A • First of all, don’t worry: I don’t think your house is haunted. If I have to guess, I would imagine that this only happens in the hot months of summer. If so, then we can assume that you have an insulation issue where it is surrounding the recessed light, causing it to get too hot.

There are two types of recessed lights to talk about: IC rated and non-IC rated. The “IC” stands for insulation contact. In other words, if you have an IC rated light fixture, then it is OK to have insulation surrounding the light in the area above the ceiling. If the light is non-IC rated, then insulation should not be close to the light. Even though a fixture may be IC rated, it can get overly hot. What will happen then is that the light will shut off. Once the light has cooled, it will come back on.

In your particular case, there are several options. You could move the insulation in the attic away from each light fixture. However, if these lights are in a first-floor ceiling and you have a two-story home, getting to the insulation isn’t practical. So, here are some alternatives.

First, make sure that you are not using halogen bulbs. The halogen bulb will produce a much higher temperature than an incandescent bulb.

Next, make sure that the wattage of the bulb isn’t higher than what is recommended for the fixture. If you remove a bulb, in the housing of the can light, you will see a note telling you the highest recommended wattage. Even if you are using the correct wattage, you might try lowering the wattage, so the fixture doesn’t get quite so hot.

Another simple recommendation would be to switch to a CFL (compact fluorescent) bulb. This will give off much less heat than any other bulb.

Steve Cloninger is the owner of Get It Done Home Repairs & Maintenance. Visit his website at getitdoneinc.com.

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