Blown TRIACS. Sounds like a service
call in my future.
What would of caused this? Overloaded channels?
Unfortunately there are several typical scenarios:
A lamp expires and its
filament shorts out as it dies overloading the
dimmer and blowing a protective
fuse chosen by the manufacturer to fail before the
TRIAC or
SCR.
End user thinks: "Hmm. . . Lights not working, it was working a few minutes ago. I know, I'll try another
dimmer. Plugs shorted lamp into next
dimmer and blows its
fuse too. End user thinks: Hmm. . . That
dimmer used to work. Two bad dimmers in a row. I guess I'd better try another. Poof! Three blown fuses in row. Go figure! End user thinks: I guess this dumb manufacturer didn't know how to choose fuses. I guess I'd better buy some bigger fuses. End user installs new, appreciably higher rated, fuses and plugs in the same (shorted) lamp. Poof! This time the
TRIAC or
SCR blows to protect the
fuse. [Note my sick and sadistic attempt at humor.] This is pretty much an all too typical scenario when you find two or three dimmers in a row with blown fuses and / or blown
TRIAC's or
SCR's.
Servicing shouldn't be too bad if you're handy with a
meter and controlled heat soldering
iron.
No, you don't want to use the same
iron you used to use to install your metal eavestroughs.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard.
