I'm a few weeks into vegging my plants and this morning when I plugged in my led light it went bang at the plug and stopped working. It's a vivid led 250w qb. I don't think the fuse in the plug has blown. Is there anyone electrically minded who could tell me what the problem might be? Thanks
Led went bang at the plug
- Thread starter whelk
- Start date
Johnny Lawrence
Well-Known Member
Why are you not using a timer?
Billy the Mountain
Well-Known Member
JeffWix
Well-Known Member
Look...you should not be plugging and unplugging an appliance with a load...ie...a light. It should be on a switch or a timer...now, if it was an AFCI or GFCI circuit, you might have tripped the "gfci device" or the AFCI breaker in "the panel"...it could have even tripped a regular breaker depending on the load at the moment...or your ballast or driver could be bad in the light itself.
Go check your Main Breaker Panel and then any associated Sub Panels...if it is a GFCI, then go find the Master Device and reset it if it is not in the panel as a breaker.
Go check your Main Breaker Panel and then any associated Sub Panels...if it is a GFCI, then go find the Master Device and reset it if it is not in the panel as a breaker.
7CardBud
Well-Known Member
Ya, they are putting them in lots of stuff now. Even my low draw 1.5A window fans have them.
Boatguy
Well-Known Member
How is switching off a device any different than unplugging it?
Billy the Mountain
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I've seen them recently on some el-cheapo fans and the like, but haven't seen any light (LED driver) from a reputable brand use such a cord.
coreywebster
Well-Known Member
You don't have fuses in your plugs?
speedwell68
Well-Known Member
Americans don't. Their electrical system is fucking lethal. In the UK double insulated fused plugs have been mandatory for decades. There was one on here the other day, all his cables had melted and I said I would be worried why the fuse didn't blow. To be told that there was no fuse and the load still wasn't great enough to trip the main breaker. An average sized LED lamp should have a 3 amp fuse in the plug.
coreywebster
Well-Known Member
The UK uses a ring circuit system initiated after WWII while rebuilding to enable use of smaller wires using less copper. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. The fuse in the plug is protect the line, not the appliance. The biggest disadvantage is people tend to overload the wires.
Drop That Sound
Well-Known Member
There are situations where you can really overload extension cords, but the circuit breaker has no idea that there is anything wrong outside the wiring in the walls. It doesn't know you have a 15 amp cord pulling 18 amps through it.
Most Americans don't have any real idea how it all works either. We just plug it in. The most you see is a warning sticker on the cheap 3 prong cords, which every store has shelves stocked full, which no one really reads.
I heard the safest extension cord in the US is actually a strand of christmas lights, just because the fused plugs, lol.
Most Americans don't have any real idea how it all works either. We just plug it in. The most you see is a warning sticker on the cheap 3 prong cords, which every store has shelves stocked full, which no one really reads.
I heard the safest extension cord in the US is actually a strand of christmas lights, just because the fused plugs, lol.
speedwell68
Well-Known Member
I get that it protects the cable. These days it is virtually impossible to overload anything as all appliances come with a sealed double insulated plug. The only way it can fuck up is if someone swaps out the fuse for the wrong size.
I am an old sod, when I was a kid, Boys, not Girls, were taught how to wire a plug at school. At Scouts you were awarded a badge for being able to change the plug on a table lamp, choose the right fuse and change the bulb. The only serviceable plugs in my house are on things I have made myself, like the DIY COBS in my spare tent. My kids wouldn't have a clue.
CWF
Well-Known Member
The US system is only lethal when it is misused by the ignorant. Longtime EE and sparky, familiar with both EU and US systems. I don't often chime in here because of the trolling and ignorance, unless I feel someone is giving unsafe advice.
My advice: get someone who is a professional to look at it - electrician, technician, EE, or all 3 like me. Not sure what OP means by "went bang at the plug", but it sounds like a bad cable or a bad light, no way to tell from here.
My advice: get someone who is a professional to look at it - electrician, technician, EE, or all 3 like me. Not sure what OP means by "went bang at the plug", but it sounds like a bad cable or a bad light, no way to tell from here.