Why are my lights not working properly?

Other things that can dull the brightness of light include loose connections, or dirt on the inside of the lens and chrome reflector.

Photo credit: Shutterstock

I had a short circuit in my rear light electrics which blew the bulbs. I’ve had the problem fixed and new bulbs put in and all works well…except one of the tail lights is much duller than the other, and I am loath to give the traffic police any excuse to harass me.  What could the problem be?  Jonson

I’m ready to bet thatthe garage that fixed the short accidentally replaced the bi-filament tail/brake bulb on one side with a 24-volt bulb, which they would have in stock to service trucks.

Your 12V electrical system only gives it half the current it needs to work properly, so it shines only half as bright (or less). 

Removing the lens cluster to check that takes only a couple of minutes.  A new 12V bulb will cost you less than Sh100. The voltage and wattage of the bulb are embossed on the side of the metallic housing at its base.   

If the garage in the mix-up also fitted a 12V bulb to a truck with a 24V system, it would have shone very brightly indeed and then burnt out (because it received twice the current the 12V bulb is designed to operate with).

Other things that can dull the brightness of light include loose or dirty connections (so even the right voltage doesn’t get through properly), or dirt on the inside of the lens and/or chrome reflector.

PAYE Tax Calculator

Note: The results are not exact but very close to the actual.