Old Lighting Board - Is It Safe?

[musicmanelem]

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My new job is at an old building and this is my lighting control unit. It is a Kliegl Bros Type SD-SP. Is it safe? It uses the triangular stage plug which is not the safest connector.

 

[venuetech]

The patch board looks fine I think it's a Kliegl "Safe Patch". the photo shows that the unused patch ports have been switched on, there is no real reason to do so. I don't see any of the "triangular stage plugs" that you refer to take a look at these and see if you have somthing like that

 

[PeteEngel]

Besides being old, unless there is any damage to the cables, connections or controls this should work fine (for 1960's technology). As has been stated, there is no reason the breakers should be on if there isn't anything plugged into the receptacle. When we had this kind of system there was a yearly test by our campus electricians. They came over with a thermal video camera and viewed the system under load to see if there were any hotspots. With technology what it is now, you may be able to do that with your iPhone. The cables have a tendency to twist and crack in the counterweight area in the bottom of the panel.

Have fun!

 

[MPowers]

This is a patch pannel. What does your control board look like?

This pannel type is 1960's (or earlier) technology and likely 35 years old at a minimum. To determine if the pannel is safe, check the patch cords for hardened, cracked or broken insullation, expecially where the cord enters the plug. Check the plugs to make sure all connections are tight and not working loose. Have a licensed electrician pull the cover pannel and check the patch cords inside the board for the same broken insulation. Have him/her check the cord connection inside the cabinet for good and tight. These are often pulled out by over eager hands pulling to hard and too far on the cords. This is the type with the sash weights on the cords, check to see all are in good order, the pulley wheel runs smooth and does not abrade the cord. At the same time check to see if all the circuits work. That is, do all the patch cords lead to a working receptacle? Do all your dimmers work? If dimmers don't work it is likely just an PITA 'cuz you probably don't have enough dimmers anyway. However, if a receptacle doesn't work, it could be an electrical problem that could lead to an accident, injury or fire. Have any non working receptacles repaired immediately or at least have the fault removed and the receptacle capped off.

If this is a school, hit them up with the student safety issue and possible insurance issues, and try to get funding/grants/donations to change all plugs and receptacles to stage pin. (actually, start working on system replacement, but that's a different issue.)

 

[MPowers]

musicmanelem, I have located some old files of Kliegl, if you would tell me the name of the facility you're in, I'll see if it's there. If I can find the install record I might be able to source parts for you if you need them.

 

[MPowers]

The patch board looks fine I think it's a Kliegl "Safe Patch".............

For those of you who have never seen a patch panel, the Model "Safe Patch" is so named because the location of the breaker switch and the size of the flange on the plug prevent the plug from being inserted with the breaker "on". In addition, pulling the plug out will flip the breaker switch if it's still in the "on" position. The contacts inside the receptacle hole were long enough that the breaker would trip before the plug broke contact. This design made it impossible to "Hot Patch"or "Hot Break" so there was never a chance of an arc while patching. As these patch panels were used from dimmer sizes up to 7KW during a time when it was common for dimmers to be loaded as close to maximum as possible, an arc flash from a fully loaded patch plug could be substantial.

 

[MPowers]

Musicmanelem,

I have found a source for repair parts for your Patch Bay and for your Arc Plugs (the real name for your 3 conductor stage plugs), though I highly reccommend you replace them with stage pin plugs asap. He says if you provide the facility name he can find the install date and provide the correct parts for the patch bay.

Contact info: Eric Silverman <[email protected]>

Abrivated e-mail string.

me: Can you tell me when was the last date this unit might have been sold or installed?

Eric: Believe it or not 1996, but yours is much older, I can tell by the name plate that tells it was still in Manhattan before the move to Long Island City, if you can give me the name of the facility, I can look it up in the company records and tell you more, if you need parts I do have them.

me: Thanks for the quick reply. .... BTW He says all his receptacles are some Old Arc Plug type stage plugs. Other than that he needs to replace them asap, what can you tell me about these, if anything?

Eric: Well they are old style stage plugs, the 3 conductor one is called an arc plug. easily replaced, we can provide custom retrofits for him if needed.