LED traffic lights
 

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.

LED traffic lights
 

Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/7/2016 5:23 PM, True North wrote:

Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


That thought ran through my mind when I realized that several traffic
lights were working ... you just couldn't see what was on or off.
There was one that I could see red ... but it was very, very faint,
showing through the ice and snow. The green was more visible.

LED traffic lights
 

Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 2/7/2016 5:23 PM, True North wrote:

Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for
the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating
element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


That thought ran through my mind when I realized that several traffic
lights were working ... you just couldn't see what was on or off.
There was one that I could see red ... but it was very, very faint,
showing through the ice and snow. The green was more visible.




Leave the bottom of the deflector can open. Snow can not build up then.

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/7/2016 5:41 PM, Califbill wrote:
Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 2/7/2016 5:23 PM, True North wrote:

Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for
the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating
element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


That thought ran through my mind when I realized that several traffic
lights were working ... you just couldn't see what was on or off.
There was one that I could see red ... but it was very, very faint,
showing through the ice and snow. The green was more visible.




Leave the bottom of the deflector can open. Snow can not build up then.


Oh, it does. Nothing to do with the design of the can. The wind
driven, wet snow just gets pasted on the lenses so thick that no light
gets through. The old incandescent bulbs thru enough heat out to melt
anything that stuck and kept a buildup from happening.

Dry fluffy snow isn't a problem. It's the wet, sticky stuff.

LED traffic lights
 

On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


We have some type of heating element in the light to keep it from freezing over. Yay Virginia DOT.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!

LED traffic lights
 

On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


I suppose the trick would be to coat the lenses with something snow
won't stick to.
If that doesn't work I guess is that thermostatically controlled
heater Don mentioned is the next step. This is not the first time I
heard this story. I am surprised someone hasn't fixed it. Must be
Bush's fault.

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/7/2016 6:52 PM, John H. wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


We have some type of heating element in the light to keep it from freezing over. Yay Virginia DOT.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!



I guess we are not the only ones with this problem:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/16/led-traffic-lights-that-c_n_393769.html

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/7/2016 6:56 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


I suppose the trick would be to coat the lenses with something snow
won't stick to.
If that doesn't work I guess is that thermostatically controlled
heater Don mentioned is the next step. This is not the first time I
heard this story. I am surprised someone hasn't fixed it. Must be
Bush's fault.



I was just reading about it. The correction is to add heaters on the
main lenses but it's an expensive process to convert them all. Some
don't have the supplied power or wiring to run heaters because they
were designed for low current, LED lights only.

A coating on the main lens isn't really practical. The wind driven wet
crap will stick to teflon with no problem and any coating that worked
would have to be routinely redone. Here's a typical LED traffic light
pretty much covered up:

http://tinyurl.com/grjpr6t

LED traffic lights
 

On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 18:57:19 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/7/2016 6:52 PM, John H. wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


We have some type of heating element in the light to keep it from freezing over. Yay Virginia DOT.
--

Ban idiots, not guns!



I guess we are not the only ones with this problem:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/16/led-traffic-lights-that-c_n_393769.html
I said I have heard about this before.

That is a 6 year old story ... and nobody has fixed it?

"We are from the government and we are here to help."

I can't believe this was not in the first conversations about LED
lights.

LED traffic lights
 

On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 19:08:27 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/7/2016 6:56 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


I suppose the trick would be to coat the lenses with something snow
won't stick to.
If that doesn't work I guess is that thermostatically controlled
heater Don mentioned is the next step. This is not the first time I
heard this story. I am surprised someone hasn't fixed it. Must be
Bush's fault.



I was just reading about it. The correction is to add heaters on the
main lenses but it's an expensive process to convert them all. Some
don't have the supplied power or wiring to run heaters because they
were designed for low current, LED lights only.

A coating on the main lens isn't really practical. The wind driven wet
crap will stick to teflon with no problem and any coating that worked
would have to be routinely redone. Here's a typical LED traffic light
pretty much covered up:

http://tinyurl.com/grjpr6t

Strange transformer deal you got going there. I thought someone was
getting 3p but I don't see a 3p drop. It looks like it is just 3 tiny
(15-25kva?) transformers feeding 3 120/240 customers. FPL would have
dropped a 50kva pig in there and be done with it.

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/7/2016 8:52 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 19:08:27 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/7/2016 6:56 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


I suppose the trick would be to coat the lenses with something snow
won't stick to.
If that doesn't work I guess is that thermostatically controlled
heater Don mentioned is the next step. This is not the first time I
heard this story. I am surprised someone hasn't fixed it. Must be
Bush's fault.



I was just reading about it. The correction is to add heaters on the
main lenses but it's an expensive process to convert them all. Some
don't have the supplied power or wiring to run heaters because they
were designed for low current, LED lights only.

A coating on the main lens isn't really practical. The wind driven wet
crap will stick to teflon with no problem and any coating that worked
would have to be routinely redone. Here's a typical LED traffic light
pretty much covered up:

http://tinyurl.com/grjpr6t

Strange transformer deal you got going there. I thought someone was
getting 3p but I don't see a 3p drop. It looks like it is just 3 tiny
(15-25kva?) transformers feeding 3 120/240 customers. FPL would have
dropped a 50kva pig in there and be done with it.


Looks like 208 wye to me.

LED traffic lights
 

On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 01:51:30 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/7/2016 8:52 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 19:08:27 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

On 2/7/2016 6:56 PM, wrote:
On Sun, 7 Feb 2016 17:12:11 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote:

I noticed something over the weekend that all you "southerners" don't
have to deal with.

Pretty much all traffic lights are now high output LEDs. Saves energy
and they last a long time, but there's a problem.

After a wind swept snow storm with heavy wet snow that then freezes like
we had Friday, the lights become completely covered and you can't see
which one is on.

The LED's aren't hot enough to melt the snow away like the old fashioned
incandescent types, so even 24 hours after the snow stopped flying you
still can't see which of the lights are lit at many intersections.
Causes quite a bit of confusion until people realize what the issue is.


I suppose the trick would be to coat the lenses with something snow
won't stick to.
If that doesn't work I guess is that thermostatically controlled
heater Don mentioned is the next step. This is not the first time I
heard this story. I am surprised someone hasn't fixed it. Must be
Bush's fault.



I was just reading about it. The correction is to add heaters on the
main lenses but it's an expensive process to convert them all. Some
don't have the supplied power or wiring to run heaters because they
were designed for low current, LED lights only.

A coating on the main lens isn't really practical. The wind driven wet
crap will stick to teflon with no problem and any coating that worked
would have to be routinely redone. Here's a typical LED traffic light
pretty much covered up:

http://tinyurl.com/grjpr6t

Strange transformer deal you got going there. I thought someone was
getting 3p but I don't see a 3p drop. It looks like it is just 3 tiny
(15-25kva?) transformers feeding 3 120/240 customers. FPL would have
dropped a 50kva pig in there and be done with it.


Looks like 208 wye to me.


That is what I thought but the drops look like triplex, 2 hots and the
bare messenger/neutral

LED traffic lights
 

True North wrote:
Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


Maybe a ray gun to blast the snow from them from the ground?

LED traffic lights
 

On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 20:38:46 -0500, Alex wrote:

True North wrote:
Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


Maybe a ray gun to blast the snow from them from the ground?

===

Or an invisible protective force field?

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/8/2016 10:49 PM, wrote:
On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 20:38:46 -0500, Alex wrote:

True North wrote:
Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


Maybe a ray gun to blast the snow from them from the ground?

===

Or an invisible protective force field?


Or even a visor over the lights.

LED traffic lights
 

On Tue, 9 Feb 2016 08:28:57 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

On 2/8/2016 10:49 PM, wrote:
On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 20:38:46 -0500, Alex wrote:

True North wrote:
Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


Maybe a ray gun to blast the snow from them from the ground?

===

Or an invisible protective force field?


Or even a visor over the lights.

===

Wind driven snow will get under the visor.

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/9/2016 11:10 AM, wrote:
On Tue, 9 Feb 2016 08:28:57 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

On 2/8/2016 10:49 PM, wrote:
On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 20:38:46 -0500, Alex wrote:

True North wrote:
Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


Maybe a ray gun to blast the snow from them from the ground?

===

Or an invisible protective force field?


Or even a visor over the lights.

===

Wind driven snow will get under the visor.

I guess the only solution is to not be trapped in a place where it snows.

LED traffic lights
 

On 2/9/2016 11:10 AM, wrote:
On Tue, 9 Feb 2016 08:28:57 -0500, Justan Olphart
wrote:

On 2/8/2016 10:49 PM, wrote:
On Mon, 8 Feb 2016 20:38:46 -0500, Alex wrote:

True North wrote:
Oh oh! We build them up here in the Amherst area so the push is on for the city and province to convert. They might have to add a heating element controlled automatically or from the ground to use when needed.


Maybe a ray gun to blast the snow from them from the ground?

===

Or an invisible protective force field?


Or even a visor over the lights.

===

Wind driven snow will get under the visor.


They have visors. Bottom is open. Doesn't work for wind driven, wet snow.

The laws of unintended consequences is in play here. A good idea to save energy that does not work as intended in a cold climate.

LED traffic lights
 

On Wed, 10 Feb 2016 04:30:58 +0000, RGrew176
wrote:


The laws of unintended consequences is in play here. A good idea to save
energy that does not work as intended in a cold climate.

My DOT buddy told me this is not as much about saving energy as saving
maintenance. The LEDs are supposed to last a whole lot longer. A
heater running at a low power would last virtually forever too and
they can be controlled thermostatically so they would not run at
ambients over 40 or so.