Pool Light

I had a contractor replace my pool light about 15 years ago. It worked for less than a year. I was not sure if it was the light itself, or an electrical problem. After the arbor-geddon that happened in February of 2023, I had damage that required me to get an electrician in to fix things. The electrician confirmed that the pool light was getting power. This meant I needed to replace the pool light itself.

I suspected I would have to drain the pool to at least below the level of the light and have all sorts of risks around removing it and resealing it. What I learned was that none of that was necessary. The pool light sits in an recessed area and that area is not sealed at all. The entire pool light enclosure is effectively submerged. Further, it is held into that enclosure with a single Phillips screw. The electrical cable is (naturally) sealed, comes out the back (in the water) and runs in the water underground and eventually goes up and above the water line where it is connected to the electrical system.

To replace the light is conceptually easy, but physically tricky. You just need to remove the screw, then hoist the light enclosure out of the water. The electrical wire does not need to be disconnected: it is made long enough to reach to where you can put it down on the deck. Thus, you never actually have to disconnect anything.

The tricky part is removing the screw that holds the light in the recess. It was just far enough that I needed to hold my breath and submerge my head upside down to reach it. In that position, I could not get enough time and good visibility. So I tried it from in the pool where I could be upright. Visibility was a little better, but not perfect, but now I had the spaceman problem. There was nothing to really anchor myself to, so I would float and move with each movement trying to use the screwdriver. My helper had to help stabilize me, but it took quite a number of tries.

Once hoisted on the deck, there are a few screws that hold the glass and a seal, and inside is just an semi-ordinary light bulb fixture. You just buy whatever type of bulb you want, screw it in, replace the glass and re-install in the recess.

I decided to go with the more modern LED bulb, but not the fancy multi-colored options as that seemed unnecessary.