Electrical – only have 30V going to the light fixture

electricaltroubleshooting

I just replaced a broken light fixture in my closet. (The switch in the light fixture broke when I pulled too hard on the chain.)

When replacing the light fixture I noticed that there is only 30 V AC between the white and black wires. The ground wire is cut back and is not being used. By the way, the wiring in my house is all aluminum.

I know the new light fixture works. I checked it out with my multimeter, and I tried it in a different closet. But the light bulb won't turn on because there is only 30 V. (Even if I disconnect the light fixture completely there is still only 30 V.

It seems to me that it must be a problem with the wiring. My attic does provide some (difficult) access to the wiring, but I am not sure where to start looking for the problem or what to look for. Can anyone offer some suggestions?

Best Answer

Are you sure the circuit was live when you measured it? If you try to measure an open (i.e. off) circuit, you can sometimes read a "phantom voltage" caused by coupling with other nearby live wires. Phantom voltages can't generate a significant amount of current and are therefore harmless, but they can be measured by a multimeter.

If you say the fixture doesn't work even though the old one did, perhaps a connection came loose somewhere and now you have an open circuit with only the phantom voltage. Or maybe you just forgot to switch the breaker back on?

I don't see how the old fixture could've worked if it was actually only getting 30 volts, so something must've changed during your installation.