light timer keeps crashing!!

S

skintight

Active Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #1

my plants are 5 mks in2 flower now. the lights come on 5pm go off 5am but for the last couple of days my timer has started 2 play up!! i get up about 8am and noticed the lights still on. after checking the timer its stopped at like 2 am and another occasion 4ish am. now the plants have had more light than dark 4 the last couple o days. will this fuck them? ive got myself some new digital timers now just hope there sound! cheers

 

abudsmoker

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #2

i like digital but they need a battery backup

 

S

skintight

Active Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #3

yes thats y i got some but i had mechanical ones! so the question was will my plants suffer cuz now theyve had more light than dark in last cpl of days?

 

space_weaseal

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #4

I had the same prob with timers for my reptiles. I was using cheap 8-$12 timers.
I switched to a this timer and have not had a prob for over a year now.
http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441815008&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302030048&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023694&bmUID=1182711087740&itemNo=27&Nao=24&In=Reptile&N=2030048&Ne=2

 

biggie

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #5

mechanical timers tend to slow down and dont keep the time periods - i had one and after 4 days it was 1 hour out!! guesss its a case of you get what you pay for

 

babygro

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #6

skintight said:

my plants are 5 mks in2 flower now. the lights come on 5pm go off 5am but for the last couple of days my timer has started 2 play up!! i get up about 8am and noticed the lights still on. after checking the timer its stopped at like 2 am and another occasion 4ish am. now the plants have had more light than dark 4 the last couple o days. will this fuck them? ive got myself some new digital timers now just hope there sound! cheers

Click to expand...

Get it fixed ASAP, otherwise welcome to hermie-ville. Inconsistent light cycles is the No1 cause of hermies. Get yourself a reliable timer.

 

babygro

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #7

abudsmoker said:

i like digital but they need a battery backup

Click to expand...

Do they? It's my understanding that digital timers have a rechargeable battery that gets a trickle charge from the power they're plugged into.

I guess that battery still needs changing at some point though, but the battery simply stores the digital timer settings when it's not plugged into a mains outlet. If it's plugged into the mains all the time - why would you need the battery backup?

 

laserbrn

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #8

I know everyone on here says stay away from digital timers, but I trust a digital timer with a battery backup over some crappy $12.00 timer that craps out if the power dies. Plus the mechanical ones tend to break.

 

W

WordUp

Active Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #9

Is it okay to use a mechanical timer if it is plugged into a Battery Backup (UPS) unit?

 

laserbrn

Well-Known Member

• Jun 24, 2007

• #10

I don't see why not. I don't know how big your UPS is, but if it's the light cycle when the power goes out, it's going to keep the light on for ~ 5 minutes and crap out, thus defeating the purpose.