There are several common reasons you may experience blinking or flickering lights. While the terms are often used interchangeably, they describe different situations and can have different causes.
Blinking Lights
A blink is a brief, momentary loss of power where your lights go completely out and then immediately come back on.
Momentary blinks are often a normal part of how SEC's electric system operates to maintain reliability and protect equipment.
Common causes of blinking lights include:
- Tree branches contacting power lines
- Wildlife
- Lightning
- Vehicle accidents
- Other temporary disturbances on the electric system
SEC uses protective devices, such as circuit breakers and reclosers, to detect and clear these temporary disturbances. These devices briefly interrupt power to clear the fault and then quickly restore service.
What to expect:
- Reclosers may operate up to four times while attempting to restore power.
- Depending on your location, you may notice anywhere from no blinks to four brief blinks.
- If the disturbance clears, power is restored almost immediately.
- If the disturbance remains, the affected section of the line is isolated to protect equipment, ensure public safety, and minimize the number of members impacted by the outage.
When it is safe to do so, SEC also works to reroute power (backfeed) to restore service to as many members as possible while repairs are being made.
Flickering Lights
A flicker is when your lights repeatedly dim, brighten, or fluctuate without going completely out.
Common causes of flickering lights include:
- Loose electrical connections
- Overloaded circuits
- Failing appliances
- In some cases, issues on the electric distribution system
If you experience persistent or recurring flickering, additional investigation may be needed to determine the cause.
What should I do?
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- If the flickering affects your entire home, occurs frequently, or your neighbors are experiencing the same issue, contact SEC so we can investigate our equipment and the electric distribution system.
- If our equipment is not the cause, you may need to contact a qualified electrician to inspect your home's electrical system.