Light bulbs seem to go out at the most inopportune moments. Like a bathroom bulb that goes out when you’re running late getting ready for work. Or the kitchen light that gives up the ghost right in the middle of dinner preparation.
And it’s even worse when that dead bulb refuses to go to its grave gracefully. You grab that bulb, grip it and rotate – and nothing. The bulb just turns in your hand, not in the socket.
It’s stuck.
So what do you do? You might be able to unscrew the bulb if you grip it harder. But you don’t want to risk breaking it.
But you need that bulb out. NOW!
A Quick and Easy Trick…
Here’s a quick and easy way to win the battle of the bulb. Just follow these simple steps:
- Grab a roll of duct tape, and tear off about a 2-foot length
- Form a loop with the tape, sticky sides in
- Center the light bulb in the middle of the loop, and stick together the tape on both sides of the bulb
- Using the tape ‘handle’ that you’ve formed, just twist counter-clockwise and that bulb WILL come out!
And If the Bulb Breaks?
Sometimes bulbs break even before you try to remove them. If you have a broken bulb to deal with, try this method (it beats the old potato method of broken bulb removal):
- Turn off the light switch, or unplug the lamp
- Remove the cap and little plastic ring from the neck of an empty water or soda bottle
- Heat the threaded part of the neck with a match or lighter until it becomes pliable
- Carefully mush inwards on the heated threads, forming a cone shape
- Wait until the plastic has cooled and hardened (you can dip it into cold water to hurry the process)
- Now you can just push the cone-shaped end of the bottle into the light socket, and twist counter-clockwise.
Easy and safe!