my light diddnt turn off tonight

luckily(?) my room is not 100% light proof, and i noticed just an hour after 12/12

what could it be??

my light is 250w, my contactor is 10a, and my timer is 13(2)a connected with 6a flex and 5a terminals, all wired properly

i can see the contactor switch inside move but not all the way

any ideas??????

i guess i'll have to get up early tomorrow



[B-Dr]

Anything mechanical sticking?

Is the timer still on the correct time? Perhaps a powercut has put it back a few hours?

Relay still switching all right?

Sounds like something sticking m8, by the way you don`t need a relay with a 250w. A timer on it`s own will work.

hi bush doctor

what sort of contactor are you using?

i use a relay to switch my fan off so i can inject co2 and ive had to replace it a couple of times , the contacts arced together once and the coil packed up another time this was a surprise considering the low load,of course its not a problem with the gas but i'd be pissed off if i'd gone away and the lights had been on for a few days.

i use a 20amp contactor on the lights , top left in the piccy ,the relay for the fan is below the speed controller is this similar to what you use on your light?

i'm sure if the fan can moose up my relay the inductive load from a 250 could well cause a failure

c f

sounds like a stuck relay,is the relay rated for an inductive (reactive) load?

the relay says this:

A friend of mine has been running his 250w hps/mh switchable lamp for 8 years with a bog standard pin dial timer and not once has it burnt the contactors out.
Growell told me the same, you don`t need a relay.

when i flick the swich on the timer, something is definately happening inside the relay, but yet the light is doesnt switch off

its happened twice since i last posted, i cant take this, i thought the relay stops light time failiure

could it be faulty relay??? its only a week or two old

in case your wondering, the timer does work, i even have a spare timer but that will not work on the relay either

PLEASE HELP

[B-Dr]

assuming everythings wired correctly id change the relay, a 250w discharge lamp needs a switch contact rated for 1.8-1.9 amps inductive so your time clock may be ok but its a bit close for me personally.

thanx hippy

i'll run the timer without the relay for now

if it burns the contacts, will that be dangerous??? or will it just break the timer??

The timer will be fine without a relay FOREVER, providing you have a decent timer (not one that was 2.99 for 3), your wiring is sound and use a surge protector.
Too much load would do the same as it`s done to the relay keeping the contacts open so it won`t turn off. By all means err on the side of caution if you wish by useing a relay and noone would blame you. But it isn`t an absolute must like with 400w and over.

ive been running the timer without a relay for a couple of days now, no probs yet

nice one delta



[B-Dr]