| SantaClaus |
04-18-2014 11:29 AM |
My suspicion is either corrosion in the bulb socket, or water intrusion. Either of these could cause the bulb to blow and to trip the gfci. My suggestion is to make 100% certain power is off to the circuit (not just switched off with a wall switch), remove the bulb and clean the inside of the socket with steel wool, both the screw threads and the sprung contact at the bottom. Make sure the sprung contact is springy, not laying flat against the bottom; if it is bend it up a bit. Place a small dot of Vaseline on the sprung contact (or better, dielectric grease, but Vaseline will work). Replace the bulb with either a hardened incandescent (garage opener, work light, rough service bulb) or better a LED bulb. These will do a better job of resisting blowing in less than ideal conditions. Put a thin coat of Vaseline on the BULB threads, not down to the glass insulator, and certainly not bridging the threads to the button on the bottom. Screw the bulb in, all the way til snug. Use a little more Vaseline to "caulk" the joint between the socket and the bulb. This will help waterproof the socket. Make sure that if there are weep holes in the bottom of the fixture that they are not blocked with debris. Put the lamp back together and turn the circuit back on. Hopefully that takes care of it. If not, the next thing to try is replacing the whole socket. If that doesn't work, the is likely damage to the buried electrical line. Hope it helps.
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