Knackered flood-light

[steve_earwig]

And now the link works for me All I got the first time was the front page.

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[mjb]

I've had 3 in the bathroom for years that always seem to blow when i ain't got any here but the ones in the kitchen i fitted the 6 on a press on dimmer that hardly ever gets put on at full tilt and none of them have blown in over a year.

Be careful - most dimmers only claim to be able to handle 250W, like the one my landlord fitted Changed it for a switch when it blew (couldn't find any dimmers which could handle enough power) and discovered the back of the dimmer was scorched!!!

[steve_earwig]

The problem I have with dimmers here is when a bulb blows it often takes the dimmer out too

I just spotted this on the details for that bulb (below where it says "country of origin: China" )

You should always read the label before consuming the product

[scotty73]

You should always read the label before consuming the product

They do a good trade in edible undies out there but bulbs?

MJB: When i had the lights fitted they were done by my father in law who always makes sure i buy the best or he simply won't fit them... He's a bit of a ball acher on times but safety is first with anything electrical so i got the fittings he told me to get which he fitted.
Next step was finding a dimmer i think it was from the same seller.

Then the bulbs and i had to say sorry but after all that expence your fitting cheap old halogens for now butty.

They been in a year now and i like the set up it's a push button so you can leave it on the setting you like then if need be turn them up or down.... In that year none of them have blown but I've had two blow in the bathroom.... Surely this is something to do with the bathroom ones always coming on and staying on full tilt?

[Welly]

I've had two blow in the bathroom....

And there's a joke in there somewhere

Dimmer = long lamp life!

I did replace all my Kitchen lamps with Crompton 5w 'Daylight' LED's and it's brighter than a Community Centre in there now, I might even remove a couple of them the whole Kitchen is brighterer but consuming less electrickery than just one Hologen, very impressed indeed.

These are they, they have a 'globe' style LED rather than those flat yellow square things:

[scotty73]

I've had two blow in the bathroom....

And there's a joke in there somewhere

There was a similar one up in Engine and Transmission where doggy had blown a seal but i refrained.

[steve_earwig]

The problem I have with dimmers here is when a bulb blows it often takes the dimmer out too

Oh ffs, there goes another one What is it with this crap? They aren't cheap either, I think the last one was 20 quid odd, which makes bulbs ridiculously expensive if I have to change a dimmer every time one blows too

How's everyone getting on with their leds anyway? I reckon we should carry on with this because it looks like we're being forced into it by the demise of the filament bulb and I for one don't want to live in a perpetual twilight because I've no idea what's what.

The Chinese specials are still going btw. Going by the above if they last a year I'll be doing well.

[Doggy]

You needs high a speed semi-conductor fuse to protect it, (the 'FF' rated variety).
In an ideal world, selected to limit the let-through energy to < the semi condector device rating.
Generally any FF rated one will do, go for something 1.5 - 2 x normal current, as they don't like inrush.

[steve_earwig]

Well, would you Adam and Eve it, I went to pull it off the wall and it's actually got a fuse in there That's a first, maybe I was actually thinking when I bought it It's rated T1.25AH250V (I get slow blow but no idea what the H is) so I'll be going out before lunch to try to try and find a replacement (and a few spares...)

Mind you, knowing how easy to get stuff like this is here I may as well go and find a similar-sized nail now and save myself the bother

[Doggy]

T is aunty surge / slow blow as you suspected. I think the H is HRC, probably ceramic not glass.
Avoid the glass ones - should be banned for mains voltage.

[steve_earwig]

It is indeed ceramic. What's the deal with glass and mains? I know mains is more likely to be ceramic but I've seen glass ones too. Why, I have a (dead) fax machine here with one Is the ability to actually see the fuse wire in there a disadvantage or do they often explode, leaving tiny shards of glass for the electrical engineer to get in his finger tips?

[Doggy]

Glass one's frequently 'explode' as you put it, with big fault currents. Point is they don't always contain the arc.
If you've seen what happens in 3-phase fused plugs when adjacent arcs 'get to know each other', you wouldn't need convincing.

[steve_earwig]

That sounds like, errr, fun

Anyway, back from the big electrical suppliers in town here, the one with stacks of cables ect outside. I said I'd be wasting my time and I was, they don't stock anything like that fuse, nor were they capable of ordering me one. "Try such-and-such in Zagreb." Oh yes, I want to spend a day finding they don't do them either Fuggit, sawn up nail it is!

[Doggy]

http://cpc.farnell.com/siba/70-001-40-2 ... h=Products
If they won't send them to your neck of the woods and you want some, I'll post them for you. Cant cost a lot, shirley?

[steve_earwig]

2 amp ultra rapid? Is that a bad link or what you reckon I should use?

I found that place in Zagreb the guy said to try online, they have a proper website (unlike the token page most places have here) and they even list a similar fuse! Glass of course..

Thanks for the kind offer mate but I wouldn't want to put you through the bother, I will track some down and get them shipped out cheapy cheapy but there's no rush as I just replaced the rheostat with a normal switch. Now they don't blow up. Well, not as regularly as these things do anyway.