Track lights provide any room with flexible lighting schemes and the benefit of multi-directional light. They can be used to shed some extra light on kitchen counters, in the living room to showcase your artwork or in any other room in the house. They're very reliable and sturdy lighting applications. A track light that isn't working properly can be repaired easily and quickly using a few basic tools and materials commonly found in garages.
Instructions
General Troubleshooting
1. Turn on the track lights and see which light heads aren't working. Mark each one that isn't working with a small piece of electrical tape so you don't forget. Turn off the lights.
2. Replace the bulbs in the fixture heads that aren't working with brand new ones. Turn the switch back on. If they still don't come on, place your hand on the backside of one of the heads to see if they have a manual switch. If they do not, turn off the circuit breaker that controls the lighting circuit.
3. Remove each fixture head that you have marked with the electrical tape and gently sand the inside metal track.
4. Sand the connector terminals on the lighting heads in the same manner to remove any dirt or debris. Remove any sanding residue from both the lighting heads and the track with the cloth.
5. Reinstall the lighting heads and turn the circuit back on to test it. If the lights still aren't working, the sockets will need to be tested.
Testing the Sockets
6. Turn off the power to the track and remove one of the lighting heads.
7. Remove the lightbulb and unscrew the socket. Pull the socket out until you can see the wire connections on the back of it.
8. Turn on the continuity tester and touch one probe to where the black wire connects to the socket. Touch the other probe to the contact on the fixture arm that also has the black wire connected to it. If the connection is good, the continuity tester will light up, sound an audible alarm or both (depending on the model).
9. Perform the same test on the contact and socket connection that have the white wire connected to them. If continuity is positive, then the socket is ok.
10. Lift the tab on the inside of the socket with a flat screwdriver or needlenose pliers and then reinstall the socket.
11. Install the lighting head back onto the track and install the lightbulb. Turn the circuit back on and test the light to see if it works.
Tags: lighting heads, , back test, black wire, circuit back, circuit back test