Sidmadra
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Lights flickering when hotplaet goes through heating cycle - anything I can do to stop this?
I recently installed from LED lights in my shop and they flicker every few seconds when my hotplate is going through its on/off heating cycle. Is
there any economical solution to this? I already have power strip surge protectors being used, but they don't do anything to stop this.
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Mr. Rogers
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Does this happen with a regular incandescent lamp?
You're probably at the limit of that circuit. High current devices can do this when they kick on. If this is what's happening, you need to rearrange
what's on that circuit or run a new one if you want to use that hotplate.
EDIT: It's probably not harmful if you have modern wiring.
[Edited on 16-11-2018 by Mr. Rogers]
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Texium
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I have noticed that incandescent lights in the same circuit as my hotplate will dim when the hotplate cycles on. Most LEDs are not intended to be
dimmed, and putting an LED bulb on a dimmer typically causes it to flicker. This is probably the same phenomenon that you are witnessing.
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Sidmadra
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Quote: Originally posted by Mr. Rogers  | Does this happen with a regular incandescent lamp?
You're probably at the limit of that circuit. High current devices can do this when they kick on. If this is what's happening, you need to rearrange
what's on that circuit or run a new one if you want to use that hotplate.
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It's not close to the limit of the circuit. The flickering also happens when any other device kicks on, like my 40w mini fridge, but it only happens
for the split second the device kicks on. With the hotplate having an on-off cycle, the flickering is every few seconds.
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weilawei
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The flickering is due to a voltage drop from an excessively long wiring run being made to suddenly draw a current spike. This is common in older
construction, where saving on the wiring was all-important. It's especially noticeable with large inductive loads, such as a hotplate or compressor
for a fridge, because these cause large current spikes when they turn on and off.
Yes, you can fix it. Run thicker gauge wiring for shorter runs. Basically, spend money. Or, relocate your stuff to closer to the original service.
[Edited on 17-11-2018 by weilawei]
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sodium_stearate
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why not just use real (incandescent) light bulbs?
that way, maybe they will dim a bit when the hotplate
is heating, but they won't flicker such as the annoying
LEDs do.
"Opportunity is missed by most people
because it is dressed in overalls and it
looks like work" T.A. Edison
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highpower48
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Had same issue with a laser printer and hot air rework station. Solution was to run a shorter 20amp circuit that I use only for these high current
draw devices.
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Funkerman23
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Nice to know I am not the only one who has dealt with this irritating issue. I myself thought long and hard about using a variac and mantles almost
exclusively as they are constant current drawing devices, not like the pulsed power supply on most hotplates. This means that you would not have the
rhytmic light dimming .
But this isn't a solution where you need a beaker, and while Changbio on ebay does sell reasonably priced overhead stirrers: they are very picky about
stirring shaft sizes.You would eithe rneed to use the rubber tubing trick for thinner or fatter diameter stir shafts or replace the chuck with a
universal chuck. When I last bought an overhead stirrer it was about 120 USD. the chuck you would need to buy to fix this issue was 80 USD last I was
in the market.
" the Modern Chemist is inundated with literature"-Unknown
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WGTR
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Well, thinking outside the box...power your lights from a battery-powered inverter (maybe a UPS?) and then charge the battery directly with a battery
charger plugged into the wall. That would isolate things. I hooked up a 125F 50V supercapacitor module to my 24V UPS, and that runs my computers,
etc. Operating the module at half voltage like that will allow it to last for decades. Otherwise (and more practically), just put your hotplate on a
completely different circuit. Run an extension cord to another room or something.
Room lights really shouldn't be on the same circuit as the room outlets. If you flip the breaker for the room, do both the outlets and lights turn
off? In the United States, the NEC is moving away from allowing this (because you're in a room, overload an outlet, and now you're suddenly standing
in the dark).
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Mr. Rogers
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| Quote: Originally posted by WGTR |
Room lights really shouldn't be on the same circuit as the room outlets. If you flip the breaker for the room, do both the outlets and lights turn
off? In the United States, the NEC is moving away from allowing this (because you're in a room, overload an outlet, and now you're suddenly standing
in the dark). |
I'm in a house built in 1995 and this is how the rooms are wired. A single 15 amp circuit for outlets and ceiling lights for a regular bedroom
without a major appliance.
I have a large HD CRT television from right about the end of the CRT era. When the set is initially turned on, there is a degaussing routine that is
powerful enough to sometimes trip the breaker. The set draws more current at startup than even a laser printer or microwave. The set is in the room
farthest from the breaker box (essentially the opposite end of the house).
[Edited on 18-11-2018 by Mr. Rogers]
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BromicAcid
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Get a different hot plate. I had this issue recently with a new space heater, warming up was not a problem, but once it was at temperature it would
rapidly cycle the power to maintain. This caused intense flickering whereas during the heating cycle the system was able to maintain just fine.
Older hot plates tend to have much longer cycles so you don't notice the flickering so much. As mentioned though, incandecent bulbs can help mitigate
the issue to some extent but it will be damaging other things on the circuit without a line conditioner.
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