# LED Lamp



## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

Would this lamp be suitable for swirl/scratch detection?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mains-pow...UK_BOI_Lights_Lighting_ET&hash=item4d13063920


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

CodHead said:


> Would this lamp be suitable for swirl/scratch detection?
> 
> http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mains-pow...UK_BOI_Lights_Lighting_ET&hash=item4d13063920


yes should be ok

but this is better

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-50W-C...815?pt=UK_Garden_Lighting&hash=item3f27456c6f


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## SystemClenz (Oct 31, 2008)

^^^ very good indeed :thumb:


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## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

That's a good price Steve, do you use yours with a stand?


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## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

Well I ordered the lamp recommended by Steve from Wath, it came yesterday but not had chance to try it yet. Just clicked on the link again and the seller has put the price of the lamp up to £76 from £26!!


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## MJI4742 (May 18, 2011)

That will be great! I just ordered the same light but only 30w and it is spot on.
I think I picked it up for £49 including delivery from www.ledhut.co.uk


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## -Raven- (Aug 26, 2010)

Yes, get the 50w cool white (6000k) ones, and shop around too.


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## NeilG40 (Jan 1, 2009)

CodHead said:


> Well I ordered the lamp recommended by Steve from Wath, it came yesterday but not had chance to try it yet. Just clicked on the link again and the seller has put the price of the lamp up to £76 from £26!!


I wondered why everybody was saying the price was good after clicking the link, wished I'd seen this at the time.


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## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

It was an absolute steal at £26 and free p&p, done pretty well on purchases this last week. Ordered a Karcher steamer for £59 from the Karcher Outlet and the price jumped to £79 after my purchase and in B&Q yesterday, I bought a car cleaning attachment kit for the Mrs's Vax hoover for £19 when it should have been £25.


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## Rebel007 (May 7, 2013)

There are a number of companies with this back in stock at around £26, the reason the price went up appears to be they ran out of stock. anyway I have just ordered one from This company for £24.39 inc free delivery


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Just FYI I purchased one of those lights and noticed a bit of a buzz off the casework. Despite having three core cable, the units are not earthed.










No continuity between metallic parts and earth (the clip is attached to bare metal here NOT paint before anyone says...):









Casework is at around 50VAC, I measured just under 1mA. Not dangerous, but could be a bit of pain outside with good earth with water everywhere.









Inside, the three core goes straight into the constant current driver, but I suspect it is not connected inside as there is no continuity anywhere and no leakage whatsoever down the earth when the unit is powered up.









I replaced the cable anyway and bonded the casework to earth with a crimped lug and shakeproof washer. This also stopped the high pitched whine which the driver was emitting.


















It's quite bright, but dimmer than a 70W metal halide, and definitely dimmer than a halogen floodlight though the relatively small emitting area means swirls are more visible than a linear halogen.

I would suggest you all make sure the casework is properly earthed.


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## carrera2s (Jun 28, 2009)

SteveyG said:


> Just FYI I purchased one of those lights and noticed a bit of a buzz off the casework. Despite having three core cable, the units are not earthed.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Well said from another electrician!:thumb:


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## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

And how would you do that, I'm no electrician?


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## andy monty (Dec 29, 2007)

SteveyG said:


> Just FYI I purchased one of those lights and noticed a bit of a buzz off the casework. Despite having three core cable, the units are not earthed.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Bloody hell..... I had read stories about these been shoddy from ebay... I have had all my led floods from GWS and even they warn about shoddy china imports

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Led-Flood...Lighting&var=530074552867&hash=item35bf5a3b96

and the led gu10 bulbs....


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

CodHead said:


> And how would you do that, I'm no electrician?


I can do a brief guide as I have a couple from two other sellers coming.



andy monty said:


> Bloody hell..... I had read stories about these been shoddy from ebay... I have had all my led floods from GWS and even they warn about shoddy china imports


I'd be interested in seeing if the GWS ones are any different. What I've found so far is they are all exactly the same, probably all sourced from one factory.

Could you take the cover off the back of yours and take a picture?


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

Ive had all mine rewired by the sparks at work,when i first got them

now have anice long cable ,all safe


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## Karl woods (Mar 15, 2012)

SteveyG said:


> I can do a brief guide as I have a couple from two other sellers coming.
> 
> I have one coming so a brief guide would be very helpfull thanks


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## jdquinn (May 19, 2010)

SteveyG that's a really good finding. As an electrical controls designer myself I rarely think to test bought items at home due to assuming they would be manufactured to a high standard. Was the light CE marked by any chance? If it was not it is illegal for the item to be sold in Europe and if it was CE marked by the importer they obviously have not tested the item thoroughly and are taking a huge gamble with peoples safety.

I did buy an ac/dc transformer off ebay as a power supply for a new charger I had bought. Just for the hell of it I thought I'd check the plug top connections. I don't know what it was about the item but I felt it was something I needed to do. It's a good job I did too as almost all the connections were very loose which would have caused arcing which could have led to a fire. As I have a tendency to slow charge my model helicopter batteries in an unused bedroom away from the living area of the house this would not have been at all good.


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

There's no rating plate at all on the device. I always take apart everything other than from trusted brands.


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## carrera2s (Jun 28, 2009)

You get what you pay for! From another spark:thumb:

I only buy trusted brands. It's much safer. If your a spark you can test these cheap fittings but lots won't and its a serious problem!,

Paul


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

I didn't buy these to use, I bought these to check them out. Proper high power LED floodlights which don't use these poor quality LED chips or drivers are over £200, but most people on here aren't going to buy those, so I figured I'd have a look at what people are buying.


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## carrera2s (Jun 28, 2009)

SteveyG said:


> I didn't buy these to use, I bought these to check them out. Proper high power LED floodlights which don't use these poor quality LED chips or drivers are over £200, but most people on here aren't going to buy those, so I figured I'd have a look at what people are buying.


Very nice of you that Steve!:thumb:


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Despite them being pretty cheap and nasty, they do actually work well for inspecting paintwork so once they are made safe I'd recommend them. I can't vouch for their longevity though...


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## deegan1979 (Mar 6, 2012)

Im using these mini cordless 10w led lamps at the moment.
They are great, last about 4 - 5 hours as they have lithium batteries and are really bright and crisp
Not bad for £60


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## deegan1979 (Mar 6, 2012)

Here another pic to show how small it is with a regular biro pen on top and a sky tv remote


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## Short1e (Apr 5, 2009)

I'm guessing these on the first page are out of stock also (the link from Steve) as the price has gone up again. Knew I should have bought one when I could have :wall:


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

There's loads on ebay. Try this one: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111130452068

This one came through with much more substantial heatsink on the back than the one Steve linked to so should last longer. I think I got that one for £28 (e-mail them and ask for a discount :thumb


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## -Raven- (Aug 26, 2010)

I've got two of the 50w cool white LED lights. They are both earthed, drivers are glued, etc. Looks like Steve got some dodgy ones....








'


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

That one looks the same as the one I got from http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/111130452068

I think it's pot luck though - seems they just send whatever they can get that week.


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Took a few pictures tonight while replacing the cable on one of these floods for something much longer.

*WARNING: Mains electricity can kill. If you don't have a basic working knowledge of electricity then don't attempt to copy any of the steps outlined below - find someone who is competent to do the works*.

Slacken off the cable grommet and open up the back of the floodlight, then remove insulation from the cable up to the LED driver with a small knife.










When I got to the entry to the driver, the earth wire just fell out in my hand so clearly wasn't connected.










Prepare a new cable with the sheath removed and feed through the grommet.










Unless there is already a decent earth wire attached somewhere, you need to find a red ring crimp and a decent crimp tool to attach an earth to somewhere with good metallic contact to the whole fitting


















You can use terminal blocks to connect your new cable up to the LED driver. If the light already came with an earth wire attached to the chassis, you want to use a three way block.


















For the earth connection, find a shakeproof washer to get better contact with the chassis. You can scrape a bit of paint off around a suitable point and add a bit of hot glue to stop the screw coming loose.










On all of these fittings there are four screws which hold the front section of the floodlight to the rear case. These are a good place to connect the earth:









Tools I used:









Before you power it up, if you have a multimeter you can check for basic continuity from the earth pin to the chassis. Also make sure you have no continuity between the chassis and any of the line conductors. If you know a sparks with a Megger or high voltage insulation tester ask them to check for you.










I also noticed some fittings are a lot less substantial than others. The one on the left is from ebay seller* himan-zhi-2012* the one on the right from *naviyourlife* (look at the heatsinks at the back of the units.)


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## steve from wath (Dec 12, 2008)

-Raven- said:


> I've got two of the 50w cool white LED lights. They are both earthed, drivers are glued, etc. Looks like Steve got some dodgy ones....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


sorry why did i get dodgy ones?

my drivers were glued in etc

i took mine to work where the sparkies extended the mains leads

i now have two working as outside security lights

and one as a swirl spotting lamp

no buzzing,no bad earths etc etc

ive no complaints,also dingabell and stangalang also bought them at same time,we grouped together and eventually got 6 for £22 each
all brand new etc,no problems here


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

I think he means me dude. I'd be interested in a picture of the inside of yours though as one of mine from that seller was dodgy.


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## P.M.J. (Dec 15, 2012)

jdquinn said:


> SteveyG that's a really good finding. As an electrical controls designer myself I rarely think to test bought items at home due to assuming they would be manufactured to a high standard. Was the light CE marked by any chance? If it was not it is illegal for the item to be sold in Europe and if it was CE marked by the importer they obviously have not tested the item thoroughly and are taking a huge gamble with peoples safety.


Maybe the CE sticker stands for "China Export" :doublesho


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## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

This is the lamp I bought from the link Steve posted, drivers are glued in and earth is attached. Not actually tried it yet though.


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## -Raven- (Aug 26, 2010)

steve from wath said:


> sorry why did i get dodgy ones?
> 
> my drivers were glued in etc
> 
> ...


Not you, it was SteveyG. Not sure how you thought it was you with what has been posted! 

Anyway, yep, I'm very happy with my two! And so is everybody on my local Aussie forum that's got them as well! :thumb:


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## -Raven- (Aug 26, 2010)

Nice guide too SteveyG! :thumb:


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

CodHead said:


> This is the lamp I bought from the link Steve posted, drivers are glued in and earth is attached. Not actually tried it yet though.


Looks good dude. Seems like it's total pot luck then :doublesho

The guide is still valid if you plan to extend the mains lead anyway. :thumb:


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## CodHead (Sep 21, 2012)

Thanks Stevey although I now decided not to trust anything you say as you said Skoda Yeti's are ugly!!

Seriously though, is there any particular cable I should be using? I was having a look in B&Q last night and there seemed to be all different kinds.


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## SteveyG (Apr 1, 2007)

Beauty is subjective 

I would suggest you use 1 or1.25mm² 3 core flex. You can use thinner cable as these units only draw half an amp, but the thicker stuff is more rugged.

I used 1.25mm² because I have loads of it.

This could be a good option: http://search.diy.com/search#w=5018486479772&asug= but I'm not sure if 1.5mm² will fit through the cable gland.

http://search.diy.com/search#w=5018486479987&asug=


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