CFL Blinking with Light Switch Off (glass, lights, circuit, standard)

[raveabouttoast]

So I noticed last night that a CFL I have is very faintly "blinking" with the light switch in the off position. Only about a 1/4 of it lights up and it's very dim.

Here are the facts:

• It's the light at the top of the stairs and it's on a 3-way circuit.
  
• There are switches at the top & bottom of the stairs that control that light and another light (incandescent) at the bottom of the stairs.
  
• Both switches are standard on/off.
  
• It is an old house with some outlets that aren't grounded. It's probable that this circuit is not grounded.

This only started last night (I've had the CFL in there for months). Any ideas what's causing this?

When I touched the actual glass portion of the light - one finger near the base and the other near the end - the entire bulb lit up and it was brighter than before. Don't know if that helps, but I found it interesting at least.

[nybbler]

Do these switches have lights in them that light up when the switch is off?

[AksarbeN]

control that light and another light (incandescent) at the bottom of the stairs.

Try changing out the other light (incandescent) a the bottom of the stairs with a CFL matching both lights with CFL might fix the issue.

[raveabouttoast]

Originally Posted by nybbler

Do these switches have lights in them that light up when the switch is off?

No, they are normal switches.

[nybbler]

One of your switches could be bad. Or the wiring on the light could be reversed -- hot could be unswitched and neutral could be switched. Then if you have any path (even a very poor one) to ground, the light could flicker.

I've also seen suggestions that this can happen "normally" due to induced voltages in the wiring between the switches. I have my doubts in your case because the incandescent light would act to bleed off any such voltages.... unless that light has blown out recently.