Indoor pool light xfr.

[hey_poolboy]

I'm having a problem finding a 12v 300W pool light transformer rated for indoor use. I have located two ( intermatic and safety-volt?) and both say on them "for outdoor use only" I have contacted both companies and neither make and indoor use xfr. This is a commercial install and the inspector will be looking for this violation specifically. Someone was recently called on it.

I have asked the inspector and he could not provide any help. I think the last job they switched to 120V.

Any help in finding one that does not state for outdoor use only would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[larryl]

good morning,,,
switching it to 120v,,very good idear,,
done,,,

 

[jjhoward]

Try Tortran Inc, Bridgeport Magnetics.
They make all types of lamp transformers.
www.tortran.com
Does the xformer have to be a "pool" transformer or are you mounting it remotely?

 

[hey_poolboy]

Thanks guys.

the transformer will be mounted in the equipment room.

As for switching to line voltage, I am not sure what to do. It is a state approved plan, and as such I have to install what is specd. or try to get a change order which would mean weeks in delay.

 

[peteo]

Can't tell which coast you're on. One local company which is very good for the single, to customer specs unit is Jackson Transformer in Chatsworth. Not too far from them is a well established distributor,Valley Industrial Electric.

 

[mhulbert]

I have had a lot of success with Q-Tran. I just put 6 of them in and was surprised with how well they are made. One of their indoor/outdoor models has a pool listing: http://www.q-tran.com/pdf/qoms.pdf

Some of the others have p&s listings as well, or it's an option, check out their whole catalog. http://www.q-tran.com/index.html

A word of advice, if you are going to have a few of these on one switch leg, get them with the choke installed, this reduces inrush cuurent. I've had problems with other manufacturer's products having a high inrush...tripping a 20A CB with only 2 300W units. We had an inrush of around 160A! The solution is to use a High Magnetic breaker or a choke on the transformer.

Mike

 

[hey_poolboy]

mhulbert, thanks for the advice. In this case I only have one, but I may keep that in mind for future use.

I will look into Q-tran. In the mean time I also tried http://www.jeffersonelectric.com/ andhttp://www.acmepowerdist.com/
Anyone ever use either of these manufacturers procucts?

 

[mhulbert]

I've had bad luck with the acme transformers...basically, you are going to get a 12V buck/boost transformer from them. If you get the right model, they put a little "push to reset" CB on the case (the same kinds you see on the cheap power strips). There is not enough room in the CB to make up your connections(I added a 4S box to one side), and there is no serperation between 120/12V (important in a pool/spa app). The sheet metal on them is thin and sharp at the edges, so you get butchered wiring them. They worked, but I had to spend a lot of extra time mounting them, fixing them (the cap was put on crooked from the factory, so it looked like I mounted the unit off-level), and wiring them. I didn't get a unit with a breaker, so I had to add fuses too.

I've never used the Jefferson units, but I suspect the same type of construction out of these "general purpose" transformer companies.

I like the QTran because they have taps to boost the voltage if you have VD going on (almost always in a lond run, 12V app like a pool). Also, they use big CB's that seem to hold up a lot better, and you can manually trip them out for troubleshooting if you have multiple output CB's per unit (highly recomended if you have multiple home runs, will save you a ton of troubleshooting).

mike

 

[peteo]

Shipped several hundred smaller (10-20 kVA) buck boost Acmes monthly for a couple years without any defects. Jefferson bench tested fine but never came near our target price for prodction. All I know...