Afci

[kjw444]

I installed some w.a.c l.e.d lighting in a cove and the afci breaker will trip anywhere from 10 minutes to 25 minutes after they are turned on. I checked all splices and made sure no wires were touching in the boxes. There are other lights on the circuit and no problems. Would a electronic transformer cause these problems? I tried a regular breaker and no problems at all. There must be a problem and its really driving me nuts. Any ideas???

 

[Dennis Alwon]

I would try another AFCI breaker then I would change the trany. Good Luck

 

[ELA]

I installed some w.a.c l.e.d lighting in a cove and the afci breaker will trip anywhere from 10 minutes to 25 minutes after they are turned on. I checked all splices and made sure no wires were touching in the boxes. There are other lights on the circuit and no problems. Would a electronic transformer cause these problems? I tried a regular breaker and no problems at all. There must be a problem and its really driving me nuts. Any ideas???

What brand of AFCI?
I assume the LED lights run directly off of 120VAC? If so they may have an PWM circuit inside that generates noise.

Would love to know if installing an EMI filter next to the lights makes the problem go away.

 

[kjw444]

Siemens breakers and yes 120v/12v transformer

 

[ELA]

Do the Siemens breaker status LEDs report an Arc or a ground fault?
Since you have a 120/12vac transformer then there is probably less chance of a switching regulator being a "noise issue" and generating a nuisance arc fault trip.
As Dennis suggested, have you tried another transformer? Is the transformer secondary bonded or not?