breaker trips occasionally on lighting controller, need input

DesertHydro

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
hello everyone. ive got a dual pole breaker thats 50 amp wired up according to the manufacturers specs for the lighting controller but my breaker is still tripping occasionally. some days its fine and other days ill walk in to a dark room. its not overloaded. it runs off a 120v trigger cord on a timer.

any suggestions? i think im gonna apply some contact grease and see if that does the trick. may not be getting the best connection and possible arcing. its the right style of breaker but it is a different brand than whats in there. its compatible though, i checked the panel. thanks for any input!
 
DesertHydro

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
Not sure. My electrical experience is limited to wiring up fans and outlets at the house. I'm assuming you mean when it first turns on there's that rush of current and the breaker temporarily shits itself figuratively speaking. I'd have to add it all up and check. It's an eight light controller and only had eight lights plugged in. Don't know why it would be an issue. They aren't variable wattage ballasts. i have a 4 light controller running in there as well. maybe ill plug one or two of the 1ks into that to split the load. picked up some electrode grease of sorts. gonna throw that on there as well.
 
rkymtnman

rkymtnman

Well-Known Member
DesertHydro said:
Not sure. My electrical experience is limited to wiring up fans and outlets at the house. I'm assuming you mean when it first turns on there's that rush of current and the breaker temporarily shits itself figuratively speaking. I'd have to add it all up and check. It's an eight light controller and only had eight lights plugged in. Don't know why it would be an issue. They aren't variable wattage ballasts. i have a 4 light controller running in there as well. maybe ill plug one or two of the 1ks into that to split the load. picked up some electrode grease of sorts. gonna throw that on there as well.
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if you can figure out when the breaker flips, that would help.

if when lights come on, too much inrush current would be a good guess
if when lights have been on for a while, could be arcing, running at more that 80% of rated load or maybe just a faulty breaker
 
DesertHydro

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
i think its when they first turn on. almost certain. they arent over capacity at the breaker. could it be something like the ac and lights firing at the same time that would cause it? im for sure gonna move one light to the four light controller with the 600w and see if that clears it up
 
Jypsy Dog

Jypsy Dog

Well-Known Member
DesertHydro said:
hello everyone. ive got a dual pole breaker thats 50 amp wired up according to the manufacturers specs for the lighting controller but my breaker is still tripping occasionally. some days its fine and other days ill walk in to a dark room. its not overloaded. it runs off a 120v trigger cord on a timer.

any suggestions? i think im gonna apply some contact grease and see if that does the trick. may not be getting the best connection and possible arcing. its the right style of breaker but it is a different brand than whats in there. its compatible though, i checked the panel. thanks for any input!
Click to expand...
Need an Amp Draw Test on that circuit. Find a meter to use. Check ALL your wire connection again. Simple stuff first. Nice and tight at the breaker.
 
keepittrucckn420

keepittrucckn420

Well-Known Member
If you have an amp probe you can put it on your hot wire feeding the breaker to see how high your amps get to rule that out or you make have a weak breaker. When your lights initially turn on its pulling more amps as well as your a/c so it's possible if everything is triggered to come on at the same time it will trip. You can take the breaker off and see if you have any arcs on the buss, but I would stagger your lights to come in if it keeps happening.
 
DesertHydro

DesertHydro

Well-Known Member
thanks everyone! switched one of the lights over to the four lamp controller and added the contact grease to the breaker. gonna set that one on a different timer so it kicks on a minute or two later.
 
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