I installed my system almost a year ago and it has been working great this whole time. Then, the other night all the lights on one of the transformers went off. The transformer still has power. When i reset the switch the lights come on for a second and then go out, so I’m flipping some kind of internal circuit in the transformer. Where do I start to find the problem? I’m under capacity for the load of my transformer. I do have hubs on this line. Advice is appreciated.
Brazcons, you are correct. An internal breaker on the transformer is tripping due to a short in one or more fixtures. Start by disconnecting the main line to each hub one at a time to isolate which hub is at fault, then disconnect each fixture line one at a time in the hub causing the problem. Before ripping up the fixture or fixtures tripping the transformer, swap out the bulbs. When a nearby lightning strike took out three of my bulbs on three separate hubs, I couldn't tell by looking at the bulbs that anything was wrong. If the bulbs are okay, then most likely the fixture lead wire is damaged or water has gotten into an underground connector in the fixture line. In my experience, the Volt Pro Nano Junction connectors are better than the DryConn connectors for making water proof wire connections. If after all that you still find the source of the problem, then it's possible the transformer may be the issue and you will need to contact customer service for a return authorization. Just be systematic about it and work through each hub, fixture, bulb and lead wire one at at time before removing the transformer. Let us know what you find. Bob
Brazens, since you said your system had been working fine for a year, I didn't think to ask about your systems configuration but probably should have: Do you have dedicated main lines to each hub? Are you using larger gauge cable and the 15V circuit for the longer runs? What is the voltage at the furthest fixture from the transformer? Do you have more than 9-10 fixtures at any hub? Have you recently added "one fixture too many" to your system? Is the sum of all of the wattages of your bulbs equal to or less than 80% of your total transformer capacity? Each of these could affect your systems performance. Just curious. Bob
To clarify, the question about the voltage at the furthest fixture is related to voltage drop and can only be measured with a volt meter. If, for instance, you had run 200 feet of 16 gauge wire to fixture, one might expect there would be enough voltage drop to keep the light from working. I don't know the exact cut off point, but I think I read somewhere that low voltage LEDs need at least 9-10 volts to function properly. Based on your other answers, I'm guessing this is not a problem and is probably a moot point. Bob
Well, I figured out that here is one light out on the chain. Can having a single light go out trigger the whole line to flip the switch in the transformer? (I know I'm using all the wrong jargon). I'm going to ask Volt to replace the bulb. That said, I'm concerned that there might be a problem with the light itself because it is a hardware light that is integrated with a fireplace hearth...
A short in a fixture/bulb could potentially cause the safety feature of the transformer (internal breaker) to trigger to prevent any further damage to other fixtures or the transformer itself. Under the lifetime warranty, we can certainly replace this. If you do notice repeated issues at the same position near the fireplace, it may be worth investigating further regarding if the fireplace itself is the source of the issue overtime.
