Is it common for LED lights to malfunction shortly after being installed or even after extended usage? Have you experienced the same problems?
Here’s the deal with LED lights – they tend to fail because of those pesky LED chips. Whether we’re talking about those fancy indoor high bay lights or those badass outdoor sport lights, it’s all the same story. Sometimes you’ll have a bunch of them failing at once and other times it’s just one after another giving up on life. And guess what? It’s all because of this thing called EOS phenomenon – Electrical Over Stress (fancy term alert!). Basically, these poor little chips get zapped with too much voltage or current and end up overheating and breaking down like there’s no tomorrow. It happens all the time in electrical circuits – just your everyday electrical surge situation!
An electrical surge refers to a rapid increase in the flow of electricity within a power grid. This phenomenon occurs within a fraction of a second but can have detrimental effects on the lifespan of LED lights, despite their advertised longevity of 50,000 hours. Often overlooked due to its invisible and silent nature, it is important for individuals to be aware of the potential dangers posed by electrical surges.
What are the factors that can lead to an electricity surge?
* Unstable power, resulting from electromagnetic interference
* Can be caused by the switching on and off of high-power appliances, such as those found in factories.
* Overloaded power can occur when multiple LED lights are connected.
* Poorly grounded LED lights due to bad wiring can also contribute to surges.
* Lightning strikes pose a threat to electronic devices like cell phones, LED street lights, and sports lights.
Wanna shield your LED lights from getting wrecked by electrical surges?
It is crucial to opt for certified LED lights that meet EMC standards. By doing so, the adverse effects of unstable power supply can be minimized.
Additionally, it is advisable to seek assistance from experienced electricians who possess the expertise to evaluate and mitigate the impact of dirty power on your LED lights, ensuring their protection against surges.
It is advisable to avoid overloading your circuits by refraining from installing an excessive number of volume LED lights on the same circuit. While circuit breakers can assist in cutting off power during instances of overloading, it is important to note that the sudden surge that triggers the breaker may potentially cause damage to your LED lights.
Use surge protectors for the optimal protection
Surge risk is present in all circuits, necessitating the installation of surge protectors in all electronics circuits of LED lights, including the driver, LED chips, and gearbox. Most LED lights available on the market already have built-in surge protection in the driver, so it is advisable to choose one with the highest level of protection. Some LED light manufacturers go a step further by adding an additional surge protector before the LED driver to provide double protection, especially for outdoor lighting fixtures that are mounted on high poles, such as LED sports lights or street lights. Additionally, experienced electricians often install surge protectors in gearboxes before connecting them to the LED lights. It is important to note that mounting the surge protector as close as possible to the LED lights is ideal for optimal protection since lightning and its associated electromagnetic field induction can occur anywhere and generate electrical surges.
VKS floodlight with 10KV or 20KV protection
Regularly replace surge protectors for optimal performance
Surge protectors don’t last forever. If hit by a strong surge that exceeds their capacity, they can die out on you and it’s time to get new ones. When this happens, you might experience multiple LED lights failing all at once after the big surge. On the other hand, if your surge protector is constantly bombarded by smaller surges over time, it will wear down and won’t be able to protect your LED parking lot lights or LED wall pack lights when you really need it. In this case, you might notice one piece failing after another in quick succession. That’s why it’s important to replace your surge protectors regularly – typically every 2 years is recommended.
It is important to note that, despite the availability of a 5-year warranty for certain LED lights, the longevity of these lights cannot be fully realized unless proper protection from electrical surges is implemented.
Post time: Sep-15-2023
