So, I am getting ready for bed&I got up to close a curtain that divdes a room so i can sleep as I have plants on different lighting schedules. Something told me to get up at that moment to adjust the curtain&as i walked by my light setup,I knocked the cord out of the extension box. I go to plug in the cord for my Ativia QH2000 led light&its red fucking hot. I look at where it connects at the driver cord&the black little plug connecter that all of the LED lights have&its completely melted through. The end that plugs into the outlet was fine but the other end was completely melted through&the connecter was melted through as well. I just saved a huge disaster from happening in my bedroom that i would not have seen after shutting the divider curtain&going to sleep. I would have woken up to a huge fire! I cant believe that just happened!!! Fuck!
Well, Gotta take the good out of a near major disaster...
- Thread starter SkEE87
- Start date
speedwell68
Well-Known Member
That sounds like a loose connection. I'd be concerned as to why the breaker in the house didn't trip.
VincenzioVonHook
Well-Known Member
Good too see your still safe and sound. Have had a similar scenario before. Switch off a light to move it into another tent and the driver was red hot. I mean, enough to distort the alu in a small area and oxidise. Looks like it had been welded from the inside.
Another few minutes and i reckon she would have popped.
Another few minutes and i reckon she would have popped.
calvin.m16
Well-Known Member
And this is why you should buy name brand reputable products and avoid cheapo equipment from Amazon.
Glad your safe and didn't have a tragedy... I'd be contacting the seller for a refund.
Glad your safe and didn't have a tragedy... I'd be contacting the seller for a refund.
Herb & Suds
Well-Known Member
Pretty much any brand can be purchased on Amazon
Not sure why they received your wrath
Yes,Im getting a new breaker today. The light was still freaking on when i noticed this. It would have tripped or popped any second later. When i unplugged from the connector rubber was melted and all stringy. It had to be legit seconds away from completely going up in flames,It looked like only one prong opening was all melted and the adapter thats connected to the driver was only melted on the one side.
Also, The brand of light is Ativia QH2000 and it looks very well made. I did buy it on Amazon but it has gotten good reviews there and on many grow blogs.. I have to go through my Amazon account ,i believe there was a warranty on it.
Thanks for the well wishes.
Parzival
Well-Known Member
Glad you caught it. In addition to checking my equipment daily, I’ve also placed one of those little wireless govee sensors on my drivers and set alerts in the app to notify me if the temperature falls outside a normal operating range. It’s not a perfect solution, but I figure it’s better than nothing.
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
I noticed I was getting a bad connection from the plug that goes into my timer as it was loose. Took it up to my shop and filed the tangs clean, put a little flux on them and added a layer of solder to each with an 80W soldering iron I used to do leaded glass windows with half a lifetime ago. Fit real snug after that.
Hope everyone has at least a smoke detector in their grow space and a fire extinguisher just outside it too.
Hope everyone has at least a smoke detector in their grow space and a fire extinguisher just outside it too.
OldMedUser
Well-Known Member
It wouldn't trip unless there was a direct short. That would likely have happened as the insulation around the individual wires melted and they made contact. In the situation described it was acting like a high draw appliance similar to a toaster or electric heater that won't throw a breaker unless it overloads the circuit.
Heres an update to this situation-
I unscrewed the little black box to see what was going on. Everything but the grounding wire was disconnected, There is 3 wires in there,grounding wires on right&left side.Each side was completely disconnected but one sides plug was touching the metal which likely kept the light going.The light works again&its much more bright than it was previously. I was just about ready to buy a new light, i still might get another one,havent decided yet. I appreciate all of your help. Best growers community for sure.
I unscrewed the little black box to see what was going on. Everything but the grounding wire was disconnected, There is 3 wires in there,grounding wires on right&left side.Each side was completely disconnected but one sides plug was touching the metal which likely kept the light going.The light works again&its much more bright than it was previously. I was just about ready to buy a new light, i still might get another one,havent decided yet. I appreciate all of your help. Best growers community for sure.