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  1. Tha fios agaibh

    fluorescence light Watt meter

    Your multimeter is not being tricked. It's reading the Rms voltage and Rms current. This voltage and current multiplied together will give the apparent power. If you multiply this apparent power (va) by the power factor, you get real power (w). Power factor is true power divided by apparent...
  2. Tha fios agaibh

    fluorescence light Watt meter

    True, but 18w is the consumption of just the lamp. As Bluejets pointed out, there is other loads as well. Your wattmeter is impacted by things like circuit impedance and harmonics. Assuming 220v, an ammeter would probably read about .3A total instead of .1A (just18w)
  3. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    What size iron and what size solder are you using? It may be too big or small.
  4. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    I guess it's possible. But I've never had any trouble with old solder. I'm working on a spool of 60/40 rosin core solder that's at least 15years old.
  5. Tha fios agaibh

    Visio blu Ray player

    One way is to use the diode test function mode to check a mosfet. Short all three leads together. Then take the black lead to source and red lead to drain. The Mosfet should be off and the meter shouldn't show any reading. Now, briefly touch the red to the gate and back to the drain. This...
  6. Tha fios agaibh

    Run a submersible pump on battery ?

    That's the million dollar question. You could try and make some sort of dynamo to produce electricity, but it doesn't sound feasible. It might be more practical to just make a device that would directly pump air. You could probably have something like an elevated water tank that'd trickle...
  7. Tha fios agaibh

    Thermal Imaging Camera Recommendations?

    It's a matter of how much your willing to spend, and what you need it for. For what I use one for, I'm not too particular about accuracy. I just use mine for picking out hot spots. I've got an Flir E4 and modified the software to improve its resolution. So basically I've got the E8 resolution at...
  8. Tha fios agaibh

    Run a submersible pump on battery ?

    How about a spare car tire or compressed air tank with an air hose to supply your aerator? (No electric power used) That'd last at least a day.
  9. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    I also try and avoid having my iron plugged in when I'm not using it.
  10. Tha fios agaibh

    42 vizio e421vo no power...

    You may get some guidance here if you give some specifics. Make and model, post schematic or manual, post some close up pictures of circuit board you'r working on, and an explanation of where where you tested for power.
  11. Tha fios agaibh

    Super Bowl

    So exciting! And, I understand everything.
  12. Tha fios agaibh

    Reed Switch

    Yes you could use relays to handle the higher current, but I'd recommend using normally closed limit switches. Reed switches can be rather delicate for this function and if the switch doesn't trip it cause the carrier to crash and motor to overload. I'd also see that the switch ratings are will...
  13. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    A common mistake in soldering is holding the solder on too long. Give the iron enough time to come up to temperature, then just tap the solder briefly on the component your soldering. When you hold the solder on too long, it acts like a heatsink drawing heat away from the iron. Might want to...
  14. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    The top looks good but that blue color at one end look odd. It suggests to me that the screw holding the tip is loose, or there is bad surface contact between the element and the tip. Try tightening that screw with pliers or channel-lock pliers. The reason I like pliers as opposed to a screw...
  15. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    Wipe it on a damp sponge or even a rag and then quickly touch a tiny bit of solder on the tip to coat it. You will see it nice and shiny at this point. That's how we like it. As far as water; The moisture will quickly evaporate with the hot tip, so rust isn't a concern. Besides, its likely made...
  16. Tha fios agaibh

    Gate automation system - Motors open but do not close.

    Provided you know and understand the dangers involved with working around live energized circuits, I'd temporarily jumper pin 13 and 16 to eliminate possibility that the photo eye signal is bouncing during closing. Could also be that there is mechanical bind causing motor torque to exceed its...
  17. Tha fios agaibh

    Soldering iron trouble.

    To me, the cardinal rule for soldering is keeping the tip clean. I wipe the tip frequently. Oxidation is the enemy. Might want to check that the tip is tight also. This will insure good heat transfer.
  18. Tha fios agaibh

    Trying to find a comparable relay

    Not a bad idea to investigate wither suppression is warranted. Eg. Add a Varistor across AC load if it's inductive.
  19. Tha fios agaibh

    Trying to find a comparable relay

    Minder brings up some good points. From my experience, these pin type relays are garbage and don't stand up well. Particularly with inductive loads. I would retrofit that board with larger and more robust relays. It will save you head aches in the future. You can add din rail sockets to make...
  20. Tha fios agaibh

    Run a submersible pump on battery ?

    Something like this would work. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000CITK8S/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?qid=1454995403&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=battery+trickle+charger&dpPl=1&dpID=51BIMpwea9L&ref=plSrch
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