Almost all pools have at least one light inside them to make swimming in the evening or night a safer and more fun experience. But just like with any other light bulb, pool lights are eventually going to burn out and need replacing.
Once you get the hang of it, replacing a pool light is not that difficult, and anyone can do it. However, there is still some risk involved when dealing with electricity and water, and things can go wrong. If you don’t feel comfortable, it’s always better to hire a professional to do it.
But if you think you are okay to attempt it yourself, you need to figure out what kind of lightbulb your pool uses. Consider these three factors:
Type
There are three main types of pool lightbulb – incandescent, halogen, or LED. Most light fixtures are designed only to hold a single type of lightbulb, so you need to know which one to purchase.
Voltage
Pool lights are either 12V or 120V. In certain areas, you are only allowed to use 12V lightbulbs in your pool. Find out what kind you need, and if you have the choice, what you prefer.
Power
The power of a bulb is measured in watts and determines how bright the light will be. It’s important to remember that wattage will be different according to what type of bulb you have. It doesn’t really have a practical effect on how many watts your bulbs are, in terms of if the light will function or not, but it might be helpful to remember that greater wattage will cost more to run.
If you don’t know what kind of bulb you need, you can wait to see what type your old bulb is when you remove it (see step 6). Regardless, here are the instructions you need to change your own pool light bulb safely:
Turn off the electricity connected to the pool – VERY IMPORTANT.
This step is crucial to ensuring that you and anyone that might potentially be in or near the pool stays safe. Do not start playing around with the light fixture until you have turned off the power that goes to the pool. Double-check that the power is off by attempting to turn the lights on (if you have more than one light and the others are still working).
Remove the screw from the top of the fixture.
Most pool light fixtures are attached to the pool’s side with a single screw at the top of the fixture. Unscrew this. The type of screwdriver you will need will depend on the type of light fixture you have.
Remove the fixture from the pool wall.
Once the screw is out, the light should slide out. This may require some maneuvering as it can be fit quite tightly into the pool wall. Usually, prying it out with a flathead screwdriver works well (and if you needed a flathead screwdriver to unscrew the screw, then you already had one lying around).
Pull the light fixture out and onto the pool deck.
Replacing the lightbulb is easier to do on the pool deck than leaning over the pool or being in the pool itself. The light fixture should have a long cable attached to it, so you can place it in a convenient space to work. If, at first, it is not coming out of the pool wall, tug at it to loosen the cable.
Take the fixture apart.
Depending on what kind of light fixture you have, this will require slightly different actions. However, it would be best to remove the cover and the lens to reach the lightbulb if you did it. This may require unscrewing the parts, or it may just mean prying the pieces apart. As you are disassembling the light, inspect each piece for damage.
Unscrew and dispose of your old bulb safely.
Unscrew and get rid of the old bulb that you no longer need. Keep it long enough to make sure that you have the correct sized replacement. Please dispose of the old bulb by wrapping it in some newspaper before you toss it so that it doesn’t shatter and drop shards of glass everywhere.
Using a towel, screw in the new lightbulb
It’s important not to touch a halogen lightbulb directly, as the natural oil from your fingers can damage the halogen and cause it to burn out faster than normal. Screwing it in with a towel or other piece of cloth helps to protect the bulb.
Turn the power on to check that the bulb is now working.
Before you begin the process of putting the fixture back together, turn the power on to make sure that the bulb lights up. If it does, you can turn the power off and continue with the next steps. If it doesn’t, you still need to turn the power back off, so you can safely see what has gone wrong. Check all of the fixture components, and once you have finally got it working, you can move on.
Reassemble the light fixture
Put the light back together in the reverse order that you took it apart. Use this as another opportunity to double-check that there is no damage to any of the light components (if there is, consider repairing or replacing the parts, no matter how minor).
Place the light back into the hole in the pool wall.
Place the light firmly back into the hole. You don’t need to worry too much about the cable’s length – as long as it is in the wall, it is fine. If you are concerned, you can wrap the cable around the fixture base neatly to prevent it from getting tangled or damaged.
Replace the screw
Rescrew the screw on the top of the light fixture. Tighten it as much as possible to prevent the fixture from getting loose at any point.
Turn the power back on.
Once everything is securely in place, turn the power for the pool back on. Your light should now be shining again, and you can enjoy your pool at any time of the day.