Flourescent tubes gently flickering

[Adrian]

All,

Just put some flourescent tubes into the bedroom wardrobe, and a couple of them are gently doing a passable impression of the Aurora Borealis whilst switched off.

They're these ones from Screwfix :-

's three in one long eaves wardrobe - one mounted horizontally on the wall (which doesn't flicker) and two mounted vertically at the top of the door frames either end. Both of these do flicker gently. All are off the same permanently live supply, they're internally switched.

WTF?

[Andy Burns]

You really out to throw out all those old nylon shirts :-)

[John Rumm]

Check you have not managed to switch the neutral rather than the live.

(does the flickering / glow (in the dark) get brighter if you place you hand on the tube?)

[Adrian]

Andy Burns ( [e-mail]) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Pffffftttt...

[Adrian]

John Rumm ( [e-mail]) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Would that really make a difference? I'll check tonight.

Dunno. Again, I'll check.

[meow2222]

:-

> There's three in one long eaves wardrobe - one mounted horizontally on the

Generally either a suppressor across the switch thats leaking current, or cable capacitance between L/swL or N/swN.

NT

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember Adrian saying something like:

Check the Electricity Supply Co haven't sneakily installed a massive substation on the other side of the wall.

[boombangabang]

Or even a high power radio transmitter station.

Because if you stood any where near the Rugby radio station holding a Flourescent tube, whilst it was transmitting, it would light (glow).

[John Rumm]

I know a story about that:

[John Rumm]

It did on mine! (previous house owners sparks had wired an outbuilding light with a switched neutral - did much as you described)