Model railway power supply

You can run a few dozen LEDs off battery supplies with safety and ease.

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That is a very good idea, presumably the batteries would last a good while, given the low demand?
As before:
And with the use of a powerbank, your display wouldn't even need to be plugged in.
If you could utilise a power bank, you would have ample 5V power and it would be easily rechargeable.
The choices are endless!
 
Would love to see pics of the model railway...
 
That is a very good idea, presumably the batteries would last a good while, given the low demand?

I had some Christmas tree LEDs that ran on a couple of AAs continually for at least two weeks
 
Would love to see pics of the model railway...
If you mean mine, it won’t be terribly exciting. Basic kit with added scenery, for the grand kids.
IfI can get around to clearing one of my sheds, I would like to do a big one, if the kids get interested .
 
If you mean mine, it won’t be terribly exciting. Basic kit with added scenery, for the grand kids.
IfI can get around to clearing one of my sheds, I would like to do a big one, if the kids get interested .

I would love that myself. I used to do model railways when i was much younger...
 
Not sure if I am answering your point, but the actual PSU’s will not be accessible to the kids. The idea is to wire everything under the baseboard, with the only items for the kids to touch (apart from the train itself) being the illuminated rocker switches, and a couple of light switches used where it is not feasible to avoid.
If you chose to use leds, these run at 2 volts taking about 20mA
Can help you with power supply and circuitry
Flashing lights too
 
What would actually happen to 3.5v / 4.5v / 12v LED’s if they were suddenly introduced to 230v? Bearing in mind the thin wire used to connect
When higher voltage introduced, the led fuses
Led that normally ran at 2 volts, I applied 50 volts to it, one went off with a crack, another just fused with no noise
The element that gives off light is a semiconductor junction like a diode ( led also passes current, like a diode in one direction only)

Question re secondary on transformer going live. The case or the core would go to earth as would a leg of the secondary winging
Pump in the boiler- when it blows the fuse because the terminal block is flooded- it is the earth that results in blowing the fuse

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Resistor value for 12 volt supply R equal voltage divided by current. 10/20mA equals 5k ohms. Often 4.7k resistor used
 
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When higher voltage introduced, the led fuses
Led that normally ran at 2 volts, I applied 50 volts to it, one went off with a crack
I'm afraid that is a little backwards.
LEDs are current driven devices, that typically range from 5 to 20mA.
They also have a forward voltage of 1.8 to about 3.3V (for a blue LED).
So, the supplied voltage should be greater than the forward voltage - 2V may not be enough for a blue LED.

Using a 50V supply wouldn't be an issue, we just have to limit the current. I.e.

50V - 2V (forward voltage of LED)/0.01A (10mA) = 4.8K Ohm resistor would be fine.
Resistor value for 12 volt supply R equal voltage divided by current. 10/20mA equals 5k ohms. Often 4.7k resistor used
I believe your maths may be slightly out with this one :)
A 1k Ohm resistor would work.

Question re secondary on transformer going live. The case or the core would go to earth as would a leg of the secondary winging
Most of the power supplies we have been talking about have been SMPSU, that don't have an earth connection.
 
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