Did it again!

[jbzeus]

Yep, I had seen that one but couldn't tell from the pictures if it would work. I'm not real good with metal working so I'm not sure if I could mod it to work.

[jimswinder]

rstately wrote:

And is Jeff Millard really no longer with us?

Jeff did say he was leaving this forum...did not like how something was happening, so left.

[kzaas]

I have no experience with molex connectors so I don't know how water tight they are but for the the RS485 network connection I have heard alot of people complain about corrosion causing communication problems in thier network. My solution was to buy some OX-Guard. It's the same stuff you use for your sprinkler wiring so it won't corode and break. Anyway I put it on the RJ45 connector before plugging it in and I have never had a problem with corrsion.

[jimswinder]

kzaas wrote:

My solution was to buy some OX-Guard.

Is that the black stuff they also use to put on the bare part of the wires that feed your main circuit breaker?

[kzaas]

Could be, not sure. It is black but it sure does it's job.

[Max-Paul]

Yes Jim, same black grease used at both breakers and all other things like switches and outlets. I have also promoted that if one has the replaceable LEDs in strings.

Oh, and one string of LEDs can pop the 15 amp fuse on a PC type controller. I know, had one string on one of my arches that did that to me. At the end of the season I pulled the arch in to take a look at the one string. Seems that the bridge rectifier was shorted and did a surge like short that would pop the fuse but did no harm to the wires.

Thanks that reminds me I need to pick up some more fuses so I have them on hand for this season and any little mishaps.

[aaron]

C9's will do it. I love using the "old Style christmas lights" (thats what alot of ppl call them to me(C7 and C9s). But they use up too much juice and i dont like the new leds c9s either. I love the way that C9 lights up the whole yard when they go off.

Just got to watch your watts when using them.......

[Max-Paul]

Well aaron,
I just got my C9 LEDs and my stringer wire too. There is a socket every 12". Let me tell you something. It was a dark night and no matter what color I choose, be it red, green, blue or sun white. Each one would light up my yard. There was 82 bulbs per color. And we could see the shadow of the roof line (none on the front edge). So LED C9 retros dimable from CDI are nothing to poo-poo. They do put out some light but drink so little juice. Shoot, I'll more than likely will still be on one circuit this year too.

[KX6D]

kzaas wrote:

I have no experience with molex connectors so I don't know how water tight they are but for the the RS485 network connection I have heard alot of people complain about corrosion causing communication problems in thier network. My solution was to buy some OX-Guard. It's the same stuff you use for your sprinkler wiring so it won't corode and break. Anyway I put it on the RJ45 connector before plugging it in and I have never had a problem with corrsion.

You are lucky! OX-Gard (by GB Electrical) is actually a conductive paste. Its intended use is for aluminum to copper high voltage electrical connections. It is an anti-oxidation paste and loaded with zinc shavings. It is supposed to be conductive and works real well! However, when used on a RJ-45 connector, it could actually short the separate wires together. I'm very surprised you haven't had communication errors! Maybe the low voltage signal isn't strong enough to conduct through the paste.

The better solution is a dielectric grease! You can buy a small tube made by Permatex at any autoparts store. It keeps the air and water out (which causes the corrosion) but is NON-CONDUCTIVE. It won't short your com channel wires together. Your wires will still make a perfect connection to the jack so don't worry that the grease will somehow "insulate" your jack. You find it in auto parts stores because you use it on low voltage trailer connectors and in all light sockets. Sometimes its labled as "Tune-Up Grease".

Just so I'm clear, I recommend the dielectric grease for the RJ-45 communication cables and jacks! I actually use it on the vampire plugs too!

Only use OX-Gard (or Noalox) on you high voltage (120v+ in this case) connections and make sure you don't smear it across multiple connections! I use Noalox liberally on the bus-bar in my breaker panels where my breakers snap in. This is its intended use!

It works well on your sprinkler systems too, but remember, those wires are kept separate from eachother! A little on each wire and screw on the wire nut! An RJ-45 is a whole 'nother beast!

I hope this helps.

Dino - KX6D

[jbzeus]

Can anyone tell me what kind of LED to get for the remote status lights? Size? Mounting? Voltage?

Thanks,

Jeff

[jbzeus]

Nevermind. Found some additional info here:

http://lightorama.mywowbb.com/view_topic.php?id=22257&forum_id=81&highlight=remote+status

Jeff

[rgardner518]

jbzeus wrote:

Can anyone tell me what kind of LED to get for the remote status lights? Size? Mounting? Voltage?
Thanks,
Jeff

Here is the deal. I have been reading about the LED indicator light for a while now on LOR's forums. I really did not want to mess with the board. But I did enough research, to figure out, what I did, was the best, cost effective way to do this. Here is what I found.

First, I looked at the light pipe idea. The ONLY place I found to sell light pipes was Bivar. But they don't sell to the general public. I worked with a guy from there to get different sized Rigid pipes samples. But the one issue I found was that, It was like finding a needle in a haystack, when it came to trying to line it up on the lid. If it was to be perfect! And It had to be, in order to work right! Also the pipe HAS to touch the led. But the longest one did not reach the LED, from what I could see.

They sent me a catalog, which had Flexible Light Pipes in it. So I tried a sample of that. But again, they came with LEDs attached, and I would have to soldier anyways. I loved them and was going to buy them. Now, where to find them. EVERYONE who sells this Bivar product is out. They all claim to have a 100ct min. At $3 each, I was not going to spend $300 on flexible light pipes! So, with the help of the Bivar rep I was about to get them to order 25. But again, I was not going to spend $75, on that! So I found this led from radio shack. If I have to soldier, I just as well use this,

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062568

Plus there is no glue needed. It has a nut, you tighten. I still may add a little silicone to the backside, just to be safe. I forgot to mention, they are not as bright I you would think. They are bight enough, to see, but don't stand out like an eye sore, at night. Remember, its sharing the power, the other LED is getting too. But I used different points to soldier the wires too. I hope its OK? Here is another picture.