Those days are gone when bathroom fixtures used to come with screws. Now, most of our bathroom fixtures come without screws to keep their aesthetics, it could be the light, faucet, shower, and many others.
Occasionally, you might need to remove your bathroom’s light fixture to fix any damage or replace the bulb. This can be a headache if you have misplaced the user manual and don’t know what type of mechanism your light fixture is using.
In this post, I will give you an idea about the type of unscrewing mechanism your bathroom’s light fixture could be using and talk about removing each of them.
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Types of Bathroom Light Fixtures
Usually, you find light fixtures with four types of mechanisms; notch or groove, spring-loaded, slotted connectors, or flush mount. The table below shows what each of these mechanisms means along with, how they look in real.
Type | What this Means? | Removal | Image (Example) |
Notch or Groove | Dome is secured onto the base using notch or groove mechanism. | Twist and pull down |  |
Spring Loaded | Dome and base is pressed tightly using springs. | Pry by pulling and nudging. |  |
Slotted Connectors | Has raised bumps that locks the base to the dome. | Turn and pull down. |  |
Flush Mounts | Base of the fixture flushed against ceiling or wall. | Turn and lower. |  |
How to Remove Bathroom Light Fixture Without Screws
Notch or Groove Mechanism
In this type of light fixture, the dome is tightened to the base using a notch or groove mechanism. Removing such types of light fixtures will require a maximum of two people. You can ask one of your family members for help.
This is because you will have to put pressure on the base as well as twist the dome. So it’s always better to have someone.
How to Remove Bathroom Light Fixture with Notch or Groove:
- First person need to put pressure on the base against the ceiling to keep it stable.
- Second person need to loosen the dome from the base by twisting it counter-clockwise.
- Once the dome is out, you can pull down the light fixture with ease.
What if you failed in 1st Attempt? On failing, you can always go for multiple attempts. Try pushing the base up as sometimes the notch gets dealigned from the groove. Pushing the base up helps to get it fixed and the dome will detach from the base.
Spring Loaded
A spring-loaded light fixture has a handy design that makes it easy to remove from the ceiling. It can have various types of built-in mechanisms, including tap, nudge, or pressure. Moreover, each of them has got its tricks of removing.
Let’s look at each one of them.
How to Remove Bathroom Light Fixture with Spring Loaded:
- First, Take a flathead screwdriver or a knife and start prying the metal collar. This will loosen the paint around the ceiling. Be gentle to avoid damaging the fixture’s base and ceiling.
- Then, figure out the built in mechanism of your light fixture. It could be tap, nudge, or a pressure mechanism.
- If light fixture with tap mechanism, tap on the metal ring until the dome falls off.
- For the nudge mechanism, push the dome with a flathead screwdriver and it will fall off.
- For light fixture with pressure mechanism, apply a little pressure on the edge which will make it come off.
Slotted Connectors
Light Fixtures with Slotted connectors use raised bumps inside, which secures the base to the dome. Removing the slotted connector light fixture requires a simple turn and pull. Let’s look at how you can do it.
How to Remove Light Fixture with Slotted Connectors:
- Turn the dome counter clockwise, it will detach the dome from raised bumps inside.
- Once dome is ready to be removed, simply pull out the dome. That’s it!
Flush Mounts
The next type of light fixture comes with a flush mount mechanism. These types of light fixtures have rims attached directly to the ceiling or wall.
Moreover, most people prefer flush mount light fixtures as they are ideal for avoiding dust build-up on the bulb. Also, best for rooms with shorter ceilings.
Let’s see how you can remove such light fixtures.
How to Remove Light Fixture with Flush Mount:
- First, find the ornamental bolt. Usually, it is located at the bottom of the light.
- Now, With one hand, hold the glass part up and turn the ornamental bolt with other hand.
- Once it’s loose, detach the bolt. Then, carefully handle the dome and place it safely somewhere. Easy as that!
Note – Ornamental bolts are called the finial, usually used for decorative purposes and holds the dome against the base.
Wrap Up
I hope this guide helped you with the bathroom’s light fixture types and the process to remove each of them. I can completely understand, how confusing it is to figure out the disassembling process of a screwless light fixture. But It’s not rocket science.
Once knowing which kind of light fixture you have, It becomes child’s play.
If this article helped you, let us know in the comment. Feel free to drop your queries regarding How to Remove Bathroom Light Fixture Without Screws, I will be happy to help.
