mack

After all this back-and-forth about the problem, all I can add is that Jeff
ought to not throw good money after bad, or incur further risk to himself by
calling in a really good electrician (not the guy who can replace a wall
switch) and leave it to him. We all think we know a little about
electricity, and it's just enough to get a surprise in the form of a lethal
or nearly lethal shock.
I'd just as soon not read the news and find that Jeff Strickland was found
face down with two wires in his hands. ....."let's see now, was that 250
Amps or 250 Watts???"
Stick to plumbing repairs. Lots of professional electricians have
succumbed to electrical shock, but I've yet to hear of a plumber drowning.

mack

After all this back-and-forth about the problem, all I can add is that Jeff
ought to not throw good money after bad, or incur further risk to himself by
calling in a really good electrician (not the guy who can replace a wall
switch) and leave it to him. We all think we know a little about
electricity, and it's just enough to get a surprise in the form of a lethal
or nearly lethal shock.
I'd just as soon not read the news and find that Jeff Strickland was found
face down with two wires in his hands. ....."let's see now, was that 250
Amps or 250 Watts???"
Stick to plumbing repairs. Lots of professional electricians have
succumbed to electrical shock, but I've yet to hear of a plumber drowning.

mack

After all this back-and-forth about the problem, all I can add is that Jeff
ought to not throw good money after bad, or incur further risk to himself by
calling in a really good electrician (not the guy who can replace a wall
switch) and leave it to him. We all think we know a little about
electricity, and it's just enough to get a surprise in the form of a lethal
or nearly lethal shock.
I'd just as soon not read the news and find that Jeff Strickland was found
face down with two wires in his hands. ....."let's see now, was that 250
Amps or 250 Watts???"
Stick to plumbing repairs. Lots of professional electricians have
succumbed to electrical shock, but I've yet to hear of a plumber drowning.

Jeff Strickland

"Mike Romain" <romainm@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:465d8145$0$6582$9a6e19ea@unlimited.newshostin g.com...
> Jeff Strickland wrote:
>> I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>>
>> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
>> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
>> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought
>> a new one.
>>
>> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not
>> come on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's
>> the difference?
>>
>
> Just another thought for you.
>
> I decided to fix the pool lights at my brother in laws cottage 'way' up
> north and talked to a pool tech before going.
>
> He stated the power transformers were the weak point.
>
> This fiber unit used a 12 V 75W 'pot light' and a colored spinning wheel
> but supposedly could take a 100W.
>
> Sure enough, I didn't even need to meter the power supply once I saw the
> melted solder on the output transistors. A new unit was pricey and I
> 'really' don't like replacing 'weak points' with 'new' weak points.
>
> So I went into the local town to the hardware store, picked up a 120V 50W
> bulb (the biggest they had, no 75's), went across the street to a Radio
> Shack and found a couple pigtails that fit the bulb's base because no one
> had the proper pigtail in town and converted the sucker to a 'line
> voltage' box.
>
> Basically I tossed out the 12 volt crap and just went 120V. It works
> great and some day when I go back up if I get ambitious I will up the bulb
> to a 75W or even the 100W the 'fixture' says it can handle. There is a
> colored wheel to avoid melting.
>


I did the same thing, I bought a pack of 120v/50w bulbs and did a test run
with them. they are not bright enough.

Jeff Strickland

"Mike Romain" <romainm@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:465d8145$0$6582$9a6e19ea@unlimited.newshostin g.com...
> Jeff Strickland wrote:
>> I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>>
>> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
>> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
>> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought
>> a new one.
>>
>> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not
>> come on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's
>> the difference?
>>
>
> Just another thought for you.
>
> I decided to fix the pool lights at my brother in laws cottage 'way' up
> north and talked to a pool tech before going.
>
> He stated the power transformers were the weak point.
>
> This fiber unit used a 12 V 75W 'pot light' and a colored spinning wheel
> but supposedly could take a 100W.
>
> Sure enough, I didn't even need to meter the power supply once I saw the
> melted solder on the output transistors. A new unit was pricey and I
> 'really' don't like replacing 'weak points' with 'new' weak points.
>
> So I went into the local town to the hardware store, picked up a 120V 50W
> bulb (the biggest they had, no 75's), went across the street to a Radio
> Shack and found a couple pigtails that fit the bulb's base because no one
> had the proper pigtail in town and converted the sucker to a 'line
> voltage' box.
>
> Basically I tossed out the 12 volt crap and just went 120V. It works
> great and some day when I go back up if I get ambitious I will up the bulb
> to a 75W or even the 100W the 'fixture' says it can handle. There is a
> colored wheel to avoid melting.
>


I did the same thing, I bought a pack of 120v/50w bulbs and did a test run
with them. they are not bright enough.

Jeff Strickland

"Mike Romain" <romainm@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:465d8145$0$6582$9a6e19ea@unlimited.newshostin g.com...
> Jeff Strickland wrote:
>> I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>>
>> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
>> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
>> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought
>> a new one.
>>
>> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not
>> come on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's
>> the difference?
>>
>
> Just another thought for you.
>
> I decided to fix the pool lights at my brother in laws cottage 'way' up
> north and talked to a pool tech before going.
>
> He stated the power transformers were the weak point.
>
> This fiber unit used a 12 V 75W 'pot light' and a colored spinning wheel
> but supposedly could take a 100W.
>
> Sure enough, I didn't even need to meter the power supply once I saw the
> melted solder on the output transistors. A new unit was pricey and I
> 'really' don't like replacing 'weak points' with 'new' weak points.
>
> So I went into the local town to the hardware store, picked up a 120V 50W
> bulb (the biggest they had, no 75's), went across the street to a Radio
> Shack and found a couple pigtails that fit the bulb's base because no one
> had the proper pigtail in town and converted the sucker to a 'line
> voltage' box.
>
> Basically I tossed out the 12 volt crap and just went 120V. It works
> great and some day when I go back up if I get ambitious I will up the bulb
> to a 75W or even the 100W the 'fixture' says it can handle. There is a
> colored wheel to avoid melting.
>


I did the same thing, I bought a pack of 120v/50w bulbs and did a test run
with them. they are not bright enough.

Jeff Strickland

"Mike Romain" <romainm@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:465d8145$0$6582$9a6e19ea@unlimited.newshostin g.com...
> Jeff Strickland wrote:
>> I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>>
>> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
>> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
>> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought
>> a new one.
>>
>> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not
>> come on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's
>> the difference?
>>
>
> Just another thought for you.
>
> I decided to fix the pool lights at my brother in laws cottage 'way' up
> north and talked to a pool tech before going.
>
> He stated the power transformers were the weak point.
>
> This fiber unit used a 12 V 75W 'pot light' and a colored spinning wheel
> but supposedly could take a 100W.
>
> Sure enough, I didn't even need to meter the power supply once I saw the
> melted solder on the output transistors. A new unit was pricey and I
> 'really' don't like replacing 'weak points' with 'new' weak points.
>
> So I went into the local town to the hardware store, picked up a 120V 50W
> bulb (the biggest they had, no 75's), went across the street to a Radio
> Shack and found a couple pigtails that fit the bulb's base because no one
> had the proper pigtail in town and converted the sucker to a 'line
> voltage' box.
>
> Basically I tossed out the 12 volt crap and just went 120V. It works
> great and some day when I go back up if I get ambitious I will up the bulb
> to a 75W or even the 100W the 'fixture' says it can handle. There is a
> colored wheel to avoid melting.
>


I did the same thing, I bought a pack of 120v/50w bulbs and did a test run
with them. they are not bright enough.

Jeff Strickland

It turns out that I don't know how to use my own volt meter (the one I built
20+ years ago from a kit). Crap! I hate when that happens.

The bulb is toast and the transformer is fine. I order new lamps and
reinstalled the transformer.




"Jeff Strickland" <crwlr@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:6R27i.2970$J76.2363@trndny03...
>I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>
> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought a
> new one.
>
> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not come
> on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's the
> difference?
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Jeff Strickland

It turns out that I don't know how to use my own volt meter (the one I built
20+ years ago from a kit). Crap! I hate when that happens.

The bulb is toast and the transformer is fine. I order new lamps and
reinstalled the transformer.




"Jeff Strickland" <crwlr@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:6R27i.2970$J76.2363@trndny03...
>I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>
> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought a
> new one.
>
> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not come
> on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's the
> difference?
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Jeff Strickland

It turns out that I don't know how to use my own volt meter (the one I built
20+ years ago from a kit). Crap! I hate when that happens.

The bulb is toast and the transformer is fine. I order new lamps and
reinstalled the transformer.




"Jeff Strickland" <crwlr@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:6R27i.2970$J76.2363@trndny03...
>I thought I knew this stuff, but there is a nuance that I'm not getting.
>
> I have a fiber optic lighting system in my swimming pool. It takes a
> 24v/250A light bulb. The bubl does not light, but the filiment is okay.
> The power supply (transformer) does not put out any voltage, so I bought a
> new one.
>
> The new transformer is stated to provide 40VA, but the light does not come
> on. My guess is that a VA and a "regular" A are different. What's the
> difference?
>
>
>
>
>
>
>