Thread: Loose wall switch

Originally Posted by Marc

Ha ha ... you can change forum but not stripes.

He’s definitely not off to a good start.

Originally Posted by FrodoOne

Please provide photographs of anything which you have which may contradict that statement.

Okay, if I remember. I'm heading off to the seaside this weekend, probably. You may have to wait a few days until I get there and then get around to trying to fix it (with my block of wood or epoxy). It would be such a joke on me if I spotted some kind of steel mounting box embedded amongst the bricks. Ha ha.

Originally Posted by Marc

Ha ha ... you can change forum but not stripes.

Are you talkin ame?

No Mr Flynn, obviously not you but Frodo who has a habit of pugnacious verbosity.

Okay.

Since being rescued by Neil (I had been a Renovate Forum member for a few years on the other site) and seeing your name here, it occurred to me that you are the same person who held the name "Marc" in the old forum. A different avatar was used. It looked like he was driving a dozer or similar.

With forums, usernames have to be unique. I managed to keep mine; that was pretty much guaranteed, but there are a lot of Marcs out there in the world. It's just that it would surprise me if he didn't come across.

Same same. Actually started here 20 years or so ago.
In the other photo I am driving my old ski boat.
And that is my name.
May be should change it ... how about Tacitus?

Thanks for that. I'd suggest you keep it true. Though, when I first started to use the web people said never use your real name. I didn't have a clue as to what to use. But I lived in Flynn. So, I chose that. Then I thought people might think that's my name. So added Errol in front of it to stop people from thinking it was real.

Regards, Ron

Originally Posted by FrodoOne

I still believe that all light switches in Australia have been installed in Wall-Plates, since before WWII.
Please provide photographs of anything which you have which may contradict that statement.

There’s no wall plate or box here. Two rawlplugs were used. One had been pushed through a hole in the asbestos. You can see the hole to the right. Stupid idea, because it became loose, and that’s what I wanted fixed. You can see the remaining (red) plug to the left. Even that one hasn’t been properly fitted. But it’s in well enough to serve its purpose with a decent-length screw.

This is the fourth time I’ve had to pull an electrical fitting from the wall (two other switches, and a power outlet). None of them had mounting boxes or plates. Thankfully, the rawlplugs were secure in all of them.

IMG_19710420_124520.jpg


This particular problem was a real pain to fix. There was so little space in there to get some wood behind it, but it worked out brilliantly in the end. A nice firm switch.

The local hardware didn’t have any epoxy products. I wanted to try the epoxy putty, but they didn’t stock it. Disappointing. Various types of Araldite and super glue, mostly. Then I spotted Gorilla Glue on the shelf. I’ve never used that before and was curious about it. Unusual stuff to use: wet one surface with water, apply the glue to the other surface, and clamp. I tested it, before using it on the job, by glueing a piece of wood to a cement chunk I found lying around, that had a flat surface. The stuff expands as it sets. It seemed to make a good bond too.

The solution that Jack suggested was what I did. It worked well. I couldn't use a piece of wood as large as suggested, but I fiddled until I got a piece pushed in as large as would fit. You can see a bit of the wood in the photo. Sorry about the camera shake.

IMG_19710422_093507.jpg

I opted to drill a hole in the wood prior to glueing it in place. I doubted my chances of getting the hole in exactly the best spot and I didn’t want to risk the switch being mounted at an angle because I got the screw in the wrong place. Untidy. And nor did I want to drill through the plastic housing after the glue had dried. There’s not much of a shoulder on the plastic for the screw to hang on to, and I could imagine my drill bit chewing it off.

I was going to dispose of the old hardware. Rather than just binning it, I put it to use. I cut it into the shape you see in the photo which allowed it to act as a template for the correct screw locations. By screwing the template to the wall, engaging with the existing rawlplug on one end and me wiggling the piece of wood with its still wet glue at the other until I found the pre-drilled hole, I could then tighten both screws ensuring the template was level, and by tightening the screw into the wood it served as a clamp while the glue dried. You’ll spot a screw in the wood at the edge which I used as a handle.

So, the next day I removed all the screws and tossed the template, the piece of wood remained in place. Thankfully. You can see how the glue has bubbled out a little. On went the new switch. With the new switch and facia on, it looks good.

Hope you shortened the cable and re-terminated or as a minimum insulated the bare conductor.
Insulation.jpg

You've got good eyes.

I only noticed it as I was posting; when I looked at the photo. Didn't spot it when I pulled the thing out. It's been like that for 30 years or so. It can wait a bit longer. I think I might have some spaghetti somewhere.

Good job, given the limitations placed on you.