surge’ that powerful. In fact, it usually doesn’t produce a surge at all – that’s lightning strikes on electric company wires outside the house, or heavy motors inside the house (refrigerator, furnace blower, etc.) turning off. Besides, most current electrical switches don’t even have ‘contacts’ that could be welded – they use pools of liquid mercury to make the connections. It’s much more likely that the springs in the switch handle just wore out. [/QUOTE] Wrong… First of all, most “cheap” light switches use a “rocker” contact arrangement. There were (maybe still are) “silent” light switches, that used an internal mercury switch, but they are not nearly as common. Secondly, when lightbulbs blow, they can create an arc which can pull many times more current than when the bulb is operating. Bulbs are usually made with a fuse in the base to prevent tripping breakers (and welding switches), but it’s far from a sure thing. If the OP’s bulb blew when the switch was turned on, and then the switch ceased to function, that’s a sure indication of welded contacts.