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#11
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fish camp light bulb failure
Yeah, vibration, knocking etc.
In Australia our main type of globes are not screw in but bayonet. (push in & 1/4 turn). Most globes here for household type use only have 3 supports holding the element up. It is possible to get ones that have 7 or 8 supports & these can take much more rough treatment. They are designed for "trouble lights" for mechanics etc. Another recent type of globe has just recently taken over the trucking scene here in Aussie is a type of LED light but I doubt if it would be bright enough for your purposes. They last "forever" on truck side light useage. BruceM "Leanne" wrote in message ... "Tom Best" wrote in message om... I would appreciate some help with a 12 volt question. I would think it would be from excessive vibration if they were originally for fixed service in the yard. Leanne |
#12
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fish camp light bulb failure(info)
Thanks for the info. Small (important?) corrections and additional
info follows: Seven bulbs in paralled and are 25 watts, not 40 watts. Resulting in a total of 175 watts on a 300 watt transformer. However, one bulb still burns at regular brightness. The copper wire is 12 guage and stranded. About 30 feet long. I though the low voltage yard lights were transformed to 12 volt DC not 12 volt AC. Is that the issue? Tom |
#13
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fish camp light bulb failure(info)
"Tom Best" wrote in message om... I though the low voltage yard lights were transformed to 12 volt DC not 12 volt AC. Is that the issue? The light bulb would not care if it got 12 VDC or 12VAC. It might help if you provided more detail on the "DC Converter". Why are you using a DC converter instead of a simple AC transformer? You said it was made for this so one would assume the voltage is correct, but you should measure it anyway. Have the lights been on 24 hours a day, or just a few hours each evening? Light bulbs are rated in number of hours they can be expected to last. Some light bulbs will last thousands of hours. Others, like a projector bulb for example, may last only tens of hours. Heat, shock and vibration are reasons for premature bulb failure. Some bulbs are not rated to operate in an "upside down" position, as it will cause the base to overheat. Make sure that the bulb is not being used in an inappropriate application. Perhaps if you told us exactly what bulbs you were using it would help. You said they were in a screw base, are these the 12volt bulbs that are often used in RVs or boats? Rod McInnis |
#14
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fish camp light bulb failure
My apologies to all for bothering you with a stupid question. The yard
light converter converts from 120 V. AC to 12 V. AC. Not DC as I assumed. I never would have guessed. Thanks for the help. Tom "Calif Bill" wrote in message link.net... Check the voltage. My Malibu is 12V AC from what I remember. "Tom Best" wrote in message om... I would appreciate some help with a 12 volt question. I set up a 7 light long string of 12 volt, 40 watt bulbs on a strand of 12 guage, outdoor lighting, copper wire. The bulbs and bases were standard Edison screw base types. The lights were connected to a 300 watt DC converter made for outdoor yard lights. In theory, I would like to take the same string (with lower wattage bulbs) on sailing trips. In 4 days, 6 of the seven lights have burned out. One light continues to burn at normal brightness. Any ideas or comments on these failures apprecitated. Thanks Tom |
#15
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fish camp light bulb failure
Thomas,
your query remains as sensible as it did before you mentioned the AC output. The lamps would have failed from overvolts (not much is necessary!) or vibration - whether the supply was AC or DC. Brian W On Wed, 03 Dec 2003 00:33:11 GMT, "test" wrote: My apologies to all for bothering you with a stupid question. The yard light converter converts from 120 V. AC to 12 V. AC. Not DC as I assumed. I never would have guessed. Thanks for the help. Tom "Calif Bill" wrote in message hlink.net... Check the voltage. My Malibu is 12V AC from what I remember. "Tom Best" wrote in message om... I would appreciate some help with a 12 volt question. I set up a 7 light long string of 12 volt, 40 watt bulbs on a strand of 12 guage, outdoor lighting, copper wire. The bulbs and bases were standard Edison screw base types. The lights were connected to a 300 watt DC converter made for outdoor yard lights. In theory, I would like to take the same string (with lower wattage bulbs) on sailing trips. In 4 days, 6 of the seven lights have burned out. One light continues to burn at normal brightness. Any ideas or comments on these failures apprecitated. Thanks Tom |
#16
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fish camp light bulb failure
Tom,
Nothing to apologize for. I tend to think that the AC in this case would not harm the bulbs as Rod said. Do you have a multimeter that you can use to check the converter to see what the actual output voltage is? Also, where did you obtain these bulbs and what were they marketed for? -JimL test wrote: My apologies to all for bothering you with a stupid question. The yard light converter converts from 120 V. AC to 12 V. AC. Not DC as I assumed. I never would have guessed. Thanks for the help. Tom |
#17
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fish camp light bulb failure
"test" wrote in message ... My apologies to all for bothering you with a stupid question. The yard light converter converts from 120 V. AC to 12 V. AC. Not DC as I assumed. I never would have guessed. Thanks for the help. Tom AC/DC a light bulb doesn't know the difference. Remember the High Intensity desk lamps? Tensor was a brand? A 12v AC supply and a tail light bulb. del cecchi |
#18
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fish camp light bulb failure
I would think it would be from excessive vibration if they were
originally for fixed service in the yard. Agreed. A good way to check for vibration is to set a dish of water near the bulbs, rev up the engine while you observe ripples on the surface of the water. I'd bet you'll see signs of excessive vibration at various throttle settings. This is bad news for a hot filament (as you already know). -- (¯`·._.· £ãrrÿ ·._.·´¯) "Leanne" wrote in message ... "Tom Best" wrote in message om... I would appreciate some help with a 12 volt question. I would think it would be from excessive vibration if they were originally for fixed service in the yard. Leanne |
#19
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fish camp light bulb failure(info)
Watts is a measure of power. Current is measured in amperes.
JimL wrote: jean, I'm confused on what you're saying. 40 watts is the current limit for the bulb, period! Unless of course the voltage is too high thereby forcing more current through. From what I see of these outdoor converters, the voltage output is constant. Manufacturers just don't want you to overdrive them with more wattage of bulbs than the trancformer can put out. -JimL jean wrote: TOM make sure that your circuit is a parrallel one, not in series.Also you cannot reduce the watt of the bulb because you will reduce the resistance of your circuit and let pass to much current on the same bulb (burning action) "Tom Best" a écrit dans le message de om... I would appreciate some help with a 12 volt question. I set up a 7 light long string of 12 volt, 40 watt bulbs on a strand of 12 guage, outdoor lighting, copper wire. The bulbs and bases were standard Edison screw base types. The lights were connected to a 300 watt DC converter made for outdoor yard lights. In theory, I would like to take the same string (with lower wattage bulbs) on sailing trips. In 4 days, 6 of the seven lights have burned out. One light continues to burn at normal brightness. Any ideas or comments on these failures apprecitated. Thanks Tom |
#20
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fish camp light bulb failure(info)
On Tue, 2 Dec 2003 14:01:11 -0800, "Rod McInnis"
wrote: "Tom Best" wrote in message . com... I though the low voltage yard lights were transformed to 12 volt DC not 12 volt AC. Is that the issue? The light bulb would not care if it got 12 VDC or 12VAC. I'm going to go out on a limb here. Assuming the voltage is in the 12 Volt range and the bulbs are of reasonable quality, there might be a difference between AC & DC regarding these bulbs. A 12 Volt bulb (automotive/RV type) running on AC is being turned on and off 120 times per second (60 Hertz). Although way too fast for general themometers, it's also experiencing a temperature change 120 times per second. By design, the bulb may be designed to withstand the vibration associated with auto/RV applications, but not the super rapid temperature changes. I've noticed a similar scenario with garden lights. They use the exact same type automotive bulbs used in some tail lights, yet last only a fraction of the (relative) time. To save money, the transformer output is AC, eliminating the bridge rectifier and smoothing capacitor. I would guess that were the same string of lights hooked up to a "smooth-ish" 12 Volts of DC, as experienced in a car charging system, they would outlast the 12 Volts AC system every time. A liberal sprinkling of diodes, chokes & capacitors will go a long way to increasing the life of your bulbs. FWIW, Tungsten filament bulbs are not the most efficient means of lighting an area. They produce a great deal of wasted heat. Regards. It might help if you provided more detail on the "DC Converter". Why are you using a DC converter instead of a simple AC transformer? You said it was made for this so one would assume the voltage is correct, but you should measure it anyway. Have the lights been on 24 hours a day, or just a few hours each evening? Light bulbs are rated in number of hours they can be expected to last. Some light bulbs will last thousands of hours. Others, like a projector bulb for example, may last only tens of hours. Heat, shock and vibration are reasons for premature bulb failure. Some bulbs are not rated to operate in an "upside down" position, as it will cause the base to overheat. Make sure that the bulb is not being used in an inappropriate application. Perhaps if you told us exactly what bulbs you were using it would help. You said they were in a screw base, are these the 12volt bulbs that are often used in RVs or boats? Rod McInnis |
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