replace thermal cutoff in recessed light?
I have a recessed light that I think has a defective thermal cutoff. The light cycles a few minutes on, a few minutes off, which sounds like the cut off to me. I don’t think it’s actually overheating because I’ve been using compact fluorescents for many years in the fixture, so it’s only 14 watts in a 150 watt max feature. Plus, there is no insulation near the fixture, and the ceiling is not particularly warm.
My question is, can the cutoff be replaced, or must I buy a new fixture?
I could remove the cutoff from the fixture for testing, but I’m reluctant to remove it permanently since a possible future owner might go back to incandescents (if they’re still legal then).
Also, by coincidence, another recessed fixture has stopped working entirely. In your experience, could this also be a symptom of a bad thermal cutoff? Both these fixtures are in the 20 year old range.
THANKS!