Thread: LED High Bay Lights - Help with driver advice etc

How is it returning a voltage back is the worry? What kind of voltage?
I would suspect incorrect driver.

Originally Posted by Vern

How is it returning a voltage back is the worry? What kind of voltage?
I would suspect incorrect driver.

Sparky said a lot of voltage would be needed to damage those breakers, like easily over 500v but was probably a lot higher. He suspects the drivers are the problem too, but is not up with the electronic side of things to know for sure.

Also, the two smoke detectors which are on a different circuit blew up at the same time, he said something about a cross over of the voltage spike (something along those lines, don't quote me)
He is absolutely sure the issue is with the light fittings, he's an experienced sparky and wired a lot of factories so I trust his instincts.

Cheers, Murray

I know very little about electrics, but I have had a keen interest in LEDs for a while now, with a view to making my own high powered torch/spotlight(but life always gets in the way).

But, for sure those drivers look very dodgy. 220V is either the IK, or Euro std .. I think Euro is 220v and UK is 240v .. but can never remember(not really interested).
They now have a 230v 'standard' so that 230v devices can be used with safety by either voltage rating over there.
So best guess is that not only is it a very cheaply made device(going by the markings and quality of the driver) but also for European/USA market too.

From what I remember on reading about LED and driver tech tho, is that a 50W capable LED driver needs to be of a metal body contruction and with some finning to be safe to operate.

I'd reckon your best bet would be to locate a supply of 50W rated LED drivers and remove those ones currently fitted. I remember even 3 or so years back you could get 50W LED drivers for between $10-20.
I'm fairly sure you could also use a single 150W driver option to drive all three LED chips from a single source, but I think the higher rated drivers usually increase in price exponentially, so it may be a more expensive way forward compared to individual drivers.

220v - 240v will still operate that light! 180v will operate it.

Putting 480v 2 phase across that breaker will kill it.

1x150w driver is a bad idea, far to complicated.

Just send the lights back to where ever they came from, or try get their warranty service agent to look at them!

It can only be a driver issue.

If i could see all the wiring of the light i could nut it out, but thats a bit hard.

I'm with Damien - if I could see all the wiring I could have a better guess. Is the driver wired up arse about? Never seen a breaker cooked because of a light fitting, there must be something dodgy with the drivers.

You've had them fitted by a qualified sparky - that should be enought to get them to refund you - did you use PayPal? If so, they can get your money back.

Originally Posted by rijidij

I recently installed some 150w LED high bay lights in my new shed. They are these Chinese ones as I couldn't afford the $300+ each price for Australian supplied lights.
150w-High-Bay_zpsoemjf1gk.jpg

I specifically ordered lights to suit AU 240v supply, and all was good when we turned them on for the first time....for about half an hour..........then the circuit breaker tripped and wouldn't reset. My electrician checked everything thoroughly and is 100% certain that one or more of the high bay lights is returning very high voltage back to the circuit breaker and damaging it beyond repair. All wiring and switchboard are brand new with certification, Hagar brand breakers.
Hagar_ADC310T_zps9yph5uiw.jpg

Looking at the lights, they are labeled on the outside as AC165-265V, but the drivers are labeled AC110-220V (One driver per 50w LED) The drivers also seem physically small to most drivers I've seen, about 40x30mm.
High-Bay-Driver-V_zps1qlzl1ji.jpg

Also the drivers are labeled as AC-AC, I thought this should be AC-DC, but I'm no expert.
AC-AC-Driver_zpsjatlfc9g.jpg

The Chinese supplier is trying to tell us that the circuit breakers are poor quality, or not high enough capacity, but my electrician has never seen these breakers destroyed like this before and is 100% certain the problem is the light fitting/s. They are trying to be helpful, but as expected they try to divert the problem to our end.

My electrician doesn't know enough about the electronics of the LED drivers to say exactly what the problem is, but he's never seen such small drivers on anything he's installed.

So, I'm hoping someone on here can shed some light (Pun intended) on what the issue might be. For example, could the drivers be too small and overheating, could it be a simple case of installing better drivers etc etc.

Any advice appreciated.

Cheers, Murray

That driver is way too small!!
Just comparing some I've installed into some 70w bunker lights

Originally Posted by Lemo

That driver is way too small!!
Just comparing some I've installed into some 70w bunker lights

This is the local supplier I purchased 13 units from, been installed for around 12 months with not one single problem
Each retro fit kit was around $190 so I'd say a driver would be around $50ish??

If you don't have any luck with a return and refund, could be an option??

Delux-Leds Australia | LED Retrofits | LED High Bays | LED Tubes

I purchased the lights direct from China, and I did use Paypal, so there shouldn't be too many problems if it comes to a refund.

According to this thread on Wirlpool LED High Bays and this video Driverless LED Chips it looks like the chips are driverless and the boxes are not drivers, but possibly surge protectors.
Here's some pics of the wiring setup and the chip. The earth is disconnected for the purpose of taking the photo only.

So, I'm guessing the problem is still likely to be with the boxes, given the chips would operate on low voltage, is that correct, and in theory, if the boxes are surge protectors the chips are connected directly to 240v and manage their own voltage, rectification etc, would that be right. I'm learning here, so any clarification is appreciated.

Driver-wiring_zpsx34wct6l.jpg

LED-Chip_zps9u7eg73k.jpg

Cheers, Murray