Moon Light Help

[Fury2G]

I posted this in the CC forum but no response. Please help----
I have a 3-12VDC/800mA Regulated AC-to-DC Adapter from radioshack. I can't get the light to work. I smell a burnt smell coming from the "little box" that the lights are connected to.
Is the 800mA to much. I was reading through the thread and people were saying to use 300mA.
Thanks,
Fury2G

 

[gizmo001i]

The fact that the adapter is 800mA will have no effect on the output. All it means, is that the adapter is capable of handling up to 800mA. It will only output the amount requested by the appliance. Maybe you connected positive and negative leads the wrong way round. Or the controller box may have been faulty from the off. Sorry, but I can't be more specific without seeing it, but there should not have been a smell of burning. I would say that the controller is stuffed. Try sending it back for a replacement.

 

[smithrc]

The fact that the adapter is 800mA will have no effect on the output. All it means, is that the adapter is capable of handling up to 800mA. It will only output the amount requested by the appliance. Maybe you connected positive and negative leads the wrong way round. Or the controller box may have been faulty from the off. Sorry, but I can't be more specific without seeing it, but there should not have been a smell of burning. I would say that the controller is stuffed. Try sending it back for a replacement.

If i connect mine up the wrong way, it just dosnt light up... I suspect it was a faulty driver.

 

[Underwurlde]

Voltage is too high?

 

[Lateral Line]

Assuming the "little lights" are LED's, and assuming you just have the LED's and the power supply, I would suspect you have allowed too much current through the LED's and fried them, they need a current limiting resistor in series with them. If the lights are regular filament lamps, then they, depending on their voltage/wattage, could have pulled more current then the power supply was capable of providing thus frying it.

Without more details, it is hard to speculate further.

 

[Callum]

do moonlights promote algae?

 

[SkiFletch]

Assuming the "little lights" are LED's, and assuming you just have the LED's and the power supply, I would suspect you have allowed too much current through the LED's and fried them, they need a current limiting resistor in series with them. If the lights are regular filament lamps, then they, depending on their voltage/wattage, could have pulled more current then the power supply was capable of providing thus frying it.

Without more details, it is hard to speculate further.

Agreed, some pictures would be helpful. MOST common LED's are NOT rated for 12volts. They are usually rated around 3V. The LED is designed to draw a certain current reglardless of what the voltage is. So if the voltage is too high, you end up putting 4 times the wattage through it and it burns out.

If you're dealing with flourescent lighting, the ballast might not be designed to work on DC voltage in the first place... Tough to say without more info. Perhaps a manufacturer or pic?

 

[iamwhoiam]

He's talking about cold cathodes.... the things run that from a 12V DC supply that are usually fond in modded Pc cases as a good source of light. The invertor (the "little box") converts this 12V up to 700V required by the cold cathode

Sounds like you've wired it up wrong, or have a cheapo 12V adaptor, or the invertor is just plain faulty

Pictures would help!

 

[hoarp001]

its likely you got the polarity round the wrong way. if you look on the net at wh ich colours mean which polarity on standard PC Molex connectors you can be sure to connect the right pole to the right wire.

 

[Underwurlde]

Sorry to say, but that's utter b*ll*cks mate!

IF they are flourecents then NO polarity because it will be AC.

IF they were LEDs then LEDs are DIODES if you connect them up 'the wrong way' they simply would just do nothing. You would not break them. You can break an LED by putting too much VOLTAGE across it.

Finally this has NOTHING to do with PC Molex connectors whatsoever and NO reference to colour therein should be made.

End of rant

Andy

 

[hoarp001]

yeah but the inverter that changes the low voltage DC to the operating AC would be polarity sensitive

The molex plugs are relavant becasue the kits come with a molex plug to connect the inverter to the power supply of the computer. If you know which colours are +ve on the molex plugs then you know which wires to supply the positive power to from the DC transformer.

 

[Underwurlde]

Ah, I see what you are getting at. What you say in respect to these devices is true.
BUT the original poster gizmo001i makes no mention of the use of an actual PC Inverter.
The guy above says that these inverters are similar.
However, unless gizmo001i states otherwise, no assumption can be made.

Andy

 

[hoarp001]

Ive never seen a cold cathode system thats not for PC, I didnt know they made them for any other purpouse...

 

[Underwurlde]

Dunno how to answer that one, but I bet Cold Cathode tubes were around LONG before the advent of the PC!

Neon signs being the most obvious as well as LCD (and hence Laptop) backlighting as well as the more recent PC case modding CCFLs. Oh, and flourescent lighing in offices & homes?

Endless uses I should imagine, it being a light bulb.

 

[Lateral Line]

I bet Cold Cathode tubes were around LONG before the advent of the PC!

You'd be right. By more than 100 years in fact.