Tell Me That I May Have Fixed My Issue

[Scotty13]

I’m not a DIY electrician. I live in a condominium built in 1984. My kitchen has a Lutron dimmer switch, and whenever I turned it on, I’d hear loud crackling for a couple of seconds, and the track lights would flicker once or twice.

I bought the exact replacement switch, turned off the power, and opened it up — then realized it was more than I was comfortable handling.

While I had it open, I tightened the wire connections by twisting the plastic connectors until they were snug, then put everything back together. Now there’s no crackling and no flicker when I turn the light on.

Did I actually fix the problem, or should I still have an electrician replace the switch?

Thanks,
Scott

 

[Alan]

Crackling plus flicker at a dimmer is a red flag, and in a 1984 condo I would not assume it is solved just because it stopped today. You may have tightened a loose splice and improved it, but a loose connection can overheat and fail again. If you are not comfortable working in the box, the safest call is have a licensed electrician inspect that box, confirm the splices are correct, and replace the Lutron dimmer if needed. If you ever smell anything hot, see discoloration, or hear the crackling return, shut it off and stop using it.

 

[Scotty13]

Thanks. I have someone coming to replace it for me.