LED lighting on Generator

[djmatthill]

Hello

has anyone ever had an issue using led par cans on a standard petrol generator.

 

 

The Geni to a standard site 1500kva set.

 

We are looking to use about six cheapo cpc par 56 style led par cans to light our mobile stage.

 

Also has anyone had any issues use the led security style outdoor fixtures on a cheap generator ?

 

Thanks

 

Matt

H

[jonathanhill]

...standard petrol generator.

 

 

The Geni to a standard site 1500kva set.

 

 

That's a big generator to be a petrol set! Did you mean a 1500VA set?

[Gerry]

I've run cheapo LED par cans off a petrol generator without any problems.

Cheers

Gerry

[djmatthill]

Hi John.

 

Apologies yes I did mean 1500va

 

Sorry ... Typing on smartphone .

 

 

Matt

[maeterlinck]

What problems are you getting?

[ImagineerTom]

Generators that use inverters to step up / step down the voltage tend to play havoc with the dimming / power correction circuitry in cheap chinese LED stuff in our experience - something to do with sine-waves phasing (or other fancy technical words) which means that everything flashes a lot.

[Jivemaster]

Simple generators regulate badly. (mine is 300VAC unloaded) SO run a moderate resistive load if you can (say a 100w tungsten lamp) This tends to make the system more stable against voltage fluctuation and frequency variation as load is applied and removed.

[timmeh2]

Hi

 

Agree with Jivemaster.

 

Have a decent dummy load on the line to settle the genny's output, pretty sure that your cans would blow up rather well if subjected to overvoltage or wobbly frequencies.

 

All the best

Timmeh

[Jivemaster]

The important thing about dummy loads is that they are truly resistive. Only a tungsten lamp or a small heater will do the job.

[jonathanhill]

The important thing about dummy loads is that they are truly resistive. Only a tungsten lamp or a small heater will do the job.

 

The base load should also not be switched by a thermostat, such as you would find in a heater.

[PaulDF]

I wonder if a step up 110v to 240v transformer would be of use, I once used a transformer to eliminate flicker on festoon lighting with a 2kva genny. That is of course if your genny has a 110v supply.

[timmeh2]

Hi

 

I can think of a couple of reasons why that might be a bad idea, mostly to do with connecting things with an SMPS to a dirty great transformer, all kinds of wierd harmonic issues and the potentially catastrophic inrush current and voltage transients as the step-up's field established, especially if it was the only thing connected.

 

That's the kind of thing I'd love to connect my silly scope to and see what happens when you threw the switch. For a genny with no or poor voltage regulation I'd expect all sorts of frequency and voltage mayhem.

 

All the best

Timmeh