Jandy Colors Digital Color Blending Light Fails Repeatedly

[jkalivas]

Looking for any ideas. I have gone through 4 JandyColors Digital Blending Lights in 3 years. I have two of these lights, one in the spa and one in the pool. They are both the pool sized lamps. I have had no problem with the lamp in the spa, works flawlessly. The light in the pool seems to burn out bulbs for some reason. There are 8 bulbs per light, and I inevitably notice that the colors don't look right. I then put it into Color Splash Mode to determine which bulb is out. I have been replacing the lights under warranty, but the warranty is now expired. Obviously there is a problem. The lights are connected to a Jandy AquaLink RS. Each time I had the light replaced I asked the installer their opinion. They all said bad luck. Obviously something more than bad luck is burning out these lights. What should I do? I will attempt a bulb replacement myself even though most people just buy a whole new light. It has got to be an electrical problem, right?

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

 

[jkalivas]

Follow-Up. I disassembled the light. What I found was disturbing. Two shattered MR-16 bulbs and multiple other bulbs cracked. Could this be a water leak? Again, this is the 4th lamp and they come sealed from Jandy. Any ideas? I have attached some pictures.

Thank you!

 

[woollybully]

Wow. I have a 14 month old Jandy light with a bulb out (2 months out of warranty). I hope mine doesn't look like that when I get it out. I checked the price on replacement bulb kits. The Jandy kit is about $20 for two bulbs but you can get 75W MR-16 EYC bulbs from electronics supply houses for about $3-4 each.

MR-16 bulbs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MR16

I can't see how you'd have a water leak unless you kept blowing the gfci. Are they cracking because of high temp or temp change? Is the light tight in the niche? Maybe its loose and the kids are kicking it. Apparently, my kids and their friends were having fun kicking mine one night. :? Somehow the light wasn't working right the next night.

 

[jkalivas]

I have to suspect that this light was leaking. What else could cause bulbs to explode? I did order new bulbs online, from http://www.performancelight.com. I ordered 16 and they sent me 20 as there are 10 per box, so I lucked out there. I paid $4.29 per bulb. The bulbs that were in the light were LiteTronics L-3806. I received them the next day, the new Litetronics part number was L-3895 and they said it is just a new part number, same bulb. I put all new bulbs in, removed all the plaster from inside the wet niche as the contractors obviously didn't use the supplied plastic cover during plastering. There was plaster all around the metal ring and pilot hole and metal bar that leads to the bonding/ground wire. Long story short, I put it in Color Splash mode for several hours and everything seems fine so far. I did not replace the silicone gasket as I wasn't patient enough to wait for it. I ordered two of those online but they are on the slow boat from the East Coast and I am in CA. The original looked brand new, so I reused it. It is nice to see it working the way it is supposed to again. Hope it lasts. Also, it was tight in the niche, just the plaster issue. No kids kicking it as they are 3 and 1 years old. I may kick it if it goes out again. The GFCI has never popped. I do have a Malibu lights 190W transformer plugged into the same GFCI as well as a small Sanyo fridge that is in the barbeque built-in. The electrical contractor used the same GFI for the power to the bbq built as the pool lights. Those small refridgerators don't draw more than a couple amps though, so I can't imagine a power surge big enough to shatter lights. Has to be moisture... I am stumped. I emailed Jandy and they did reply. They were concerned as well, but no solutions or recommendations. I checked the Neutral Bar on my main panel for the house and did find one totally loose neutral but I don't know if that Neutral leeds to the sub panel in the Jandy AquaLink RS.... I will check the connections in the sub-panel today.

 

[6pk4sp]

Re: Jandy Colors Digital Color Blending Light Fails Repeated

I am a professional electrician, and a new pool owner learning stuff also.
Your light bulbs being shattered usually means they got wet while hot, were vibrated till broken, or they are the wrong wattage for the equipment/transformer supplying them (meaning they got burned out from to much/wrong power).
I will also add that all light bulbs have a life span, and if a couple bulbs put in service at the same time go out, and there is a group of them all put in service at the same time, you will usually see the others in that group start dieing quickly one by one. Many people will swear they just changed that light, when it was the one close by it.
So be sure not to waste your seal or sealant, and change all bulbs at the same time.
Also, many high tech light bulbs do NOT like to be touched by human skin. Use a clean dry cloth to install any bulbs, even to get them out of the package. Your skin has natural oils in/on it, it will leave a oil spot on the bulb surface. This will/can cause a hot spot on the bulb surface and cause a greater amount of heat to build up, and the glass will shatter or the element will burn out.
Some/many bulbs are not that way, but why take a chance.
There is also the possibility that your new lamps are physically different than the old/original, and are being crushed when assembled?
In this new age of everything being now made in China, I see lots of stuff where the replacement is slightly different than the originals.