Fiberstars Illuminator

[mega]

I did a search on Fiberstars and didn't really see an answer to my question, so here it goes...

We inherited a ~24,000 gal in-ground vinyl pool when we bought this house (really didn't want a pool, but that's another story) and tried to flip on the light for the pool and noticed that it is incredibly dim. Should a single Fiberstar (model 6004) be able to illuminate a pool at least enough to see the bottom of the pool? We just had the liner replaced (yes, inherited a damaged pool) - could the installer have reinstalled the fiber/lens improperly, causing it to be dim?

We don't need it to be spectacular or anything, just provide some useful light, even if I have to lock it on the white portion of the color wheel.

Thanks,
Adam

 

[Guest]

I did a search on Fiberstars and didn't really see an answer to my question, so here it goes...

We inherited a ~24,000 gal in-ground vinyl pool when we bought this house (really didn't want a pool, but that's another story) and tried to flip on the light for the pool and noticed that it is incredibly dim. Should a single Fiberstar (model 6004) be able to illuminate a pool at least enough to see the bottom of the pool? We just had the liner replaced (yes, inherited a damaged pool) - could the installer have reinstalled the fiber/lens improperly, causing it to be dim?

We don't need it to be spectacular or anything, just provide some useful light, even if I have to lock it on the white portion of the color wheel.

Thanks,
Adam

It is possible that the fiber bundles have become damaged, the lenses were not reinstalled properly, or the terminations of the fiber bundles were not done correctly. While fiber optics will not provide as much lumen output as other forms of lighting the 6004 illuminator is a metal halide light source and is one of the brightest ones on the market. It should provide adequate lighting of your pool at night if you have enough light terminations and lenses in the pool. First thing to try would be to have the fiber bundles reterminated at the illuminator (not a diy project since it requires some special tools). Also make sure that none of the lenses have any water in them. If they do they will need to be redone. If the bundles have gotten damaged they will need to be replaced, not always an easy job. You are really going to need to get someone who is experienced with fiber optics installs to look at it to determine what is wrong. I would try contacting Fiberstars first and see if they can recommend anyone in your area.
Also, it can take a full 10-20 minutes for a metal halide bulb to reach full brightness. The older the bulb the longer it can take. The colorwheel on the Fiberstars illuminators are very 'rich' so the light levels will not be as bright on the colored sections of the colorwheel (which is one of the reasons why I replaced my Fiberstars illumiator with a Pentair metal halide illuminaotor).

 

[mega]

Ok, I'll see if I can get someone local to come take a look at it. I'm trying to keep from dumping more money into this pool, but I guess I should have known what I was getting myself into.

Does the pool have to be drained down below the light in order to check to see if the lens/termination at the pool side is in good shape?

 

[Guest]

Ok, I'll see if I can get someone local to come take a look at it. I'm trying to keep from dumping more money into this pool, but I guess I should have known what I was getting myself into.

Make sure they are experienced in fiber optics installs and have the special tools needed (such as the hot knife and the gel that is used in some of the lens assemblies!) Many pool builders and repair techs are NOT experienced in fiber optics.

 

[mega]

Well, I didn't get a chance to contact anyone locally, but I did just take the cover off the unit and looked at the ends of the fibers - should they be rather shiny looking? Mine are quite dull and I'm wondering if that could be blocking enough light to cause it to be dim...

Also, how many strands should I have to light up a pool my size?

 

[keithw]

I have a Fiberstar's Illuminator as well. Normally the main lights in the pool should have 300 stand fiber run to them. I have found that only (1) 300 stand run is not all that bright. It works well in my pool by I only have a 6000gal pool with white fiberglass finish so it is not overly difficult to light, And the ends should be pretty clean looking but I cannot say whether the would look dull or not. I few items:

A. Does your light shine directly on the strands or is there a big clear thick lens between the light and the fiber. If there isn't, they sell and upgrade called a Constant Color port system. It is the lens I am referring to and goes between the light and the fiber and helps transmit the light more evenly and effectively.

B. If there is some slack in the fiber you can easily cut the ends off. Hot knives are relatively cheap. I think mine was $15.00.

These folks sell Fiberstar's affordably and were very helpful when I was buying mine, Fiber Creations, 602-273-7552.

 

[mega]

What is the diameter of the 300 strand bundle?

 

[keithw]

Hmm, I'd guess about an inch.

 

[mega]

I looked through the owner's manual and installation guides online and ended up just wiping down the hot mirror a little and it seemed to help quite a bit. I think with a little more cleaning, it'll be bright enough to swim by.

The lens in the pool doesn't seem to have water in it (the manuals say that would be bad) because I can see a little bit of condensation on the inside.

 

[slowautoxr]

This year my pool light was extremely dim. I suspected that the bulb was at fault but found that the hot mirror assembly was very cloudy. I removed it from the unit and attempted to clean the 3 lenses. Unfortunately the middle lens had fused to one of the lenses and I knocked of a corner while trying to separate them. After scraping as much of the crud off, I gently placed the lenses back in position to see if my cleaning was going to work. The light seems as bright as it used to be.

So what's the purpose of these 3 lenses? This place wants $118 for this "Hot Mirror Bracket Assembly." The lenses just look like pieces of glass to me.