My yard light won't go off any more. I block the detector wait 60 seconds and I hear the relay click off but the light now stays on when it used to go off. It clicks again when I block the detector, it times out and clicks again but the light never goes out. What's the deal?
Motion detector
Dec 23, 2009
52 Replies
Loose wire?
Sylvia.
Possibly - but would it still click?
Sylvia.
I'd be more inclined to think welded relay contacts :>
**Assuming the relay directly controls the light, then it may be a dodgy suppression cap. More likely though, the relay drives a TRIAC and the TRIAC is shorted.
Trevor Wilson
www.rageaudio.com.au
"Van Chocstraw"
** Shorted cap across the relay contacts... Phil
**Wow! That was close.
"Missed by that much." - Maxwell Smart, Agent 86.
Trevor Wilson
www.rageaudio.com.au
Depends on the design of the armature.
OTOH, try to imagine how a *loose* wire would keep the light
*on* (yet the relay functioning) -- unless the loose wire was shorting something...
A wire on the power side could come loose from where it's meant to be attached, and land on the the attachment to the other side of the switch. A spot of arc-welding would then hold it in place, leaving the relay contacts to open and close with no effect.
Sylvia.
**In someone's dream, perhaps. A capacitor failure is the most likely culprit. Your suggestion is largely fantasy in a product which is rarely moved. Even then, the worst examples of Chinese manufacture never demonstrate such failure modes that you are suggesting. The welded relay contacts, though unlikely with a resistive load, is far more likely than a rogue wire making it's way inside the box.
Trevor Wilson
www.rageaudio.com.au
Wires never come loose? And you know, of course, how the wires are attached, how old the system is, how well protected from the elements it is, etc.?
What are you going to do if the capacitor hasn't failed, and the contacts are not welded - recommend a trip to the tip because it's not worth looking to see whether a wire has come loose - that doesn't happen?
If only equipment always failed the way it was meant to.
Sylvia.
**In my 40 years' experience of service? Almost never.
And you know, of course, how the wires are
**Such a product is normally expressly designed for outdoor use. As such, the manufacturer will ensure that such an occurence is extremely unlikely. **Here in the real world of service, we look for the obvious faults first. A loose wire that has mysteriously welded itself to a contact (with a resistive load), though obvious to spot, is such a remote possibility, that it barely rates in the scheme of things. **Fortunately, that is pretty much what happens most of the time.
Trevor Wilson
www.rageaudio.com.au
In my experience, many yard lights have the internal lamp switched by a triac, and also have a relay for additional external lights. Maybe the triac is s/c.
Ron(UK)
It's broke, go buy a new one.
Ah, yes... that new newsgroup: s.e.gobuyanewone ;-)
Actually, I'd be curious as to what the OP actually *found* as the problem...
Happy Holiday, folks.
I do a lot of repair but not on a sealed outdoor motion detector. Especially when I can purchae a new unit for $10.
Yes...
I think this is the answer.
Did anybody mention frost or ice on the contacts? I took the assembly off the garage and took it down to my nice warm workbench by the wood boiler. At first it still was stuck on. Then I went and made myself a coffee and when I came back it was functioning normally. Simulate night time and it went on 1minute and off again with motion. Simulate daytime and it was off (before it was stuck on). I guess when it warmed up it started working again. Put it back on the garage and will see tonight what happens. Did not see any way to open it without a hacksaw.
Hi!
Would there, by any chance, be a switch somewhere that can be used to turn the light on all the time?
I've wired all of my motion lamps like that so I can turn the lights on and force them to stay on until I turn the switch off.
William
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