Meanwell A Series Dimming (Safety)

otmfs

Member
Hey all,

I have picked up LOTS of info from this site - some of it in time to apply to my first attempt at a grow, ha. What a resource! I was about to get some blurple lighting just as I stumbled across the wealth of info here. Thank you, @Airwalker16, along with general reading up, your posts specifically seem to have set me on the right track!

I wound up with a Fissioning 120R (after the initial blurple reflex as well as looking at Mars/Spider). I've got it in what is effectively a 2' x 2.5' closet. I have nothing else to compare it to and I have quite a ways to go to see this out, but I'm loving it so far.

After a long veg on 2 unknown age/origin bag seeds, I am now 20 days post flip with the surviving female (she's even happier now with the newly freed up space). I would like to look into cranking up the brightness a bit.

This light has the Meanwell HLG-120H-54A driver. I have watched the ledgardener video(s) on these (a couple times - I'm a bit out of my comfort zone in that realm) and tried researching online a bit more as well. The videos I have seen show the Meanwell A Series drivers being adjusted via the potentiometer(s) with a screwdriver while the drivers are powered on.

Every time I think about giving this a go, I back off due to safety concerns. It certainly appears that no one in the videos is getting fried, but those seem to be famous last words, lol. I do have an insulated screwdriver; I do not currently have a kill-a-watt device.

Can anyone enlighten me to the safety/danger of this procedure? Is it crazy and unsafe to consider adjusting the pots when connected and powered on? I would like to see the direct effects of the changes I'm making on these pots if possible... without any voltage going through my body. Or... is it even necessary? It seems that I've read that these models of CV/CC drivers can be cranked without fear of damage, but I'm not terribly confident in that recollection and would check again before acting on it.

Also - I see that a heatsink is recommended when doing this. Can I get away without using one if I've got a fan blowing directly on the unit? I suspect I could - it seems to run pretty cool - but I definitely don't want to damage the light. Looking for feedback from anyone who may know firsthand.

Thanks to all who have provided such a wealth of info here, and thanks in advance for any advice on these questions.
 

coreywebster

Well-Known Member
If you took apart the driver you would see its a solid block of like a plastic material encasing everything in there. there's nothing you can touch in there that will shock you without taking a hammer to it.. The screw is nylon and is well clear of anything that would conduct electricity.

They are built to be very safe.
 

otmfs

Member
If you took apart the driver you would see its a solid block of like a plastic material encasing everything in there. there's nothing you can touch in there that will shock you without taking a hammer to it.. The screw is nylon and is well clear of anything that would conduct electricity.

They are built to be very safe.
Excellent - thanks so much for the detailed response!
 
Top