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T

torchman

Hi Guys & Gals,

I'm very new here and I'm not an electrician...just so you know right from the off...but I have a question that I really hope I can call upon your expertise to answer for me...

I recently purchased this garden halogen light..

Lighting Direct - Mistral 500w 118mm Linear Tungsten Halogen White PIR IP44

I feel a bit dumb but for some reason when I wire it up I just cannot get it to work and just wondered if I was doing something wrong? The wiring box on the light has the usual live neutral and earth and my wires are live because I have checked them with a voltmeter. I wire it up as normal...and nothing, dead as a doornail. What puzzles me though is as well live neutral and earth connections on the light there is also one marked with the letter 'A' - what is this for? Am I missing something and is this why I cannot get it to work?

Sorry guys I know I'm a total noob but go easy on me! I just have a hunk of white metal now that I can do nothing with so any advice would really be appreciated.

Thanks in advance :)
 
Hi and welcome.

Hate to state the obvious, but have you checked the lamp?

The ones that normally come with the fitting take a bit of a hammering, probably from being shipped half way around the world to get to you.

A, i think, could mean "accessory" as in, you can use the PIR to switch another standalone fitting to come on with the main one.

Hope that makes sense!
 
Hi jason,

Thanks a lot for the reply.

Sorry yes I should have mentioned I did check the lamp, it was fine. I also fitted two other good lamps that I had spare..and still nothing from the unit

Thanks for clearing up the 'A' mystery...I know exactly what you mean and it makes sense now.

It's a weird one, maybe just the unit is faulty in some way? I guess I should send it back and see if 'round two' is any different?

Thanks :)
 
Hi jason,

It's a weird one, maybe just the unit is faulty in some way? I guess I should send it back and see if 'round two' is any different?

Thanks :)

Indeed, that sounds like the only option.

You can sometimes here the sensor 'click' as it switches on and off, so if thats not happening then it could very well be worth getting a replacement.

One other thing is, if you are not careful installing the lamp, it is easy to 'miss' the contacts although the lamp would stay in place.

Done this a few times myself and im supposed to be an electrician:D

Good luck.
 
Thanks..

Yes there's no usual 'click' from the sensor so I guess it must be dud.

I know exactly what you mean about the lamp fitting and I checked it several times. It was sitting flush and I even jigged it about a bit (jigged...very technical :p) but still nothing.

One more thing that just sprung to mind if I could get your thoughts? Do you think I might have to use another piece of red live wire, fit one end to the live connector on the light along with the main live wire, and then fit the other end to the 'A' accessory connector? Do you reckon that would make any difference, or be necessary, or even be dangerous? I don't wanna fly off the ladder and shoot half way across the garden if I can help it!

Many thanks :p
 
hi torchman can you post a photo of the wiring instructions if you have them

Ok I'll do that...thanks a lot. They were however really bad vague instructions, hence my seeking advice on here. The light and the instructions are currently at my fathers place, which is were I'm fitting the light, so I'll grab them next time and post a pic

Thanks for your help also

Cheers
 
also as jason pointed out the clicking of the photo cell.
whitch you have confirmed now if you switch off the power and check the manufacturers
connections are tight and fully in the connections.
if you look you should be able to identify the cables that go from the connections
to the lamp test them
well goodluck let us know how you get on
 
Perhaps the photocell in the fitting is faulty and staying in day time mode
Try masking off the sensor head with thick black tape to simulate night time and try again after the previous suggestion posted
 
Ive never seen a terminal marked A in a P.I.R. light...ive seen additional terminal marked s/l which is usually a manual overide connection.......yes copy of instructions required before condemming light fitting although the quality of the electronics in these lights leave a lot to be desired...as we all know to our frustration and cost in lost time.


spark1
 
Could fit a bit of flex to it and a plug to double check its faulty !
Just a thought.
Know what you mean Jason i felt a right dud when the same happened putting the bulb in quickly missed the connections doh !
 
Last edited by a moderator:
have u turned the pir to daylight for testing and have you checked for voltage at the lamp connections and also the connector block at a after triggering pir/phtocell?
 
The a terminal may be a switch wire terminal, try putting a wire link into it off your L terminal see what happens then.

That was exactly it, I kinda thought that might be the case as I mentioned in post #5 in this thread, but wanted to make sure. I put a red live wire from the L terminal into the 'A' terminal and hey presto! Why the hell there was no mention of this in the instructions is beyond me?!

Anyway thanks for the help and advice guys...very much appreciated.

Torchman :)
 

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