How to Fix LED Lights

[ShaggySS]

So I am 100% LED for my Christmas display and unlike traditional lights strands which can be fixed no matter what I am discovering that the LED ones have a little more to them. I have several strands of lights which blow the fuse as soon as they are plugged in even with no lights in the sockets. The LED lights all seem to have an inline something but I have no idea what it does but I suspect that is the reason for my problem. Right now I keep them in a box hoping someday there will be a fix because I hate to just toss them.

Is there an easy fix? Can I cut out that piece and splice in a new one? What is it?

[Dennis Cherry]

PM Sent

[Guest Don Gillespie]

Dennis Cherry wrote:

PM Sent

Dennis why not post it here so if any one else runs into this they can find an answer just saying

[scubado]

My guess is there's a short in one of the plugs.

[ShaggySS]

scubado wrote:

My guess is there's a short in one of the plugs.

Can I ask this question in the newbie section? How do you test for that?

[Max-Paul]

Yes, it would have been nice if Denis would have enlighted us all. And I suspect it is not a shorted plug, but as always could be wrong. I agree with the OP and his feelings that the problem is in the line wart.

The line wart can contain anything from diodes to resistors or a combo of each. If your real risk taker. Cut one off and then very carefully cut it open to find out what is inside. Be careful so that you can identify the parts within. Might want to tag the lines so that you can identify the parts and how they connected to the wires from the plug and the wires going to the lights.

If your not familiar with iding electronic parts. Take good close up photos and post them.

[ShaggySS]

I made a discovery. That little plastic bulb right after the plug. The maker of these lights did not want me to get into it. It was coated in a hard plastic. It took a hammer and a screw driver to get into it and there is a capacitor and thats about it. Two wires in from the plug and 4 wires out. Its a strand of netlights with random twinkling bulbs but the twilinkiling bulbs are different from the rest if that makes a difference. So my question is can you buy replacement bulbs for these and put them inline or are all strands different? Thoughout this strand there about 4 or 5 littler inline bulbs with a resistor in it. I will post pictures tomorrow

[beeiilll]

I would more than want to give Dennis the benefit of the doubt on this one.
There are so many variables between different manufacturers as well as the length of the string of lights (ie number of bulbs and circuits), that it is almost impossible to give a definate answer to this question without more info and some study time.

I have a set of G20 LED lights that I just plugged in to test the other night before putting them out and when I plugged them in, the magic smoke came out of the first wart on the line!!
Okay so ho wdo I fix them?

Not a question that anyone can answer on here without knowing more now it it?

I would have no trouble building a rectifier circuit if I knew waht parts to use for it and make one to replace the defective one if it will allow the string to work again.

Just for ther record, it is a 100 bulb, 33 foot long string of multi-color G20 rasberry that has 2 - 50 bulb circuits on it. There are 3 of the "warts" on the string. The first wart has the 2 - 120 volt lines coming into it and then 3 wires coming out. One wire goes to the LEDs and the other two wires go through to the next wart on the line.
Okay so this "means" that "in theory" that each section of 50 LEDS should be approximately 2.5 volts per bulb per the standard thinking - correct? But what about current in that section? Also the fact that there are different colors in the 50 bulb section means that each LED has a slightly different requirement for power?

So not such an easy "one kind fits all" answer wouldn't you say? I probably could have put up a souple of strings of lights in the time it took to type out this answer and it is not the answer to the OP's question by any means!

By the way Dennis, I would love to start a conversation on fixing my dead string after the holiday madness dies down if you care to help me with it? PLEASE??

We are all so busy trying to get our own displays up right now that it is hard to devote much time to helping everyone else right now.

Have a Happy and Safe Holiday Season.

Bill

[David Rise]

I guess it's a secret.....SHHHHHHHH

[Guest Don Gillespie]

beeiilll wrote:

By the way Dennis, I would love to start a conversation on fixing my dead string after the holiday madness dies down if you care to help me with it? PLEASE??

Have a Happy and Safe Holiday Season.

Bill

I agree with you Bill I think this would make a great thread I am sure there are a whole bunch of guys and gals that would like to know more about this as LEDS are not cheap.

[Dennis Cherry]

Next year I will be glad to have any conversaations with anyone in 2012, but we all have our dead lines to get our displays up any running.

Waiting to the last few days to start troubleshooting individual problems with very little information is very time consuming, so it would be better if all of us have the time to really understand what it takes to repair any type of light string, incandescent or LED.

Just do not get frustrated this time of year, the pressure is great on all of us to just get our displays finished.

[Guest Don Gillespie]

Dennis Cherry wrote:

Next year I will be glad to have any conversaations with anyone in 2012, but we all have our dead lines to get our displays up any running.

Waiting to the last few days to start troubleshooting individual problems with very little information is very time consuming, so it would be better if all of us have the time to really understand what it takes to repair any type of light string, incandescent or LED.

Just do not get frustrated this time of year, the pressure is great on all of us to just get our displays finished.

well put Dennis talk to you in the new year some time.