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Dim bulb tester...

kortex

kortex

Active Member
Sometimes I miss the obvious. I'm trying to build a dim bulb tester and have the stupid. These are supposed to be wired in series. I tried to follow these directions:

http://tubenewbie.com/light_bulb_current_limiter.html

Evidently, I failed.


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kreichenbach said:
I believe, In order for it to work, there needs to be a device plugged in to the outlet.:dunno:
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what you meant by "I failed". Do you mean you hooked it up and it didn't work? Did it trip a breaker? What's not working?

kreichenbach is correct. This circuit has everything in series. That means that it needs to be plugged in, it needs to have a light bulb in the socket, and something has to be plugged into the outlet. That's the only way you'll have a complete circuit and current will flow so that the bulb will light up.

Full disclosure, though, I have never wired up a switch/outlet combo like that, so I don't know how the connections work.
 
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I plugged a soldering iron into the outlet and put a 100W bulb in the socket. I turned it on and nothing happened.

Edit: I have this odd feeling that the black wire from the bulb should run to the other side of the switch.
 
Found this. Hope it helps. They aren't exactly the same circuit, but it should help to understand how the device is wired.

The first pic shows a lightbulb being controlled by the switch, but it's not in series with the plug. The second pic just shows the outlet being controlled by the switch, but without the bulb.
 

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Fisherdude said:
Found this. Hope it helps.
Click to expand...

It didn't look like the guy at tubenewbie did all of that. That definitely looks more like what it SHOULD be. That's why I feel like I'm missing something from the picture at tubenewbie. I will try this tonight. I'll probably electrocute myself.
 
Be careful not to just get the switch across the hot and neutral. Things will happen quickly if you do and then you throw the switch. I'd give it a while before you start changing things. I'm sure we've got a boatload of home wiring guys here on AK. Hopefully one will show up this evening at the latest!
 
I think I did last night. Sparks flew and the breaker tripped. I may have shocked myself, but I would never admit to it :D.
 
That's really a bad drawing and a bad schematic on the link. I'm guessing, and I mean that literally, that it might be necessary to remove the tab on the side of the switch/outlet combo in order to wire the switch and outlet in series. That tab can be very confusing.
 
Well, if I removed the wires going to the ballast (leaving the white, black and green from the power cord), the outlet should turn on with the switch right?
 
Give this a try...

See the attachment for a simple wiring diagram. Done this way, your dim-bulb tester will work properly. I strongly suggest hooking up the safety ground to the metal box that you have it in, as well as to the outlet.

To test this--connect a working device to one of the outlets, install a sufficiently large light bulb in the socket, plug the tester in and turn the switch on. Provided the lightbulb is big enough, it may glow somewhat brightly while the device's filter capacitors charge and then it should settle down as the device starts operating normally.

Even though there is a white wire coming off of your light socket, treat it like a black wire. Color it black if that helps you visualize it.
 

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I tried two different bulbs. I don't think it's the bulb. I get 120V where the power hooks up. However, whether the switch is on or off, I get nothing on the other side. I probably should have gone with a separate switch and outlet. I wanted to make it small and clean though. Do I have the power running to the wrong side?? I tried it the other way and it flipped the breaker. Maybe my spark show last night means that the switch is dead. At at loss. Other idea is hook the bulb's white wire into the same place as the power and then the black wire on BOTH bolts on the opposite side of the switch.


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Wire it this way...

Cartoons always help!
 

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Tom Bavis said:
I used one of the plates shown below for my dim-bulb tester. Removed the fuse cover and screwed in a light bulb.

http://www.buyhardwaresupplies.com/?t=5&itemNumber=30727
Click to expand...


I would have bought this if I new ahead of time :).

I don't understand the cartoons. I probably don't have any business building this. I don't want to play around and keep tripping the circuit breaker. I'm trying to work with someone to test a device I have here but need this to do it. Maybe I'll see if I can ship it out or trash the device. Thanks anyway guys sorry to waste your time.
 
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