X-mas light Safety ??

Let me guess and say yes Phil. You don't have to drive too far to spot it.

And here is the modern LED equivalent:

Lower power maybe, but safer?

Even from the supply point of view, I can imagine power boards plugged into power boards, plugged into etc...... All on the laundry floor no doubt.

Cheers Don...

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Don McKenzie

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Bare Proto PCB for PIC or AVR projects?
"I'll buy that for a Dollar!".

It's not dangerous, it is called natural selection. Few dickheads less may do good for this country, they been multiplying lately due to government protection.

Tom

balconies with strings ( loops actually ) of tiny coloured

bulbs wired direct to a 240 volt AC plug. The

balconies. Obviously, the strings are fully exposed to

or punctured OR the metal bits inside a broken bulb

no ELCBs installed.

When you buy the xmas lights they should be clearly labelled - indoors or outdoors. I guess some people are stupid. Obviously series connected globes running directly off 230V are NOT suitable for outdoors.. I rewired a 20-globe 230V series string to operate in parallel off 12V, using an old

50W 12V AC transformer designed for halogen lights. The trannie is indoors, the lights are on the balcony. But it took a couple of hours of soldering to rewire, patience is required.

**Well, yes. However, the vast majority of Xmas lights are (now) operated from low Voltage transformers (>36 Volts). Sadly, not even that can save the terminally stupid, like my next-ddor neighbour, whose party was interrupted by a tripped ELCB last year. Fortunately, I was on hand to locate the source of the fault (the transformer was at the end of an extension lead and exposed to the rain). Had he placed the transformer under cover, there would have been no problem, as most Xmas lights are rated to be used outdoors.

--
Trevor Wilson
www.rageaudio.com.au

I note the lights on the link that you provided come with a European plug fitted. Therefore these sets can't have been passed for use in Australia. Also the controller has an IP rating of 44. thus unsuitable for use outside in the elements.

Metro...

** Any "Decorative Lighting Outfits" sold in Aussie in the past few years are REQUIRED to be type approved to AS/NZ 60598.2.20.

But that has no effect on all the older ones or any that are privately imported via eBay etc.

BTW

Most X-mas lighting strings ( LED or other) on sale are not rated for outdoor use.

..... Phil

**Indeed.

**Perhaps. However, I purchased three sets, from two different outlets in the last few weeks. All three were marked as being suitable for outdoor use (as long as the transformer and controller are mounted indoors, of course). All three were LED systems.

BTW: They certainly appear to be suitably weather resistant, but are not cockatoo resistant.

--
Trevor Wilson
www.rageaudio.com.au