Pentair Color Microbrites - Not Bright

[precisionmike]

Hello! I just had my pool built. It has a 95-foot perimeter, is about 5 feet deep, and has 15k gallons. I had (3) Pentair color Microbrites installed. They are quite dim. Is there any way to adjust them? Or do these have weak output? In our last pool, we had Savi Melody lights that were substantially brighter.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Ahultin]

Do you know what length wire they were? How far from the pool to the transformer? It is possible that you are experiencing some voltage drop, the usual suspect transformers have the ability to go between a 12 and 15v output. If you are feeding off of the 12v then you could bum it up and see if that makes a difference.

 

[precisionmike]

Do you know what length wire they were? How far from the pool to the transformer? It is possible that you are experiencing some voltage drop, the usual suspect transformers have the ability to go between a 12 and 15v output. If you are feeding off of the 12v then you could bum it up and see if that makes a difference.

Thank you! Since I posted this, I did research and saw that there are (3) outputs off the transformer with different voltages. I thought they were 12, 13 and 14 volts. You are saying there is a 15 volt option?

 

[Ahultin]

I beleive the most widely used pool light transformer is the intermatic which is 12-14v (we have 2 of those) but there are a few options which go to 15v. The longest the microbrite cord comes is 150ft so unless you have a junction box in the middle that extends that I wouldn't get a new transformer for 1v additional. If your transformer is currently using the 12v tap, move it to the 14v tap and see if that makes the difference for you.

 

[precisionmike]

I beleive the most widely used pool light transformer is the intermatic which is 12-14v (we have 2 of those) but there are a few options which go to 15v. The longest the microbrite cord comes is 150ft so unless you have a junction box in the middle that extends that I wouldn't get a new transformer for 1v additional. If your transformer is currently using the 12v tap, move it to the 14v tap and see if that makes the difference for you.

Will do, thanks again!

 

[tucsontico]

Here's a chart that relates to 12v AC landscape lights. 12v AC pool lights are essentially the same.
If the calculated voltage drop in your case is greater than 1.5 V, you need to bump up the transformer output connection to next higher tap.

Another possibility is the lights have been set to less than 100% brightness. Check the MicroBrite user's guide for more info:

https://www.pentair.com/content/dam/extranet/nam/pentair-pool/residential/lighting/microbrite/manuals/microbrite-installation-users-guide.pdf

Good Luck!