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One LED, sans resistor, attached properly to an AA battery doesn't burn it out, but it shines SO dim you have to cup your hands and turn off the lights to even know its on, so that wasn't burning it out. The 4 pack AA case wouldn't make it do anything. I attached wires (and resistor) to an LED and a 9 volt and it illuminates like you'd expect an LED to look. I'm fine with this outcome I'm just curious how long one might expect a 9volt to power it. The LED info says this: Red: 620-630nm 1.8~2.2v, 2V typ, 24mA, 1300mcd
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Oct 14, 2015 22:05
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Then you're massively overdriving the LED on a 9V and should burn it out well before the battery runs dead. It looks dim on a single AA because that's only 1.5V (at best) and the LED spec you pasted shows a minimum of 1.8V. With the components you've got, you need to run at least two AAs in series (for 3V) and a 47Ω resistor:  Ganked from here with a 3V source, 2V typical voltage, and 24mA typical current. If that's all that's in your circuit, a decent set of AA batteries should get you somewhere in the ballpark of 80 hours runtime (assuming 2000 mAh usable capacity for a low draw, based on this).
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Oct 14, 2015 22:28
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Interesting! Good to know. So how would I series up the 2 double A's? How would that look? I think my battery case (x4) is bunk.
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Oct 14, 2015 22:42
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Normally you'd use some form of battery holder. I'd expect the vast majority of battery holders on the market to be set up in series, so your 4xAA should output 6V. It's entirely possible it's just defective and has a loose / failed connection in it.
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Oct 14, 2015 23:02
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Thanks man! I'll just buy some more cases. 
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Oct 14, 2015 23:18
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Get something like this that holds two AA batteries. http://www.amazon.com/Leads-Switch-Black-Battery-Holder/dp/B00CQKCLWM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1444938073&sr=8-1&keywords=2+aa+battery+holder
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Oct 15, 2015 20:41
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This is a really stupid question but just in case -- you are using all 4 AA cells at once, right?
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Oct 16, 2015 01:30
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Parts Kit posted:This is a really stupid question but just in case -- you are using all 4 AA cells at once, right? Super dumb, but worth checking. Yes fully loading it.
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Oct 16, 2015 05:30
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I'm setting up a ceramic kiln. Because it is an energy hog I would like to be able to meter just how much it uses. This would allow the potters to split the cost of firing and would also be used to adjust the kiln for energy savings. I'm in the us. I have not run the line from the panel to recep yet. The kiln is 240v.
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Oct 20, 2015 13:11
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XmasGiftFromWife posted:I'm setting up a ceramic kiln. Because it is an energy hog I would like to be able to meter just how much it uses. This would allow the potters to split the cost of firing and would also be used to adjust the kiln for energy savings. Ask the electric company for an old meter. A lot of places are upgrading their mechanical meters to digital/remote reading, so the PoCo has a literal roomfull of these things just lying aroun. Install in meter base. wire a plug, etc, into the meter base and plug the kiln into that.
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Oct 20, 2015 14:18
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XmasGiftFromWife posted:I'm setting up a ceramic kiln. Because it is an energy hog I would like to be able to meter just how much it uses. This would allow the potters to split the cost of firing and would also be used to adjust the kiln for energy savings. There are all manner of inductive meters you can put on that. Something like this could work: http://www.amazon.com/Eyedro-EHEM1-...tricity+monitor
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Oct 20, 2015 16:03
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Thanks to both of you. Will likely try the free option first.
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Oct 20, 2015 23:37
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Feenix posted:Super dumb, but worth checking. Yes fully loading it.
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Oct 21, 2015 01:41
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Code question: I have a under cabinet sink light that has a wall switch and I'd like to add in parallel to it some LED strips that would run under the cabinets nearby. Would it be up to code to wire in a 12v adapter in parallel with the current light?
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Oct 22, 2015 23:37
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Breaker question- I've been doing some wiring renovation, getting rid of the remaining old 2-prong outlets and adding some new outlets. The breakers I've replaced so far have all been type QT, which I replaced with a 20a single-pole tandem breaker. I go to pull another breaker to replace today and notice the bar is thicker. Some of the breakers are type MP... didn't know there were different types in the same panel. The only remaining breakers I can replace are all type MP, and I'm having very little luck finding a single-pole tandem type MP. Anyone know if they exist, and if so, where one might procure some?
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Oct 23, 2015 00:49
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bimmian posted:Breaker question- I've been doing some wiring renovation, getting rid of the remaining old 2-prong outlets and adding some new outlets. The breakers I've replaced so far have all been type QT, which I replaced with a 20a single-pole tandem breaker. I go to pull another breaker to replace today and notice the bar is thicker. Some of the breakers are type MP... didn't know there were different types in the same panel. The only remaining breakers I can replace are all type MP, and I'm having very little luck finding a single-pole tandem type MP. Anyone know if they exist, and if so, where one might procure some? Are you sure? MP breakers were made by Murray, who were bought out Siemens. Look on the panel door. Who made your panel? If you're going to be swapping breakers, then you might actually need to be upgrading to AFCI breakers also. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 01:07 on Oct 23, 2015 |
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Oct 23, 2015 01:05
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Parts Kit posted:Code question: I have a under cabinet sink light that has a wall switch and I'd like to add in parallel to it some LED strips that would run under the cabinets nearby. Would it be up to code to wire in a 12v adapter in parallel with the current light? Yes. But if and only if the adapter was rated for that purpose. If it's a plug-in it would be totally acceptable to put in a switched receptacle and plug it into that.
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Oct 23, 2015 02:18
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I'm going to want to put a light switch for my new pantry on a "wall" that's 3/4" plywood, so I need something surface mount. Any recommendations as to what I should use?
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Oct 23, 2015 03:04
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Another option would be to get a specialized switch that mounts in the door frame. Here is one made by leviton: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0036ZA9F2
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Oct 23, 2015 05:08
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Zhentar posted:I'm going to want to put a light switch for my new pantry on a "wall" that's 3/4" plywood, so I need something surface mount. Any recommendations as to what I should use? Are the studs exposed? Mount a box to a stud, preferably one with an adjustable depth. If not, use an old work box. The wings on them adjust beyond a full inch, well within 3/4". If you want to go surface mount, use a handy box with an cable entry through the back. Use a plastic NM cable clamp on the rear knockout.
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Oct 23, 2015 05:38
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kid sinister posted:Are you sure? MP breakers were made by Murray, who were bought out Siemens. Look on the panel door. Who made your panel? Panel sticker-  As far as AFCI goes, not sure. Most of the work I've done so far is in an unfinished basement, which doesn't appear to require afci protection. They are all behind a GFCI outlet at the start of the chain at the very least. I have put in 2 new ones in the dining room, I would assume those would require it.
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Oct 23, 2015 14:11
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bimmian posted:Panel sticker- I believe cutler-hammer still makes BR breakers that are UL listed for Bryant panels. CH may be too (cutler-hammer bought bryant)
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Oct 23, 2015 16:54
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kid sinister posted:Are the studs exposed? Mount a box to a stud, preferably one with an adjustable depth. If not, use an old work box. The wings on them adjust beyond a full inch, well within 3/4". There are no studs, both sides of the plywood are exposed, finished surfaces.
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Oct 23, 2015 17:35
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Zhentar posted:There are no studs, both sides of the plywood are exposed, finished surfaces. Sounds like a job for wiremold.
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Oct 23, 2015 20:56
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I had a contractor redo a bunch of stuff in my house. Part of it was supposed to be running a ground wire to all the outlets. He had the drywall off and that's what I expected was going to be done. Turns out, it wasn't done. Instead, the guy he had do the wiring did a lot of the outlets as a "bootleg" ground. From everything I read online, this is anywhere from not-so-good to will-kill-me bad. Both electricians I've called say it's not a good idea but neither of them seem too concerned either. How worried should I be? I'm more than a bit pissed but the only thing written into the contract is that I wanted "all of the outlets grounded" and of course what he did passes my basic ground plug thing I got from the hardware store. I don't know what to do, any help or advice would be more than welcome.
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Oct 27, 2015 00:17
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moana posted:I had a contractor redo a bunch of stuff in my house. Part of it was supposed to be running a ground wire to all the outlets. He had the drywall off and that's what I expected was going to be done. If it doesn't meet the code requirement of "grounded" then it's not, and you should get your money back for work that wasn't done. Connecting the ground wire to the neutral wire is NOT GROUNDED. Look at article 406 (receptacles) about how receptacles are required to be grounded. Your first course is to play nice but not dumb. Connection to the neutral is not grounded, and don't back down if he insists that it is. If that doesn't work, tell him your next call is to a lawyer. If he still doesn't play nice, then call a lawyer. Don't give this guy another cent until this is fixed. Don't give him ANY money for ANYTHING ELSE. Either his time is worth trying to get your money, or whatever he's done is worth your money and he's going to walk away from you. He hired a dirtbag electrician, and it shouldn't be up to you to pay for that error. babyeatingpsychopath fucked around with this message at 00:58 on Oct 27, 2015 |
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Oct 27, 2015 00:52
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How the heck do I know it's even fixed, though? My plug thing said that they were grounded; the only reason I was suspicious was because they were doing it after the drywall went back up and one of the dudes straight up said it was a bootleg ground. When I pressed him, he said "we redid the ground wire to this room and this room, the only ones bootlegged were these two" but how can I tell if they actually fix it? Should I hire an electrical inspector to come out and double check?
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Oct 27, 2015 01:05
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You should buy the black and Decker electrical guide. It's got pictures of all types of circuits. So even if you don't know what you are looking at, you can at least see what it's supposed to. http://www.amazon.com/Decker-Complete-Wiring-Updated-Edition/dp/159186612X
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Oct 27, 2015 07:11
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Thanks, that will help when I replace my awful kitchen lights as well! And we have another electrician coming in to give us an inspection and quote if it needs fixing (my guess is it will). The guy came today and tried to act like I was crazy for wanting an inspection, then said that the money I owed him was for other repairs and not the electrical stuff. I told him I'd pay after everything checked out in an inspection. Thank you everyone for the support and advice.
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Oct 27, 2015 22:16
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moana posted:How the heck do I know it's even fixed, though? My plug thing said that they were grounded; the only reason I was suspicious was because they were doing it after the drywall went back up and one of the dudes straight up said it was a bootleg ground. When I pressed him, he said "we redid the ground wire to this room and this room, the only ones bootlegged were these two" but how can I tell if they actually fix it? Should I hire an electrical inspector to come out and double check? Shut the breaker off for that circuit and pull it out of the wall. If you see no ground wire going back into your wall to the grounding screw then it was not fixed. If you see a small looped wire that doesn't go anywhere but just stays on the outlet you have a bootleg ground.
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Oct 27, 2015 22:20
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CMvan46 posted:Shut the breaker off for that circuit and pull it out of the wall. If you see no ground wire going back into your wall to the grounding screw then it was not fixed. If you see a small looped wire that doesn't go anywhere but just stays on the outlet you have a bootleg ground. Just so I'm clear - literally what you had prior to work being done right? (The "neutral" wire providing the path away from you.)
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Oct 27, 2015 22:40
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So, I'm really glad that I put in an AFCI/GFCI breaker in my distribution panel recently, because it's alerted me to an exciting new failure! I noticed the power was out on the circuit it's on this morning, so I went downstairs to reset it, thinking that everyone else was probably right, perhaps these things were *too* sensitive after all and it had nuisance tripped. Nope! I opened up the panel cover to discover water seeping out from inside the panel, out around the edges of the breakers. Looked like a miniature waterfall in there. Certainly explains why the gfci tripped! I checked the water lines above the panel (this whole house is just a shitshow of stupid) and everything above is bone dry. I (very foolishly) wiped a kleenex around the service entrance cable, thinking that maybe it was leaking around the edges since it's not properly encased in pvc conduit from the meter. The exterior of the service entrance wire was dry as well, and the dust seems to confirm that. What I'm thinking is that maybe the meter box is leaking and water might be funneling in through the service entrance wire itself? I didn't take the cover off my panel (not touching it till it dries out) so I couldn't see the source, but it seems plausible to me, especially considering how much water there was. I don't think the service entrance wire has a solid fill weatherproof sheathing, if I remember correctly. Just a thick vinyl exterior sheathing. I'm assuming this has been going on ever since I bought the house late last year, because when I was in the panel recently to put in a main breaker and the afci breaker, I noticed spots of rust around the breakout tab edges, as well as the corners of the breakers, and I assumed it was from previous water issues in the basement (which I've since sorted out). What should my next step be? My immediate thought was to caulk up the meter box outside, and then on a better day, pull the meter and replace the service entrance wire with pvc conduit and a solid fill weatherproof service entrance wire. Is that overkill? Also, should I be concerned about the rust inside the panel and replace that as well? I'm just thinking that something on the bus bars might have rusted or oxidized, and increased resistance could cause things to heat up? A new square d qo panel is about a hundred and fifty bucks, so maybe it's cheap peace of mind? House inspectors are worthless 
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Oct 28, 2015 14:45
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My first step would be to remove the meter cover and see exactly what's going on. You may want to call your utility first and let them know what's going on, maybe even have them come and remove the cover with you there. Lots of fault current potential in there, not something to take for granted. Does your utility service come in overhead or underground? angryrobots fucked around with this message at 15:19 on Oct 28, 2015 |
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Oct 28, 2015 15:17
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angryrobots posted:My first step would be to remove the meter cover and see exactly what's going on. You may want to call your utility first and let them know what's going on, maybe even have them come and remove the cover with you there. Lots of fault current potential in there, not something to take for granted. It's an overhead service entrance. Here's a blurry picture I snapped a few months ago when I pulled the meter to add a main breaker to the panel:  Obviously I don't wanna touch it while everything is wet, but is there any recommended sealants I could goop on there as a stopgap measure? Or some sort of roof cover I could add to better protect it overall? Eventually I want to replace the meter base, but I'll need the power company to shut off the service before tackling that. If I were to guess, it's coming in from the service entrance wire since that's not protected in conduit or anything.
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Oct 28, 2015 16:54
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What does the cable look like coming in overhead? Code dictates there should be a "drip loop" of a certain length (I think 750mm?) outside your mast so that rain runs to the bottom of the loop and falls off. If there is little or no slack, the rain will run along the cable and down inside your service entrance.
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Oct 28, 2015 19:32
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fisting by many posted:What does the cable look like coming in overhead? Code dictates there should be a "drip loop" of a certain length (I think 750mm?) outside your mast so that rain runs to the bottom of the loop and falls off. If there is little or no slack, the rain will run along the cable and down inside your service entrance.
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Oct 28, 2015 21:39
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Today, I am installing a replacement kitchen fan in my grandma's house. A few things bother me like the black wire coming out of the ceiling box is still hot after the breaker is turned off. The single switch for the fan is wire nutted black to white and the switch has the other black to white. None of the wires in the switch box are hot with the breaker off. I decide to go into the ceiling and see this right off I see this (haven't touched anything in attic yet):  This isn't even the area I need to look at. Supposedly nobody has been up here for 16 years. And this is the junction box over the kitchen:  Looks like the two wires running from the switch are taped to random wires in that mess. I'm gonna wire the switch correctly but my god I'm gonna be here all day putting everything in order.
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Oct 30, 2015 22:03
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Alright, straightened out that mess. There was two hots running to the single pole switch. I wish I took a pic of it but got all the neutrals on the right cable. The large taped up mass was soldered (is that the right word?) together and was very tight so I left them alone. Surprisingly the repair went well, although I did slight cave in a small piece of drywall. Luckily, I felt it, fixed it, and it was inside a cabinet so you cannot see it unless you know where to look.
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Oct 31, 2015 07:00
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The Gardenator posted:Alright, straightened out that mess. There was two hots running to the single pole switch. I wish I took a pic of it but got all the neutrals on the right cable. The large taped up mass was soldered (is that the right word?) together and was very tight so I left them alone. Yep, that silvery woven NM looks to be from the right era for solder and rubber tape. FYI, if you ever do have to undo those, solder is very soft. You can just untwist them with pliers. However, I'm not sure that plastic box is up to code, regarding cable clamps, box fill and knockout covers... kid sinister fucked around with this message at 21:42 on Oct 31, 2015 |
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Oct 31, 2015 21:40
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The Gardenator posted:Alright, straightened out that mess. There was two hots running to the single pole switch. I wish I took a pic of it but got all the neutrals on the right cable. The large taped up mass was soldered (is that the right word?) together and was very tight so I left them alone. You in Michigan? That looks exactly like some of the bubba-fied electric I had in the attic of a rental building in SW Michigan. Same mix of plastic, metal, old-NM and Romex... and solder and wire nuts.
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Oct 31, 2015 23:07
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