My pool light turn on of after 30 minutues.

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C

cano63

0
Jun 14, 2012
9
Hello ,

My pool light which was working perfect start turning it of after 30 minutes of been on. it kind of loss the power and then come back and continue turning of and on. If I turn of the switch wait one minutes and turn it on , it stay on for less than 5 minutes and start turning on and of again.

I touch the transformer and its a little hot, not to much but you can feel it.


Could it be the transformer , this pool is like 15 years old and the transformer seems to be very old. I buy the house with the pool so I'm not sure how much time have the transformer or the light and it assembly.

Other point the transformer electricity come from the same cable as the pump( it split) and the pump never stop working or show sing of electricity loss.
 
1. Loose connection that expands due to heat and breaks line current.
If you are comfortable with electricity / basic wiring check your connections to be sure they are tight.(from the split to the transformer to the switch.) Check your voltage at these positions when the outage occurs to find the fault.

2. Transformer has a small break that expands with heat, same result.. check continuity/ resistance of the coil.

3. Less likely but possible, the filament in your bulb may be broken and heat to expand to cause a break in the line.

Others will be along with more info / questions to help you
 
There is probably a thermal breaker built into the transformer. It overheats and shuts down until it cools, then repeats. Replacing the transformer should solve the problem.
 
I think ChiefWej is correct. This sounds like a thermal protection circuit kicking on and off. Are you sure that the bulb being used is properly rated for your lighting fixture? Is there any water inside the enclosure? If neither of these, you may need to go with a less powerful bulb (or an LED retrofit), or replace the lighting fixture. It has been mentioned that this could also be due to faulty wiring, and it could be that after heating up for a period of time, the wiring loses contact, increasing resistance. But, this sounds unlikely to me given that this takes about 30 minutes to take place. Nevertheless, it would be a good idea to check any wire terminations in the lighting junction box and breaker panel that serves the circuit. BTW, is this circuit GFCI protected?
 
Hello,

It has a breaker for the light and the pump. It,s that ok or it need something else so the circuit get protected? I dont much about electricity.

Today I tight the cables that go to from the transformer to the lamp. It has been on for more than five hours without any problem.

I do no know if that was the problem or what, I,m going to continue cheking it to see if the problem come back.
 
Hello, yesterday I had the same problem, so today I deciede to make a test of the volatge.

The input was always the same 119.7 to 122.1 AC
The outputas was alwats from 12.06 to 12.78 AC.

Now the ligth is working for less time than before, I will said like 10 minutes.

If I,m not wrong the read of the Voltage meen that the transformer is ok. What else can be the problem?
 
If the voltage from the output side of the voltage remained at roughly 12 volts when the light was not working, this would mean that there is likely a thermal protection circuit turning the light off within the niche. Some of the halogen fixtures have this to prevent overheating. Again, you will need to remove the fixture from the niche and bring the light up to the deck. You will need to open up the fixture to check on the bulb and verify that it has the appropriate rating for the niche. For example, using a 500W bulb in a fixture rated for 400W would cause this sort of problem. The fixture itself could be bad as well. Does it keep the water out? If it does, you might still be able to install a 12V LED replacement bulb if the unit has an Edison style screw in mount for the bulb. If not, it may be best to just replace the fixture. Also, you should have this on a GFCI if the circuit feeding the pump and light is not already protected.
 

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If the light has the correct rate for the fixture, what should be the next step? Replace the fixture.?

Can you explain me how the fixture works, does the water ever touch the bulb?
It have to be replace with the whole cable from the circuit feeding to the lamp?, this is a one peace, cable and fixture?
 
No water should ever enter the fixture. When the fixture is replaced the housing and cord come as a sealed unit and replaced together. You use the existing cable to pull a fish line through the conduit to the pool, then use the fish line to pull the new cable back to the junction box. Any time a pool fixture is opened to replace a bulb the gasket should be replaced with a new one.
 
Hello,
Yes, I,m goin to replace it, but there is a problem, I,m not able to find the junction box. I do not know if this pool have one. This pool is from 1987, I got he house the last year. Also I took a look at the light that it installed and it seems that never had been changed, can a light last that long? Is there a way that I can find the junction box, if there is one?. Any recomendation were I should look for it.
 
Cano: A few of questions... 1) did you open the fixture to inspect the bulb? 2) did you find any water in the fixture? 3) look carefully at the fixture to find a nameplate or label... who made this and what is the model number? 4) What kind of bulb is used in the fixture? Does it screw in (like a standard light bulb), and if so, can a standard bulb fit in it, or does the mount appear larger?

If the unit appears dry inside, then I would try to just replace the bulb. You should be able to source the appropriate bulb from a local pool store or online. You will also need the appropriate o-ring to seal the light and lens to prevent water intrusion into the fixture.

With regard to replacing the fixture, there is usually a nearby junction box, even if built back in 1987. It might be covered by bushes, and usually would be fairly close to the fixture. Alternatively, they may have not used a junction box near the pool, but have one near the equipment pad. Where is the switch for the light located? How far is the switch from the fixture in the pool?
 
My pool lights are both wired to a junction box at my equipment pad, on the other side and about 35 feet from the pool.
 
Hello,

Today a open the fixture and everything seems to be good . The cable its on perfect conditions and the light was dry, with any water inside, the bulb fit perfect. I install a new bulb and a oring, after the installation a make a test and the same problem start again. The light work for like 20 or 30 minutes then it turn of and on for some minutes until it complete turn of. If I turn it of and then on it work for like 5 minutes and then the same. Also I make more test of the voltage send by the transformer and it never loose voltage.

I do not if this os possible but could be the amp of the transformer?
 
I cannot seem to find that fixture. In any event, it has a thermal switch on it that will kick on when the fixture gets too hot. This is designed to prevent the bulb from exploding if the water level gets too low to cool the fixture. Either the fixture is not getting cooled properly due to a lack of water in the niche, or the thermal switch is not functioning properly. You have said in the past that the 12V transfomer continues to work when the pool light starts to turn on and off. This is important, as it could also be an issue with the transformer. If you are certain that the transformer is functioning properly, then it's a problem with the light fixture and you will need to replace it.

A new fixture with an equivalent output of a 300W bulb at 12V costs roughly $200 (depending on cord length). Several vendors have white LED lights for around $300, and the color changing LED types can be had from around $450 up. I like the look of the colored LED lights, so that's what we have, but it is expensive. The advantage of the LEDs is low power usage, and supposedly much longer life than incandescent bulbs.
 
Actually I,m not sure if that is the fixture number, but was the only number that I was able to find in a big sticker in the fixture. At the pool store told me that was a pentair by the oring it has.

I,m trying to find where is the junction box. It is true that it is suppose to be highter than the water level of the pool? If that is true then it should be in the gardener of the pool.
 

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