Whilst I have an external socket, it's too far from where I want my led lights. I've read about enclosures from specialist suppliers, but also read they are expensive. Any ideas for a temp one that will keep the socket end of a trailing lead dry for the festivities? Thanks.
Temporary Outside Enclosure (Christmas Lights!)
- Thread starter charliegolf
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What do you call expensive?
This includes an extension lead and is £17.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Masterplug...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B0062GTL42
This includes an extension lead and is £17.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Masterplug...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B0062GTL42
Securespark, I ran a search on here and got thet info without prices, so accepted 'expensive' at face value. The one in the link looks the ticket, thanks.
Back in the day of filament lamps based outdoor christmas lights, most sets wanted 24Vac (or course being filament lamps, they would work on DC, but AC minimises the effects of electrolytic corrosion on connectors). I built some 24v toroidal transformers into boxes like that and then just distributed 24v round where the lights were.
Its harder these days with the LED sets on offer , 24v is not the standard volttage, most state 31V AC, and also have the added complication that they generally have a multimuction controller integrated into the plug of the switch mode power supply that plays some quite naff looking effects using two chanels of lighting via a two core cable, with the LEDs wired one polarity for the one channel and the other way for the other channel, I'm guessing the output of the controller is a square wave with PWM built on top to offer dimming in sets that do that. I keep meaning to have a look with a scope and confirm and see what frequencies its happening at.
I'm guessing the 24vac from the transformer boxes, passed through a full wave rectifier, smoothed, and then outputed through a H bridge fed by a 50% duty cycle oscillator at a sensible frequency would probably be close enough. 24Vx root 2 is about 34v, less a couple of diode drops, once the volt drop on the 24vac feed is taken into account would be close enough to the 31v to be fine. I'm hoping @JohnW2 or @bernardgreen might have pointer or two?
Its harder these days with the LED sets on offer , 24v is not the standard volttage, most state 31V AC, and also have the added complication that they generally have a multimuction controller integrated into the plug of the switch mode power supply that plays some quite naff looking effects using two chanels of lighting via a two core cable, with the LEDs wired one polarity for the one channel and the other way for the other channel, I'm guessing the output of the controller is a square wave with PWM built on top to offer dimming in sets that do that. I keep meaning to have a look with a scope and confirm and see what frequencies its happening at.
I'm guessing the 24vac from the transformer boxes, passed through a full wave rectifier, smoothed, and then outputed through a H bridge fed by a 50% duty cycle oscillator at a sensible frequency would probably be close enough. 24Vx root 2 is about 34v, less a couple of diode drops, once the volt drop on the 24vac feed is taken into account would be close enough to the 31v to be fine. I'm hoping @JohnW2 or @bernardgreen might have pointer or two?
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For decorations ( amd some other uses ) I have found good quality LED strips and a variable DC supply to be an adaptable and reliable way to achieve the results I want.
Such as this star for the top of the Village Christmas Tree
Such as this star for the top of the Village Christmas Tree
Workbench, that is the dining room table. It was too cold at the time to workshop.
I'm not sure how I got into this but, if you're still talking about the trapezoidal transformer then I don't disagree with your arithmetic when there is no load, and although the on-load voltage will depend to some extent on the transformer, I would imagine that the load represented by LEDs would be so low as to not reduce the voltage appreciably.
Kind Regards, John
Again I'll ask if that is untidy
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That's my kinda 'shop....
Not really, by my standards - some of the surface of the bench top is visible
Kind Regards, John
Id have to start by asking what that thing with square shapes is in front of the bench?Not really, by my standards - some of the surface of the bench top is visible
Kind Regards, John
I think you'll have to explain a bit more clearly before I can answer that. I presume you don't mean the floor?!
Kind Regards, Jphn
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