Voltage problems

[top-sparks1]

Hi everyone,

I have been having constant issues with lamps blowing all the time within my home and i consulted a local electrician to investigate for any issues, he advised that i have a higher than normal voltage and recomended a voltage optimisation device to lower the voltage which would sort my issues with the lamps and lower my bills as well.

Is this really the way i want to go or is he having me over?

Cheers all

 

[keniff]

Buy branded lamps and see how you get on are they downlights by any chance?

 

[top-sparks1]

The only ones i had fitted as replacements are Osram

 

[keniff]

The voltage boards are usually for energy saving purposes but I don't think there is alot to benefit from it, what sort of light fittings are they?

 

[top-sparks1]

Aurora DLL-991

 

[keniff]

I think they are 12v lights they may have cheap transformers and check they are not covered over the back with insulation causing over heating, I would maybe change to led lamps depending on how many u have in the house could save you alot in new lamps and energy consumption

 

[tony mc]

Just out of interest how high was the voltage readings that were found ?

 

[keniff]

Round my way it ranges from 241-249v it's never actually 230 as customers may think

 

[Farmelectrics]

these v phase energy saving boards reduce your voltage and save you money but they dont have any surge protection on so wouldnt solve problems of lamps going try better quality of lamps first

 

[Inteificio]

Wow those vphase things look a bunch of crap.

So dropping the voltage by 10% magically reduces the whole house usage by 10%.

Bit of a simplistic way of looking at it?

Sure, pure resistive loads will reduce their usage, but they will also drop their efficiency and efficacy.
Devices with SMP will probably not change much at all. If you have a large SMP device, additional current will have to flow to keep the power the same leading to more wire losses through heating.
Heaters will just heat slower, but the thermostat will keep them on longer.

Is there something hugely obvious that I am overlooking?

The device will doubtfully be 100% efficient either.

So in my eyes a device that will most likely do nothing apart from cost you £250 + install costs....

Actually thinking about it, install costs.... tell everybody about them, your friends, the world!

 

[trev]

Oh good grief these things again. Is someone getting paid to push them? It's snake oil

 

[keniff]

Wow those vphase things look a bunch of crap.

So dropping the voltage by 10% magically reduces the whole house usage by 10%.

Bit of a simplistic way of looking at it?

Sure, pure resistive loads will reduce their usage, but they will also drop their efficiency and efficacy.
Devices with SMP will probably not change much at all. If you have a large SMP device, additional current will have to flow to keep the power the same leading to more wire losses through heating.
Heaters will just heat slower, but the thermostat will keep them on longer.

Is there something hugely obvious that I am overlooking?

The device will doubtfully be 100% efficient either.

So in my eyes a device that will most likely do nothing apart from cost you £250 + install costs....

Actually thinking about it, install costs.... tell everybody about them, your friends, the world!

Couldn't agree more!

 

[telectrix]

the sinclair C5 of electrickery.

 

[Marvo]

Hi everyone,

I have been having constant issues with lamps blowing all the time within my home and i consulted a local electrician to investigate for any issues, he advised that i have a higher than normal voltage and recomended a voltage optimisation device to lower the voltage which would sort my issues with the lamps and lower my bills as well.

Is this really the way i want to go or is he having me over?

Cheers all

If the website says they work then work they must.....the internet never lies.

Install one and the sooner the better. Your lamps will thank you for it right up until the first time it goes into bypass mode. Be sure to post again in 6 months time and let us know how much you're saving

 

[kenny james]

fitting a v-phase still isnt a cure to your problem, you would save more money if you fitted low energy lamp fittings,
recent experiences of lamps blowing has been a number of reasons 1)cheap lamps purchased, 2)loose fittings, 3)water leak rusted choc block screws connected to light, 4)es lamps, 5)GU10's

number 3 my favourite!, went to investigate why lamps of a domestic home would explode from fitting in room within a few days i narrowed it down to a choc block in a light fitting, the screws were totally rusted due to a recent water leak directly above lamp fitting from bathroom, changed choc block and trimmed cable back reconnected, problem solved and cured!,

also number 4 mysteriously whenever there is this type of problem majority of times always involves an es fitting!,

number 5 totally ignore what they theoretically claim 2,000-10,000 hours average life expectancy load of bull! probably in laboratory controlled conditions, i am still waiting for one to last longer than a week!

 

[Inteificio]

LED lights solve all problems, don't believe the government propoganda on CFL. LED is higher tech, more efficient and more reliable.

 

[UNG]

Hi everyone,

I have been having constant issues with lamps blowing all the time within my home and i consulted a local electrician to investigate for any issues, he advised that i have a higher than normal voltage and recomended a voltage optimisation device to lower the voltage which would sort my issues with the lamps and lower my bills as well.

Is this really the way i want to go or is he having me over?

Cheers all

Ahh voltage optimisation rears it's head again

Think I would change my electrician if he believes one of these units will fix the problem

I would suggest that a voltage logger is installed for a few days to monitor the voltage and see if it peaks any higher than you have spot measured had a problem like this a few years ago and the local transformer was not tapping the voltage down and I found peaks at 265 - 270v

 

[Guest111]

v phase units are only good on certain things imagine for example a kettle, if you lower its supply voltage then it takes longer to boil,therefore it uses as much power ie running cost as it would without a v phase fitted,only difference is it takes longer to boil.ever seen a 240 kettle connected to 110 it does boil but eventually,I rest my case.

 

[Inteificio]

The kettle would use more energy as it would lose more heat to the surroundings during the heating sequence.

 

[Knobhead]

Dear God!

I thought we’d buried this bottle of Snake Oil once and for all months ago.

Please, please do not waste you’re money. 1KW of electricity is 1KW, you will pay for 1KW. Be it at 220V or 250V.