Led lights blink off through out the new house.

[Mark Toler]

Metal building with wood frame house inside.
Problem: Led lights blink off through out the house. No dimmers in the house.
Corrective actions: Power company did a read out of voltage all good. We put the house on generator power still blinked. Checked all circuits and joints, replaced the main breaker and panel guts. Installed surge suppressor and lightning arrestor. Drove a second ground rod. Removed ceiling fan remote wireless and installed keyless and led bulb. Changed island lights to incandescent bulbs, they blinked off. Appliances are off, heat pump off.

 

[synchro]

I suggest plugging a light into various receptacles around the house to see if it also blinks off. If it doesn't blink then the problem is likely limited to just the lighting circuits. If it still blinks then the problem may be a common feeder, panel, or with the POCO. Also note whether the light gets brighter at times which would indicate that there's probably a loose neutral in a MWBC, the panel, or service.
Can you describe "blinking off" in more detail, such as the frequency and duration of the blinks, and if they seem periodic or random in nature.

 

[suemarkp]

Bad batch of bulbs? I got a box of 4 bulbs from Home Depot and a few months later all of them started flickering when they got warm. I couldn't remember which fixtures got those bulbs, but when I replaced the flickering ones, they were all the same make/model. I still have some old fluorescent twisters that just won't die.

So try a different brand bulb unless you already have a mix.

 

[WasGSOHM]

This could be "The tragedy of the Commons." Each OEM feels entitled to dump whatever incompatible garbage onto the rest of you.

Y'all are going to have to wait until we are all more highly evolved. Don't hold your breath.

 

[ptonsparky]

It’s not an LED problem alone if the incandescent blink off.

 

[WasGSOHM]

It’s not an LED problem alone if the incandescent blink off.

Yeah, that points "upstream" as the first problem to be solved.

Once this is solved other problems having to do with the product [or other things] may become visible. Or not, if you're lucky.

I hate callbacks. They're embarassing and they make me doubt myself.

 

[LarryFine]

It’s not an LED problem alone if the incandescent blink off.

Exactly. This kind of blinking (from the little we've been told) is often a result of wind moving the service drop, exposing an intermittent connection, like at the butt splices.

Also, investigate whether the offending lights are on one circuit, or on the same phase. As an experiment, I'd try a pair of lights right at the panel.

 

[WasGSOHM]

wind moving the service drop, exposing an intermittent connection, like at the butt splices.

I take it PoCo doesn't maintain their stuff unless they absolutely have to.

 

[LarryFine]

I take it PoCo doesn't maintain their stuff unless they absolutely have to.

They will if they're notified, and presented with evidence.

 

[Little Bill]

I don't just take POCO's word for it. I will have them pull the meter so I can check in there. I've found corroded neutrals there several times. Lineman says everything ok but they rarely check the meter and sometimes just do a visual on the drop. Not that they will/can do any repairs in the meter, but they can certainly open it up and look, and if they see problems, they can either call us or have the customer call. I've had them say "everything is good on our end" and then after I've checked everything on the load side I asked them to look again. Then they will usually check the connections at the tranny and drop. Many times they end up changing the crimps either at the drop or pole and that was the problem all along.

 

[LarryFine]

I don't just take POCO's word for it. I will have them pull the meter so I can check in there. I've found corroded neutrals there several times. Lineman says everything ok but they rarely check the meter and sometimes just do a visual on the drop. Not that they will/can do any repairs in the meter, but they can certainly open it up and look, and if they see problems, they can either call us or have the customer call. I've had them say "everything is good on our end" and then after I've checked everything on the load side I asked them to look again. Then they will usually check the connections at the tranny and drop. Many times they end up changing the crimps either at the drop or pole and that was the problem all along.

They're also notorious for not checking voltages under load.

 

[WasGSOHM]

Lineman says everything ok

sometimes just do a visual on the drop.

"everything is good on our end"

they end up changing the crimps either at the drop or pole and that was the problem all along.

I've taken tests where they said "Show your work."

I'd ask these guys to "Show your work", how they concluded the problem wasn't with them.
If you ask them to put their readings [and reasoning] in writing you'll really get their attention.

If they say "we're not authorized to do that" you can ask them if they are expressly forbidden.

They want to put the lid on the can of worms and you want to lift the lid.

 

[ptonsparky]

Many years ago we wired up a building for the County Sheriff communications tower. Radio load was minimal. Blinking tower lights were not. It was several hundred feet underground to the building plus a short span of POCO overhead to the transformer. We had 5 a volt drop at each blink from one side of the road to the other. I expected some VD but not that much. POCO agreed and we got a larger transformer & overhead.

Proof was all we needed.

 

[readydave8]

Drove a second ground rod.

Anyone reading this ever tried that and solved this or similar problem?

 

[Hv&Lv]

I posted this before in another thread.
This is what I get our guys to use.

The Super Beast: 20 Amp Service Conductor Tester – Arnett Industries, LLC

hjarnett.com

 

[James L]

Can you describe "blinking off" in more detail, such as the frequency and duration of the blinks, and if they seem periodic or random in nature.

Exactly. Not enough blinking info.

Are all the lights blinking, or just some?
Does the blinking happen in unison, or some here and some there.

Neutral, possible culprit.
I've seen an overhead drop that was spliced, snd one of the compression butts wasn't tight. Lights blinked in the wind, as Larry said.

But I've had unison blinking in "most" of a house, with underground feed. Turned out somebody didn't tighten a hot lug in a pedestal.