How do you remove this fixture?

January 13, 2022 9:22 AM

The back deck of our house came with this fixture, which I want to replace. There are no screws other than the ones that hold on the metal and glass dome cover. It will not pivot or shift to be removed, even with substantial torque clockwise, counterclockwise, up, down, left or right. The fixture is a single unit, there's not a plate that can be turned or removed. I'm absolutely stumped. There doesn't appear to be caulk around the edges holding it on but a waterproof gasket of some sort. Any guidance?
posted by eschatfische to Home & Garden (7 answers total)

Best answer: What is behind the light bulb? It hard to tell in your pictures, but it kind of looks like there's a screw or something in the center of the fixture, obscured by the light bulb. If so, it's probably attached to a bracket that's mounted to the junction box.
posted by yuwtze at 9:28 AM on January 13, 2022 [4 favorites]

I can’t quite tell from the pictures: has the siding been trimmed to accommodate the fixture? I wonder if the point you need to access to remove the fixture is hidden behind the siding.

Frankly, I’d probably go the brute force route. Cut it off with a sawzall or use a hammer and chisel to crack onto it and pry it off. That may just be a character flaw on my part, though.
posted by mr_roboto at 9:36 AM on January 13, 2022 [2 favorites]

I can’t quite tell from the pictures: has the siding been trimmed to accommodate the fixture? I wonder if the point you need to access to remove the fixture is hidden behind the siding.

It looks to me like they installed the siding around the fixture, typically the siding would be installed first and then the fixture over it. I would also just cut the power and brute force it off.
posted by The_Vegetables at 10:02 AM on January 13, 2022

Best answer: Seconding yuwtze that there looks to be a threaded tube behind the bulb dead center of the bulb. The nut that goes over it might not have any obvious flats or knurling but you can grab it with a pair of pliers and unscrew it. Sometimes the nut will be seized to the tube so the tube ends up unscrewing from the cross bar. In which case because of the fine threads and length it can take quite a bit of twisting to remove.
posted by Mitheral at 10:10 AM on January 13, 2022 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: yuwtze and Mitheral, the center of the fixture has a little raised section that keeps the CFL from touching the fixture. It can't be turned, and doesn't appear to be a threaded screw close-up - it appears to just be the base of the fixture molded into that shape. There's no gap between that section and the rest of the base, it's a smooth transition.

It's entirely possible the fixture was installed into cut siding to accommodate it, but it looks to me like the gasket is on top of the siding, and I'd prefer not to brute force unless it's a last resort.
posted by eschatfische at 10:13 AM on January 13, 2022

One other thing to look for is a small (like eyeglass size) set screw on the outside of base near the bottom. Remove the screw and the fixture can be pulled or twisted off the mounting base. It might be under the gasket if the gasket extends up the fixture.
posted by Mitheral at 10:18 AM on January 13, 2022 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: I double-checked, and it turns out I am a dingus - that nub under the CFL in the middle was a small, smooth, very hard to turn screw that required a great deal of force. The fixture is off! Many thanks.
posted by eschatfische at 10:24 AM on January 13, 2022 [13 favorites]