Unplug Pixie when not in use?

[bigred023]

I have a Pixie16 installed in a permanent location within my finished garage. I use it for permanent lighting on my home that I use for various holidays. Should I unplug the unit when not in use for longer periods of time? (Weeks or months). I notice that the internal fan runs often even when not in use and I do not want to shorten the units lifespan if it is not meant to be left plugged in. Thank you!

[TheDucks]

1 hour ago, bigred023 said:

I have a Pixie16 installed in a permanent location within my finished garage. I use it for permanent lighting on my home that I use for various holidays. Should I unplug the unit when not in use for longer periods of time? (Weeks or months). I notice that the internal fan runs often even when not in use and I do not want to shorten the units lifespan if it is not meant to be left plugged in. Thank you!

Get a Kill-a-watt power tester.  Every rig is different. Depends on the nodes you have attached.

I found my Pixie 4 with a 50 node (12V) string on a single port idled at 14.1W. Smart RGB draw power (for the chip in each node) You have 16 strings (note some of my 14W runs the PSU and the Pixie), but if that is on 24/7, it adds to your electric bill.  I added timers (plural) and also built relay boxes to 'stage' up ones on the same GFCI (if all, 3 came on at the same time, I got surge caused trips (the load is less than 900W running all white).

BTW I am not a fan  of having the PSU inside a UN-ventalated cabinet. Cool lasts longer. If the fan runs with all lights dark, it is only going to get hotter.

[Steven]

Much of the stress on electronics happens when power is first applied. However, constant heat will eventually cause some electrolytic capacitors to fail. Also, a moving part (fan) has bearings that will eventually wear out and seize. So for those reasons, I would remove the power if you're not going to be using it for a month or more.

[bigred023]

Thank you guys for the reply. My Pixe16 is one of the prebuilt rigs from light o rama. Sounds like it is best if I unplug it while not in use. Thanks for the advice. 

[k6ccc]

As some of you know, I run a year round landscape lighting "show" every night.  As such, there are two AC controllers, three DC controllers, and two pixel controllers that are powered up 24 x 7 x 365.  For the one pixel controller that gets added for Halloween (and also used for Christmas), it gets powered up in mid October and stays powered until the Christmas show is taken down in January.  The stuff that goes up for Christmas gets powered up sometime in November and stays powered until January.  The dedicated show computer also gets powered up in October and stays on until January.  During the off-season, the landscape lighting show is controlled by my file server computer.

On 6/7/2022 at 9:16 PM, TheDucks said:

BTW I am not a fan  of having the PSU inside a UN-ventalated cabinet.

Big time agree!

 

[Steven]

On 6/7/2022 at 9:16 PM, TheDucks said:

BTW I am not a fan  of having the PSU inside a UN-ventalated cabinet. Cool lasts longer. If the fan runs with all lights dark, it is only going to get hotter.

By that, do you mean that you are not a fan of not having a fan? 😁

[TheDucks]

3 hours ago, Steven said:

By that, do you mean that you are not a fan of not having a fan? 😁

14 Years with a Major Telecom manufacturer: Fans are bad also. 1)they fail. 2)filters clog 3 they force dust into nooks and crannies.  Convection only (when possible)

[k6ccc]

14 hours ago, TheDucks said:

Fans are bad also. 1)they fail. 2)filters clog 3 they force dust into nooks and crannies.

Very true.  Really need to clean the dust out of stuff that is fan cooled once in a while.  Especially true for stuff that runs 24 x 7.  Personally I shut down my computers every fall, open them up and give them a good cleaning.  The air filters on the AC more often.