# Tool for extracting a broken light bulb? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 10, 2006, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242 "2006-01-10T01:02:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/141 "2006-01-23T04:15:33Z")
> [@BoringDad](#): > > I think that you are being far too careless. He should hire a professional engineer to make this judgement. Or a licensed grocer. My friend Mike’s brother is an electrician. He also likes donuts and is in training as a nuclear power-plant operator. Does that help? > [@](#): > > ``` > What I do first, even safer than turning the power off, is I remove the *escocheon* cover and disconnect the two wires, then I stick a broom handle up and I twist. > > ``` Isn’t _escocheon_ Portuguese for ‘trench’? > [@Marlitharn](#): > > I really have nothing to add, so I’ll just post a link to Lucy in the Sky with Shatner. Someone really should have unplugged his potato and dropped him into the Marianas trench before he recorded this. Aiiee! I think that inverted _my_ power! I feel like it’s never going to end! :: looks at tab of browser :: Oh, wait a minute. It’s looping. Thank Og that was only twenty minutes. ---
**Author:** ![danceswithcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9e8a1a/32.png) [@danceswithcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/danceswithcats)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/142 "2006-01-23T05:17:59Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > My friend Mike’s brother is an electrician. He also likes donuts and is in training as a nuclear power-plant operator. Does that help? Sure. Donuts always help. You can hand a few out to the cops who respond if you’ve forgotten to turn off the power. > [@](#): > > Isn’t _escocheon_ Portuguese for ‘trench’? No, it’s Portuguese for skin of a potato tool substitute. > [@](#): > > Aiiee! I think that inverted _my_ power! I feel like it’s never going to end! :: looks at tab of browser ::Oh, wait a minute. It’s looping. Thank Og that was only twenty minutes. Be careful, or you’ll shoot your eye out. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/143 "2006-01-23T18:09:17Z")
Jokes aside, it’s standard practice for electrical work to leave three layers of protection, any one of which would be sufficient. That is to say, using an insulated tool should, by itself, be enough protection. Turning off the switch should be enough protection. Turning off the circuitbreaker should be enough protection. But any of these methods could fail. Your hand holding the tool could slip and bump something. The house might be wired incorrectly. Someone could wander along and absent-mindedly flip the switch. You could accidentally get the wrong circuitbreaker. But even if one of your layers of protection might fail, it’s highly unlikely that all three would. So use all three. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/144 "2006-01-23T19:12:09Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Jokes aside, it’s standard practice for electrical work to leave three layers of protection, any one of which would be sufficient. That is to say, using an insulated tool should, by itself, be enough protection. Turning off the switch should be enough protection. Turning off the circuitbreaker should be enough protection. But any of these methods could fail. Your hand holding the tool could slip and bump something. The house might be wired incorrectly. Someone could wander along and absent-mindedly flip the switch. You could accidentally get the wrong circuitbreaker. But even if one of your layers of protection might fail, it’s highly unlikely that all three would. So use all three. So what you are saying is make sure the power is off before using the Super Duper Dopr Tuber? ---
**Author:** ![danceswithcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9e8a1a/32.png) [@danceswithcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/danceswithcats)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/145 "2006-01-23T22:22:43Z")
> [@What Exit?](#): > > So what you are saying is make sure the power is off before using the Super Duper Dopr Tuber? Say mate, would you have a whiff of this power? It smells off to me. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2006, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/146 "2006-01-23T23:38:41Z")
> [@danceswithcats](#): > > Say mate, would you have a whiff of this power? It smells off to me. :dubious: ?? ---
**Author:** ![unusualsuspect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e5b9ba/32.png) [@unusualsuspect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/unusualsuspect)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/147 "2013-08-01T02:34:56Z")
Turn off the switch, or the breaker if you really don’t want any excitement in your life, bust the bulb, and using needle nose pliers, bend the metal sides inward all the way around, and yank that sucker out! Potatoes? carrots? C’monI This ain’t Hints From Heloise. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/148 "2013-08-01T13:07:19Z")
But what if I happen to have a zombie potato sitting around? Can I skip the power off step? ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/149 "2013-08-01T13:12:14Z")
> [@Marlitharn](#): > > I really have nothing to add, so I’ll just post a link to [Lucy in the Sky with Shatner.](http://www.devilducky.com/media/29841/) … One of the more sensible comments I’ve seen in SD, and always _a propos._ ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/150 "2013-08-01T13:17:03Z")
Using needle-nose pliers, you can simply grasp the edge of the metal base and turn it. No need for destruction or force. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/151 "2013-08-01T16:06:55Z")
Why didn’t you come up with that answer 7 years ago? The poor guy’s been sitting in the dark all this time and nobody cares! ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/152 "2013-08-01T16:10:17Z")
> [@Sicks\_Ate](#): > > Using needle-nose pliers, you can simply grasp the edge of the metal base and turn it. No need for destruction or force. Bing! ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/153 "2013-08-01T18:06:49Z")
> [@BoringDad](#): > > But if a moron wired your house, the hot wire goes to the sides of the bulb, and the switch is on the neutral leg. The light will operate perfectly well, but the socket will be hot all the time even when the switch is turned off. And make no mistake, this bad wiring has been done an astounding number of times. In this case, only turning off the breaker makes it safe to have your naughty naughty way with the specially carved potato. So would a non-contact voltage tester identify this prior to sticking pliers into the socket? That’s how I always have done it- turn the switch on, verify that it’s indeed hot, turn it off, verify that it’s cold, and then use the pliers to remove the base. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/154 "2013-08-01T18:16:34Z")
If you’re not in a hurry, make a thick dough-ball (flour and water and salt). Pack it onto the bulb casing like a poultice, give it a day to harden. Or, two screwdrivers, or one with a wide flat tip, rammed up through the base, should also do the trick. This only has to be done once in a lifetime, after which one learns not to put them in so tight. This is probably up-thread somewhere, but Im not going to search 134 posts to look for it. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2013, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242/155 "2013-08-01T18:58:06Z")
zombie or no > [@BoringDad](#): > > But if a moron wired your house, the hot wire goes to the sides of the bulb, and the switch is on the neutral leg. The light will operate perfectly well, but the socket will be hot all the time even when the switch is turned off. And make no mistake, this bad wiring has been done an astounding number of times. In this case, only turning off the breaker makes it safe to have your naughty naughty way with the specially carved potato. > [@bump](#): > > So would a non-contact voltage tester identify this prior to sticking pliers into the socket? That’s how I always have done it- turn the switch on, verify that it’s indeed hot, turn it off, verify that it’s cold, and then use the pliers to remove the base. the problem with deactivating a convenient nearby switch is that it is a convenient nearby switch. it is easy that people there while working on the bulb extraction could accidentally bump the switch on. it is also possible that in a moment of non-clear thought that someone purposely (though stupidly in this situation) turns the switch on; that is something done many times a day and can be done easily, especially in a 3-way or 4-way switch situation. turning off the breaker/fuse is a purposeful distant action that has to be undone by a purposeful distant action. very good on using a noncontact voltage testing and checking the wires before touching no matter what you have switched off. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tool-for-extracting-a-broken-light-bulb/339242.md?page=7)