bigclive
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Philips street light surge protector
🕑 Added 2023-10-05 04:56:36 +0000 UTCAnother posh surge unit to rival the MeanWell unit. But this one was MUCH easier to open.
It also has a better and simpler failure indicator with just a single low current LED that everyone will ignore anyway. If I was cynical I might think that this unit is just a way to get the light beyond the warranty period.
There's always an issue mixing electronic power supplies with traditional transformers and inductive ballasts. The collapsing field of a chunky inductor can induce a significant voltage spike that might not bother other discharge lamps, but may make an electronic driver shit its little silicon pants.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10a_G8YqNBQ
Comments
Big Clive
That sounds interesting. Is it an active device?
Big Clive
The powerline lightning arrestors actually do that. If the MOV stack leaks enough current to heat up a carbon pellet it fires a .22 blank and literally blows the ground connection wire off the bottom of the unit.
Dave Matthews
I think somewhere, I have a streetlamp lifespan/replace-me indicator, would you like me to send this over to you if I can find it?
Curtis Hoffmann
I'm currently trying to patent a surge protector that uses blasting caps as surge indicators. I'm told there are certain environments where this is not recommended. I am trying to get the environment definitions changed. Wish me luck.
Mike Page
That 1mA withstand voltage is a bit controversial. DC is easy enough. But with a nonlinear component, you can't just take the DC value and divide by 1.414 to get AC. However, that seems to be what the industry is settling on, and it errs on the safe side. Remember, you're meant to replace an SPD if it fails in service or shows a 1mA test value lower than the rated AC voltage.
