Fixing the Lights

Max

Today we're talking about fixing the lights at this little office. I went there with Dave my supervisor. The office manager was like, "Hey, half the ceiling lights just stopped working." She reckoned it was a blown fuse, but honestly, she wasn't sure. My supervisor checked the electrical diagrams. I always get a bit nervous with those, but you gotta start somewhere. I asked questions—like, "Has anything else been playing up? Any new stuff plugged in?" The office manager said nothing's changed, so that helped narrow it down.

Max

So after I got the info, I went to the switchboard and found the lighting circuit. The breaker was rated at 10 amps, which is pretty standard. The multimeter showed that there was power at the breaker, but nothing at the lights or the switches. So, something was up in between.

Adriana

Wait, so you just poke the multimeter in and it tells you if there's power?

Max

Yeah, pretty much. You gotta be careful, though. Anyway, I started thinking maybe the circuit was overloaded, so I did the maths. There were eight LED lights, each 15 watts. So, 8 times 15 is... uh, 120 watts. Then you divide that by 240 volts, which is what the office runs on. That gives you, like, 0.5 amps. Way under the 10-amp breaker. So, no way it was overloaded.

Adriana

That's not much at all. I always thought lights used heaps more power. But I guess LEDs are different?

Max

Yeah, they're way more efficient. Old school globes would chew through way more. But, yeah, I double-checked my maths, 'cause you don't wanna mess that up. If you're not sure, you can always use your phone calculator or ask someone to double check it.

Max

So, after ruling out overload, I started thinking maybe there was a break in the wiring. My supervisor used the multimeter again to test continuity, if the electricity can get from one end of the wire to the other. Turns out, there was an open circuit between the switch and the first light. So, the wire was busted somewhere in the wall.

Adriana

I guess if you keep trying, you usually figure it out. Or at least you learn something for next time. Alright, I reckon that's us for today. Thanks for listening, everyone. We'll be back with more problem solving next time—maybe something with cars, hey Max?

Max

Yeah, for sure. Catch ya later, Adriana. See ya everyone!

Adriana

Bye!