Help with a leaky light...

[mariner09]

I've put a new gasket ring on this pool light and it still leaks. Can I add any sealant to the gasket to help prevent leakage, like plumbing goop?

Will the heat from the 400w bulb cause a problem?

Do I just need a new light?

[mariner09]

Bump...

Anyone have any ideas???

[waste]

Sorry to have missed this until now. There are a few things required to seal the light. The gasket is the way to seal the lens to the body, all 3 must be in good shape to fully seal the unit - so check the lens and the sealing area on the light casing (make sure they have clean, flat surfaces). The other part of the seal is the ring or screws that hold the lens, gasket and casing TIGHTLY together, your problem could be as simple as stripped threads on the tightening bolt(s). Also make sure that the casing doesn't have any 'pinholes'. One other thing, the 'rib' on the gasket goes against the casing. Hope this is enough to help you seal the light.

[mariner09]

It wasn't the kind of light that has a ring. It's an Amerlite with the round outer gasket and there's no seal between the lense and cone. I used plumber's goop and so far it's making a huge difference.

[fission7x]

I've put a new gasket ring on this pool light and it still leaks. Can I add any sealant to the gasket to help prevent leakage, like plumbing goop?
Do I just need a new light?

I just replaced the bulb in my old Amerlite this past Thursday. Mine had a 400 watt "globe" type flood lamp in it, looked like a big high-powered bulb that goes in a bathroom fixture. Of course, no local (what few we have) pool shop carried anything but the typical flood lamp looking bulb, and then only in 300-watt and 500-watt.
When I disassembled it, the gasket appeared to be in fairly good shape. Looks like the previous owner had gooped it up with something, maybe even plumber's putty. Whatever it was, it sealed fine and cleaned off the housing and face ring pretty easy.
From reading this forum, it was obvious that I needed to replace, not only the bulb, but the gasket also and set out to do that from the start. I bought a new bulb and gasket online.
Before I re-assembled everything I gave the gasket a good coating inside and out with silicone grease. I found it in the plumber's section at Lowes. It was quite greasy, but when finished, appeared to give a good seal. I toyed with using silicone sealant, but kept having nightmares about the next bulb change and trying to pry everything apart.

So far everything is working great! Light works fine and no leaks!! :D

One lesson learned: Shop around for the bulb! You can find it at non-pool places online for about $10 cheaper and more than make up for the difference in shipping charges by buying from 2 different online vendors!! :(

[KirstenHW]

I replaced my bulb and gasket on my Hayward Starlite 500 watt/120 volt light. I am having someone come to check the switch for me, as the light is still not working. A tangent to the story is that when I replaced the bulb & gasket & put it in about 2 weeks ago, I didn't notice till this week there was light in the fixture. I pulled it out Sunday, and saw that the gasket had twisted when I put it on the first time. I dried everything out, reset it (without any goop) and when I screwed it all together I made sure I could see the gasket peeking out around the perimeter of the outer frame.

With the old bulb, there was never any water in the fixture - the bulb blew and until an electrician can confirm it, I feel stringly I just have a switch issue since the pump and luight are both on the same GFCI fuse in the basement.

Hayward tech support tells me since there was water in the light the entire fixture has to be replaced. Is this them just trying to sell me a new one?

[KirstenHW]

Anyone have any advice on this?

[waste]

Kirsten, as I'm sure you are aware, there shouldn't be water in the light:D Inspect the gasket for warps or nicks - yo may have fatally 'pinched' it on the first install - if it's not in PERFECT condition, get another and take care to install it without a twist this time. Or, the sealing plate of the light may have some debris on it which is keeping the unit from totally sealing. I hope you got the water out as soon as you discovered it, and let the housing fully dry before reassembling it, even a little moisture in the housing can cause it to 'trip out'.

Please make sure that the bulb is still operational - a continuity test is best, but with filament bulbs you will usually hear a rattle when the bulb is gently shaken indicating that the bulb is no longer good.

Sorry if what I said may make you go and replace the 2 new parts you bought, but sometimes that's what you've got to do. Good luck with this! - waste:)

[Peter155]

I had a leak where the cable enters the housing. I am having my pool remodeled. I noticed the water inside the fixture after the pool was drained. When I examined the fixture I noticed water coming out of the location where the cable enters the housing. I asked my PB about fixing the light, but he said it had to be replaced. So new lights have become part of the remodel.