Office parks, hotels, sports stadiums; These massive structures often host thousands of visitors a day, few of whom have any idea what would happen if the power went down and the lights went out. In a world filled with broken emergency lights, total chaos would likely erupt, turning narrow corridors and stairways into stampeding death traps, followed by panic and desperate urgency.
Fortunately, we live in a world where in most public places, particularly those with a lack of natural lighting, emergency lights are legally required. Although many major establishments, such as the aforementioned hotels and stadiums, have diesel generators to provide temporary backup power, they are also required by state and / or local mandates to test their battery-powered emergency lighting on a regular basis (often monthly ).
Of course, if you are the handyman responsible for fixing the lights in your building, you probably already know.
The first step in troubleshooting emergency lighting problems, and probably the most important, is to familiarize yourself with the accompanying manual. Although most lights share the same general similarities, not all lights work identically and often require different parts.
In addition to familiarizing yourself with the unit, order replacement parts in advance and store them in a place you will always remember. Most of your replacement inventory should consist of light bulbs and batteries, but it is also a good idea to have an extra circuit board on hand.
Nine times out of ten, the problems you experience with your lights are due to simple problems. The bulbs are not tight enough, the wire nuts are loose, the ballistae go bad … if all the obvious physical connections appear to be in order, the cause is likely due to a bad battery. However, before replacing the battery, make sure that the problem is not the unit’s charger. The easiest way to test this is to swap the battery with a working unit. If it doesn’t charge, you need a new battery.
If none of those steps fixes the problem, you may be looking for a circuit board problem, especially if you are having problems with tangential drives; Exit signs and remote lights are often configured to exit from a base unit. The problem can be solved simply by opening the chassis and readjusting its connections, or you may need a new board entirely. Before you dive too deep into this step, again, open your manual or consult a professional.
There is a lot more to repairing your hazard lights than meets the eye, and it is imperative that you keep them in order. Use this guide to lay the basics and familiarize yourself with the documentation for your model, and you’ll be ahead of the game.