My fight to repair a beautiful hanging light fitting-Story of hardship

We have moved in to our new flat. It took quite an effort to select and buy lamp fittings for various rooms. I was attracted by a particular design which was a hanging lamp with a side bracket. I bought two of these of same design so that they could be hanged as a pair on opposite walls.

The lamps were fitted and when we switched them on they were glorious. I got so much fascinated, I watched them for quite a time. Soon afterwards trouble broke out; one after another the lamps failed . Even after replacing the bulbs which got fused out the lamps were not working. We called on the electrician but he did not have a ready solution. He wished to take them to his workshop and repair. It took more tan a month and constant chasing but finally I learnt that due to heat the wires inside the fitting had melted. They were able to salvage one of the lamps but I did not know the fate of the other one. Finally it was learnt that the glass shade of the fitting had broken and we have to buy a new one.

It was another hunt to get a fitting almost matching the surviving one.  I was extremely happy when they fitted both the lamps back on a fine day. The good news was that both the lamps were working on the first day. But the old lamp was blinking for some time and finally conked off on the second evening.

I was at my wits end. I did not know what to do further. But on one thing I was sure; To repair the failed lamp somehow and to do the repair myself and not leaving it to the mercy of the electrician.

The lamp was hanging from the floor at a height of 8 feet. I had to climb up on a stool and balance myself precariously for unscrewing the fittings while making sure that  the glass shades were intact. My wife helped a lot but I had to do a balancing act to retain my position on the narrow stool. After an hour I finished the operation successfully. I carefully removed all the outside connectors and when I looked at the lamp holder I got quite a shock and a surprise. The wires had not melted as told by the electrician but the connecting terminals had badly corroded and the wires were not connected securely but simply twisted on the terminal. When I checked with the OVA meter  I found that the current was not flowing  due to the corrosion of the electrodes.

It took nearly 2 days for me to remove the corrosion but I was successful only with one terminal. For the other one after racking my brain I came out with a solution of providing a bypass wire connection connecting directly yo the lamp base avoiding the terminal. I thoroughly checked with the OVA meter and finally checked with a brand new lamp as the old one had fused out. The lamp lit brightly when connected.

I had to reassemble the fitting and the wire had to be inserted through a curved tube and it was very difficult. The wire was very thin and when I pulled it through the tube it started breaking. I did not know what to do. I thought it was hopeless and stopped the work for the day. I had a brain wave next day. I took up a thick wire and was successful in inserting through the tube after several trials. I cut the old wire just above the lamp holder and the connected it to the new wire. After checking with the OVA meter and making sure the connection was OK I proceeded.

Fitting the lamp back on the wall bracket was the most difficult part. The lamp's back portion had to be fitted to a wall bracket through 2 screws. Standing precariously on the narrow stool and managing not to fall I tried hard fitting the screws. But the gap between the fitting and the wall bracket was so narrow I failed in inserting the screw with my fingers. The screw used to fall down and I had to seek the help of some one to retrieve it. This happened several times causing considerable fatigue. Also the lamp holder which was connected to the new wire suddenly got separated due to its weight and fell down on the floor. I thanked God that it had not happened with the bulb or glass shades
on. I fitted an outside metal wire between the holder and the top of the fitting so that the weight would be supported. Finally one of the screws  fell down and I was not able to trace it out after spending more than an hour. I abandoned the operation for the day.

The next morning I got rejuvenated and searched for s similar screw in my box of odds and ends.  I could not get an exact match but got a screw which I though would fit in. After several attempts I could fit the bracket to the fitting. The new screw some how did the job. I was in the 7th heaven when the lamp lit up brightly and all my woes flew off.

To end the story next day our servant maid quietly came up with the missing screw which had got trapped near a corner box on the floor. I thought of replacing it on but wiser council prevailed as I did not wish to start the whole process again.  

Keyboard problem with my Toshiba laptop

        I keep on working day and night on my Toshiba laptop without any respite. One afternoon as I was holding a cup of tea in one hand and punching a key, suddenly there was a loud noise in  front of the house. I   jerked to the front and the tea splashed on to the laptop. While most of the keys were unaffected, the 'R' and 'U' keys stopped working. I tried several remedies like pulling out the key tops and drying the bottom with cotton swabs to absorb moisture; keeping the computer in an upside down position overnight. But both the keys were practically dead. I had lot of work to do. All my outputs were without 'r' and 'u'.

Suddenly the idea of downloading a virtual keyboard flashed to me. I searched the net and could get one. It was quite useful and served my immediate purpose. Meanwhile I contacted a service provider over phone and told my problem. She promised to send an operator to my house to look at the instrument. She told me while the problem could be solved easily in few cases, most might require replacement of the entire key board assembly.She further added that it might cost around Rs.5000. When I heard the charges I got shocked. I seriously started looking at web addresses to ascertain the price of key board in India. 

Problems look simple at the outset to solve;but as one looks at ways and means of solving, difficulties start rising one by one. I had to find out the exact model name and model number of my laptop. Searching all round my computer I could locate it in an insignificant place and in light print.I knew now that it was called,as L305-S5968. Searching round in Indian stores I could locate it in only one stores that too at a cost of Rs.2800/-. While I was searching for the part I was also looking at the procedure for dismantling and re assembling the keypad. I could read several procedures. 

I decided to open the keypad. I found it pretty difficult to unscrew the holding screws as those were tiny and had Philip's screw heads. After much struggle I could loosen both. I could ease out the keypad from its location. I found a wiring harness fitting in to a connecting slot on the computer. Without venturing further I screwed the keypad back in position.

Next day the service operator came and inspected the laptop and after dismantling the keypad and inspecting, he informed, it had to be replaced. He wanted to take the laptop to his workshop and repair it there. My experience with Indian service centres prevented me from handing over the computer. Once it is handed over there is no guarantee when it will be returned. The owner has to be at the mercy of the service provider. I asked the operator to give me a quotation for repairs and do the repair at my premises. He agreed and got my email address promising to send the quote by evening. Late at night I was informed over phone that it would cost Rs.2500.

I intensified my search for the keypad next morning and stumbled upon the item in the Indian eBay. The laptop I have is called a satellite model and the exact keypad for the same was available at  eBay for a price of Rs.1150. I could also make use of a coupon and ordered the keypad for Rs.950 with free delivery. Around 10.30 in the morning the lady from the service outfit called and asked if she could go ahead and execute the repair. I told her, I was differing the repair, as it was expensive. She was not convinced with my reply but I had no qualms as I had earlier paid for their visit and their quote was exorbitant.

The keypad arrived after 3 days as it had to be flown from New Delhi. I was carrying on my regular work with the help of the virtual keypad. It took hardly 10 minutes to take out the old keypad and insert the new one. While removing the wiring harness locks at the sides were to be loosened and care had to be taken.The fitment was perfect and the new key pad started working effortlessly. Now a days, I have stopped having drinks while working.