Timers!

misty

misty

Member
Ok...so I went to my friendly home improvement store and bought two timers for my lights. In the near term, I've got a 40W actinic and 220W in PC's (2x10,000 and 2x7100). I can't put the PC's on two timers, so I decided to have the 40W actinic come on an hour before the PC's and then turn off when the PC's come on. And then the PC's are supposed to turn off and have the actinic 40 come on for another hour.
Well, the timer turns on the PC's, but won't turn them off. Have tried both, both are now broken!
They are GE lamp/electric appliance timers, rated to 1250W (max tungsten?) and 125 VAC general purpose. Did I exceed the rating with 220W of PC's?
And if so, what kind of timer will work for my PC's? Anyone have any suggestions? :confused:
 
rickt4du

rickt4du

Member
I just use an appliance timer from RadioShack. Basic and cheap. Not even the good one. work fine for 2x96 watts pc's I have one on each bulb.
 
kdlbem

kdlbem

Member
I put timers on my PC's recently. Got them at the local mega-hardware store. These are water resistant, outdoor timers. The company is called intermatic. 17 bucks apiece, and they do the job :D
Salttrigger, they just plug in where you already have the lights plugged in, then you plug the lights into the timer box, set them, that's it(and a couple of screws in the wall to hang them on).
HTH,
B
 
broomer5

broomer5

Active Member
Misty,
I doubt if you exceeded the rating of the switch in each timer with your lighting.
How many set points ( on/off ) settings do your timers have ?
If I understand your post correctly, you'll need at least 2 on/off time spans for the actinic, and 1 on/off time span for the PC's
I'm sure you set them right, little black & white pins, or colored slides, or tabs you push down on the clock wheel.
You should be able to set it the timer with your time selections, plug it in, and spin the clock wheel with your hand and force the switch on and off.
If it's not turning the lights on and off, I would take them back to where you bought them and get some other type or brand.
These things are pretty simple devices and should work flawlessly.
Unless these are digital timers - then everything I said above would not really apply to you exactly.
Good luck - Hope you either get them going or get your money back ;)
Brian
 
misty

misty

Member
Thanks everyone...
Brian, I was beginning to think it was just me going nuts! I got the kind with the tabs that you push out for the times you want the lights on. When I first tested them by spinning the clock wheel, they did work. Then they did turn on the PC lights. Now, both just leave everything on all of the time! I will take them back and look for another kind.
Funny how something so simple can turn into such a pain!
I'll look for the intermatic brand that KDLBEM mentions...more expensive than the ones I bought, but if they work then it's worth the extra $20!
 
broomer5

broomer5

Active Member
Hey Misty,
One last thought.
You probably already checked this out, but many electric timers have a small slide switch on the side that allows you to switch the timer from AUTO to MANUAL.
If in the AUTO position - it will turn something on and off.
If in the MANUAL position it will always be ON.
If this is not the case - sorry for even bringing it up :)
Brian
 
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