Repairing a rather nice 100 LED lamp.

I like these older style LED lamps that rely on lots of small LEDs with simple power supplies. They're not only (usually) very reliable, but also completely repairable and hackable to make them into your own customised creation.
This is a classic 100 LED light with warm white straw hat LEDs and a simple capacitive dropper supply to power them.
Keep in mind that this style of light has the LED panel referenced to the mains supply, so don't handle the circuitry while it's powered.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
www.bigclive.co...
This also keeps the channel independent of KZbin's advertising algorithms allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty.

[@peterg.8245]

Clive you truly are the Bob Ross of LEDs!!!

[@Gengh13]

I could watch paint dry with Clive.... And it would still be entertaining.

[@two_tier_gary_rumain]

Lead based paint?

[@guygordon2780]

Ewwww. *That's* interesting.

[@markflack9191]

Lead free solder is responsible for a lot of electronics failing. It has caused more landfill and therefore more harm to the environment than the lead ever did.

[@fluke196c]

Environmentalists won't ever give up on making us feel bad for existing. I want plastic straws!

[@gibbeh3737]

Why

[@simonhopkins3867]

@@gibbeh3737 why what ?

[@westelaudio943]

60/40 master race

[@matthewbeddow3278]

@@fluke196c and plastic q tips

[@randynovick7972]

I must say that LED bulb kits were my first foray into electronics, and I blame you for that, Clive. Always good to see an LED bulb back on the bench.

[@macro820]

Clive you're one of my favorite channels thanks for all your content and being a friend

[@bigclivedotcom]

You're welcome. I feel like you guys are family.

[@maicod]

@@bigclivedotcom 👍

[@bills6093]

Uni-T:"I told you it was 25mA!"

[@AttilaAsztalos]

...imagining it said with a slightly wounded tone...

[@djdhavalshah5312]

BILL SCHNEIDER

[@AndyFletcherX31]

I thought it was a shower head when I first saw it :)

[@zh84]

I'm glad I wasn't the only one!

[@raymondmucklow3793]

Well it is 4th of July in the states so that's fitting for us Mericans. Shower of sparks. See what I did there.

[@SimonCoates]

Looks like a shower head and deadly as a shower light 😀

[@LiLi-or2gm]

Yes, that's what it is! It's for light showers. Bº )

[@gcewing]

It showers you with photons.

[@wimwiddershins]

It must be stimulating work doing a couple hundred of these every day in that factory somewhere in China.

[@oilybrakes]

Worry not! The Chinese outsource that kind of work to India now. 😅

[@simonhopkins3867]

@@oilybrakes pmsl. Nice one 🤣

[@izools]

The solder fumes? You'll barely know what's going on past the grin on your face 😅

[@randynovick7972]

They're great practice.

[@simontay4851]

I would've thought this many solder joints would be wave soldered. Solder them all at once on a continuous line. Would be quicker and more efficient.

[@sparkyprojects]

Did you notice the 'neon' screwdriver light up when you levered out the disc ? Must have been charged :D

[@thomasherzog86]

good eye

[@chrisg6597]

That's because the screwdriver is also a continuity tester for testing fuses. It isn't the traditional neon, but contains a LED, 2 button cells a Darlington transistor and a 4M7 resistor in place of the Neon (The Neon series resistor is still there as well). If you notice Clive was touching the tip of the screwdriver when the LED lit, thus showing that Clive is conductive! Look up 'Magic MultiTester Screwdriver' on ebay for similar screwdrivers.

[@CrazySparkie63]

I have the same screwdriver, It has it's own batteries, made for continuity, no contact voltage detection and low voltage dc polarity testing. I wouldn't trust it for anything electrical related but it is a bloody lifesaver for getting the knots out of my boot laces when I come home pissed from the pub lol!

[@Chrisamic]

I was going to say the same thing, but others have pointed out it's a continuity tester. That's a shame because the first story was so much more fun.

[@rogersmith9808]

@@chrisg6597 And cheap too (under 4.00 pounds). Except for the +100.00 pound shipping charge to the U.S.!! 😦

[@charlespatt]

Back in the '80s I used to pick up defective Radio Shack products (games, etc) that they had in a bin for just a few bucks each. Usually just bad solder joints. Reflow and they almost always started working again. I got the reputation of being able to repair anything! Then in the '90s my neighbor threw out his 52" cabinet TV. He said it had an audio problem and he already had bought a new replacement. I rolled it into my garage (yes it was a big cabinet). I just hit all the solder joints on the audio board and my family enjoyed the large screen TV for a number of years.

[@seannot-telling9806]

That lead free solder really bites. It has a long list of automotive use issues. It seems in a lot of cases to crack from the vibrations. Some reflow the joint and the smart ones take more time and remove it and use real lead containing solder.

[@blancsteve4819]

You prefer sick LEDs to dead ones. Clive the LED vet : )

[@maicod]

they weren't sick but just a little alone :-)

[@triplexdread]

Ooooh that lovely candy pink Clive. Showing your true colours now ;)

[@jurivlk5433]

200 soldering points to remake! Nice occupation for a sunny Sunday afternoon!

[@bigclivedotcom]

Pleasingly therapeutic, but I wouldn't want to do too many of them.

[@jurivlk5433]

@@bigclivedotcom😉

[@PinBallReviewerRepairs]

Ah yes we all love that lead free solder I said sarcastically. ;) Leaded is all I use on my pinball repairs here it works great everytime. :)

[@gibbeh3737]

Your videos let me escape my nightmares

[@toejamr1]

gibbeh you know my wife?

[@blancsteve4819]

A little bird told me; that illegal flower suppresses the memory of dreams. Especially the Indica varieties. The Manx police recently ceased prossecuting grows of less than 9 plants. Growing your own is an enjoyable hobby. If you want to know more, google the number four hundred and twenty. It is associated with home the growing movement.

[@twocvbloke]

I can't be the only one looking at that lamp and thinking "Now what would that look like if that was re-engineered to be covered in hundreds of neon indicator lamps?"... :D

[@bendito999]

I think he did that before: answer: it'd be glorious

[@bigclivedotcom]

The tricky bit being that 50 neon lamps per circuit in series would require a strike voltage of 4500V.

[@Shaun.Stephens]

@@bigclivedotcom Don't you have a transformer out of one of those USB plasma balls around somewhere? :)

[@phils4634]

@@bigclivedotcom Seems an ideal application for your strangely-named Italian NST! With 25kV behind them, they'll light just fine . . . . . . :-) :-)

[@tomboxyz5564]

Bad solder joints in a cheap LED lamp aren't surprising, it happens even with industrial name-brand equipment, how many times I fixed operator panels and HMI's by just reflowing some solder joints... I've come to hate lead-free solder because of this, then again, it gives me a job

[@tomboxyz5564]

@Another Dick I've had a roll of lead-free at work because that was what they used in production, so when I needed I just grabbed it from the warehouse, I got the company to buy me 60/40 after I tried soldering 6mm2 cables to a connector and the cable and connector would start melting before the solder... When trying to salvage components I always add some 60/40 while touching the tip to the joint, as that will make the lead-free solder melt easier, saves some time and results components not failing in the process

[@gordonrichardson2972]

TomboXYZ Half of Louis Rossmann's $$$ Apple repairs are just reflowing corroded solder joints.

[@electronic7979]

Very good 👍

[@lumpyfishgravy]

There's a lot to be said for reflowing joints. I did my gas boiler PCB ... et voila the thing worked again. It was several hundred SMT joints, but less faff than trying to source a replacement as I didn't know if any nonvolatile values got stored during the commissioning process. In general, I find a lot of stock items work better when they've had some TLC. It's not that they were designed wrong, but sometimes the manufacturing process is cut to the bone.

[@ashmanelectricalservices4318]

Did he pause momentarily? 😂😂😂

[@maicod]

one moement pleez

[@acmefixer1]

The non-conducting half was not using its half of the 25 mA, so the conducting half was probably running at nearly twice its normal current, or about 25 mA. Hopefully that didn't shorten its life. Here in the USA the series strings of LEDs add up to half of the 240VAC LED bulbs, so it's about 75 VDC or so. If there are no "power surges" (overvoltage faults) then these cheap LED bulbs should last a very long time. I plugged in a Philips LED bulb almost 10 years ago and it's been on 24/7 since then, except for several power outages lasting a few days. It has over 80 thousand hours on it and it's still bright, but I don't know if it's dimmer because I had no way to measure the light output back then. It's probably somewhat dimmer, but it still looks okay. My stamp of approval goes on the Philips LED light bulbs, they're a reputable brand.

[@PaulSteMarie]

You just like reflowing joints 😁 You could have used a meter to locate the bad led fairly quickly.

[@bigclivedotcom]

It was future proofing. And quite therapeutic too.

[@maicod]

no doctor that can compete :)

[@grantrennie]

Check your postbox in a few days 👍 thanks for the good video

[@bigclivedotcom]

Uh-oh. What's on its way?

[@bigclivedotcom]

Candy and gift received, thanks. (And featured at beginning of upcoming video.)

[@threeMetreJim]

A nice low voltage lamp (I'm not a fan of mains projects, and do odd jobs for people reliant on battery power) can be made with those 1W led beads and a circular aluminium pcb designed for 5 of them, you do have to mount it to some sort of metal plate (a metal light fitting?) to help dissipate the heat. You can get the small driver pcb that was intended for MR16 lamps and modify it to run at a lower current than the maximum for the leds (150mA is good for the 1W beads, about half power). You get good light level without much heat, as it's quite spread out, and the LEDs should last for ages. You can also use the same driver boards to convert the rotating mains powered 'disco bulbs' to run from 12V - you might have to include some interference suppression beads though as the Chinese driver boards can be a bit noisy - not good in a battery powered home when you want radio reception.

[@jurivlk5433]

Must be a lamp from 1927, since LED-lamps last 50'000h! LOL!

[@toejamr1]

52,000 hours is about 6 years

[@OneMarko]

@@toejamr1 If it was on for 24h/day, then yes.

[@jurivlk5433]

@@toejamr1 Well, nobody lets the lamp 24/24 h on. What do they calculate on the packages? 1 1/2h a day or 3h?

[@july8xx]

@@toejamr1 They are usually rated at 3 hours per day.

[@johnfrancisdoe1563]

Juri Vlk Except Clive. And exit signs, street lamps etc, etc. But the 50000 hour number is for the LED chip itself, not the least durable component, which in this case was the solder.

[@rayperigo5575]

i find that "burning rubber smell" is often the residue left by the tape used to hold the parts in an 'ammo belt' - resistors from those were famous for that stink and poor solder joints because of it. That and the bane of lead free solder. Worse was tarnished silver connections that smelled like urine when soldered

[@NeoVoxPopuli]

At 1:10 you seemingly unwittingly discharged the dropper, judging by the brief flash in your currency finding screw driver. Nice touch!

[@haxxy40]

I was about to comment the same thing!

[@bigclivedotcom]

That driver has a battery in it for continuity testing.

[@NeoVoxPopuli]

Now I am curious as to what continuity it detected... but not enough to recreate the circumstances. Thanks for the response though!

[@bigclivedotcom]

@@NeoVoxPopuli Just between the metalwork I was touching and the other hand touching the back of the test-driver.

[@andruloni]

A currency -finding screwdriver would be quite handy. Hmm :|

[@makeracistsafraidagain]

I have learned something new. Thank you.

[@twice2wice]

Could you tear down a (Xiaomi) Yeelight, it's a smart RGB bulb with wifi and costs under 20 bucks to compete with Philips Hue

[@Avantime]

You can always donate one to Clive.

[@Mountain-Man-3000]

I bought that same meter a few years ago, and have ended up using it more than any of my more premium meters. I guess sometimes cheap and cheerful just works out.

[@tgfcujhb7583]

And makes you more willing to use it, when it goes bang who cares.

[@jongrimm7767]

"get the Fluke out of here" chuckle snort

[@Redmoonblade]

Big Clive shows us that we need to know how to fix our own items due to cheap manufacturing.

[@whitcwa]

Entertaining and educational video as usual, thanks Sir Clive. If everyone who watched it gave one dollar a month imagine the videos you could make! But they, and you, wouldn't be the same. Still, viewers should support you if they can.

[@GlennHamblin]

It would be interesting to see the current waveform on an oscilloscope. I would bet the peak current is much higher that 25 milliamps, but the duty cycle is fairly small because the LEDs won't draw any current until the voltage reaches close to 150V and will shut off as soon as it drops below that.

[@gordonrichardson2972]

Glenn Hamblin That's where the power factor comes in. The amperage reading is a time average over the rectified AC current.

[@GlennHamblin]

@@gordonrichardson2972 Yes, I understand that. But the digital DC ammeter cannot effectively read that funky waveform with any accuracy at all. The scope will show the peak current and the funky waveform. It would be worth looking at.

[@dc9039]

Clive, I wish you would educate me on power factor.

[@rahmanaridho]

Let's say 20W of real power and you got power factor 0.5 that mean the total power it's consumed is 40VA. VA is volt ampere, and watt is real power. The way you calculate is real power divided by power factor equal volt amps. So if real power is 20W and power factor is 1 total energy it's will consume is 20VA. So yeah power factor 1 is efficient but only happen at resistance load while capacitance and inductance have power factor of 0.5 but in opposite directions, that why big inductance load like utility transformer, industrial motor, or even at your washing machine and fan has a capacitor to correct the power factor. It wasn't perfect to make the power factor into 1 but at least 0.8 which is much better than power factor 0.5 . Just imagine if the industrial motor required 100kW if the power factor is 0.5 it equal 200kVA. if the power factor is 0.8 it equal 125kVA, which is 75kVA more efficient.

[@dc9039]

Rahman Aridho, good explanation, thank you.

[@williamsquires3070]

Ohhhh, I’d love to turn one of these into a lethal “plant” watering device! Bye, bye, weeds! >Bzzzt!< 🤣

[@maicod]

I would've been too lazy finicking these ultra short wires back on and would've extended them slightly

[@videolabguy]

That was very illuminating!

[@AntonioClaudioMichael]

Great video Big Clive

[@fatih3194]

what value capacitor do i need for 10 watt led in capacitive dropper its normal driver gives 23 volts 465 mA

[@varilight]

Cheers Clive! 👍

[@AlanW]

Given that the lamp is flickering, is the DC setting on the clamp meter going to be off when measuring the AC current?

[@themightiestofbooshes9443]

y'know, every shimmering problem with Euro lights can be solved if the power grids ran at 60Hz instead of 50Hz making it easier to sync it up with multiples of 60 for time scaling.

[@jamesvandamme7786]

That's the only thing I don't like about the Brit mains system.

[@Ressy66]

you mean Euro, Asian, pacific (Aus NZ).. or, more to hte point. just about everywhere apart from the USA

[@RFC3514]

PAL (the video standard used in most of the world) is 50 Hz. I'm guessing Clive is recording this on a phone that doesn't support 50/25 FPS (his videos are 30 FPS), but on a proper camera it would be in sync with mains frequency.

[@themightiestofbooshes9443]

@@RFC3514 NTSC or bust!

[@RFC3514]

It often did. Which is why video engineers called them "Never Twice the Same Colour" and "Pictures At Last", and why most "NTSC" digital formats adopted PAL / SECAM style sampling. And don't get me started on 3:2 pulldown. Anyway, these days (unless you're talking professional broadcast equipment, that still tries to be 100% compatible with analogue standards) the only practical difference is the frame rate. 60 (let's pretend it's actually 60; in fact NTSC is 59.97 FPS, because why be sane?) does have the advantage of being more factorisable, but people don't really use sub-multiples other than half (ex., not many cameras support 60/3=20 FPS, and both 60 and 50 are easily divisible by 2), so it's kind of irrelevant. Keeping the cameras at a frame rate identical to (a sub-multiple of) mains frequency is still the best bet in most cases (not just because of unsmoothed LEDs, but also fluorescent lighting, etc.), though you still need to play with shutter duration to avoid tearing when you film things like CRTs and 7-segment displays.

[@blg53]

There seems to be enough room in there for a much larger smoothing capacitor. At 25ma it should not be too hard to get rid of the flicker.

[@dave101t]

ive got a built-in-to-mains kitchen light which is a big led square, stopped working so replaced it. ive kept it tho, if i fix it, any way to convert it to a lower power consumption (to use as a desk light), or should i just wire it up with a plug? im in china so perhaps just chuck it eh?

[@raymondmucklow3793]

At the last few seconds of the video, as you're doing the closing. It looked as if the leds were in a non straight line they looked bent more twords the middle is that the way it was made, or is that the flicker or are we seeing the wave in motion sinusoidal I mean. Or am I just crazy. Cheers from not so hot Kansas today. My transmission is all in. Now i have to do a quicklearn at dealership they want a week to do it. I'd like to drive this truck. Right now.

[@bigclivedotcom]

Some of the LEDs leads didn't look quite straight, but they're wide angle, so it's not really an issue. The ripple was camera rolling shutter creating a wave with the slight ripple on the LEDs.

[@raymondmucklow3793]

@@bigclivedotcom ok, well I thought I was intuitive for a second there. 😁

[@auke1031]

I have a question, but first some back story... I was peeling off the yellow coating from a square led array chip "automotive interior" replacement lamp which had burned out due to my lack of current-limiting... And whilst peeling and poking around, I saw a faint sparke/glow following along the edge of the separation area!! What sorcery is this?!? Try it, under dim lighting...

[@bigclivedotcom]

I've not seen that,but I'd guess it's possibly electrostatic phosphor stimulation or a triboluminescence effect.

[@yodaco]

Dear Clive. I have a dead thinga-m-bob. The dead thinga-m-bob is some what simple enough. I have replaced the thinga-m-bob as it was cheaper than effort. Would you be interested in the thinga-m-bob? it is a common item and prone to failing on mass. Learning its mode of failure would no doubt prove an interesting lesson and as per the nature of said item, likely find a few views....from outside the usual viewership!

[@Polite_Cat]

while i agree that lead free solder is annoying, since solder is used in so many different things that get put in landfills in huge quantities, isn't it much better for the environment not to have the lead leeching out? or is it not likely to leech out of the solder?

[@bigclivedotcom]

I'm not sure that solid metallic lead leaches out in the same way the lead based chemicals in some products do.

[@tupai62]

the led connect in parallel or series..how the connection?

[@RobertWilliams_]

Nice one Clive, I just bought a UT-210E tester !! :D

[@bigclivedotcom]

You'll like it. It's good little meter.

[@RobertWilliams_]

@@bigclivedotcom Will help with my First Solar install coming up on my new old Van no doubt ! Will put some images up of the install at some point when complete. Thanks

[@ADR69]

Do you have a link or specific search this would be nice for kits

[@bigclivedotcom]

They do sell a 120 LED lamp kit with globe, but without the LEDs. www.ebay.co.uk/itm/141975653091

[@ADR69]

@@bigclivedotcom perfect! Thank you

[@ADR69]

@@bigclivedotcom I just got a bunch of these in they're legit

[@moldybrain]

love your repair videos

[@danjensen-pastafariandan]

I have been looking at the dewalt 5000 lumen work light. but A bare tool (no battery, or charger) is 200 us dollars. That seems excessive to me, would it be less money to put together something on my own as I have 5 dewalt 20v battery's with my other tools

[@floobertuber]

Lead-free solder mandates: "Hey, let's make something so 'safe', it doesn't work right any more!"

[@Furiends]

25 milliamps x 150 volts = 3.75 watts. While the hoppy showed 4.28 watts. So an efficiency of about 88%.

[@Totogita]

Hi nice video. This video brings to mind the power factor correcter box that is being sold on the net. Can that fix the power factor of these led lamps?

[@bigclivedotcom]

No. Electronic power factor is quite complex to fix.

[@mr1jon1smith]

Looks like he fix it before fixing it. Look closely after 2:00 when he powers it while its open. From the light casting on the case and on his fingers looks like all the LED are alight.

[@kevinlai3811]

good job. now more is for SMD.we are making led. so can share some experience each other.

[@freespam9236]

This bulb seems like blessing to fix Many bulbs I have tried to fix have been surfice mounted.. And most of the time these are just burned out Leds. So I have just bridged them to get some more life out of it Luckly if you can get to the leds without completely destroying the enclosure tbh

[@lazar2175]

I bridge mine with aditional 48 ohm resistor connected in series before the circuit. Keeps them happy for another half a year or so. Also, they are pain in ass to open, so i just cut the difuser awayband never put it back in.

[@mikehors7351]

Well thats good to know how to fix them thank you. Keep up the cool vids.

[@TheBubbleKing]

Where can I learn how to tinker with my LEDs without killing myself? I have a cheap multimeter and have been trying to diagnose faulty LED shop lights but I don’t really know what the hell I’m doing. I did verify the voltage is roughly 120v into the power supply and also on the other side of the lamp’s on/off switch (when it’s on). From there, I can’t figure out how to measure the DC output to the LED strip so I don’t know if the power supply or an LED is at fault.

[@Graham-ce2yk]

That thing looks like the end product of one of those DIT LED Lamp kits, are you sure it was made in a factory?

[@pulesjet]

Yet another Successful Surgery Dr LED !

[@EggBastion]

4:14 - Riversong by _Tonto's Expanding Head Band_ intensifies...

[@nikeshmaharjan830]

ohhh 1:9 - Tester screwdriver glows

[@TheSpotify95]

Nice repair ad quite a nice little lamp if I say so! Apart from the mains referenced LEDs, not much to dislike. where abouts can you get these from?

[@bigclivedotcom]

Light like this pop up on eBay from time to time.

[@العراقيالمبدع-ي1ي]

Another great video . I ask about the best electrical engineering tables, standards, formulas book in uk

[@gordonlawrence4749]

For formulas Geick "Technical Formulae" is one but a pain in the neck to get or www.amazon.co.uk/Engineering-Formulas-Kurt-Gieck/dp/0071457747 which is unfortunately expensive. As for standards and tables I'm not sure I generally either have books some of which are 40+ years old (EG Facts Patterns and Principles, by Keene Rogers and Simpson) or data I have just collected and archived.

[@gordonlawrence4749]

Geick covers most engineering not just electrical/electronic.

[@العراقيالمبدع-ي1ي]

@@gordonlawrence4749 i am locking for a new books in year 2017 . 2018 .2019

[@gordonlawrence4749]

@@العراقيالمبدع-ي1ي The basic theory has not changed for decades. The standards change so fast a book from this year will most likely be obsolete next year. That's why I download PDFs for standards from the relevant government web sites. It's the only way to get the latest information.

[@العراقيالمبدع-ي1ي]

@@gordonlawrence4749 Any way thanks to you .

[@ChristopherLionRoars]

The less will last lo get than the solder.

[@stefantrethan]

You know you just made me buy one of those uni-t clamp meters, right? And now you don't even trust it yourself!

[@bigclivedotcom]

It just seemed lower than expected. I decided on double verification. You've bought a great meter.

[@stefantrethan]

@@bigclivedotcom I know, just joking. You know you can hack more features? EEVBlog forum.

[@mofared]

what kind of pcb is that

[@phonotical]

Do they still make the pink lamp holder you have, I'm thinking of getting one that isn't just white from tesco 🤔

[@bigclivedotcom]

It's a standard silicone pendant light from eBay available in a lot of colours.

[@DumahBrazorf]

A 100 through-hole led lamp? Was it made in the 90's?

[@MetalheadAndNerd]

Wow. About a hundred LEDs for a 3W light. Others use 10 LEDs for 12W lights.

[@ats89117]

You should have added more smoothing capacitance while you had it open. The flickering may be driving you insane!

[@simontay4851]

You can't see the flicker with your eyes, only the camera sees it.

[@AntonioClaudioMichael]

12 ma is pretty good per side

[@glenntanner3]

lead free solder, better safe than working!

[@phonotical]

Why question your meter, you just tested them all against each other! 😂

[@two_tier_gary_rumain]

Clamp meters can get interference from other nearby components. He mentioned that.

[@phonotical]

@@two_tier_gary_rumain sure but you have to have some faith

[@RFC3514]

Because the first was a (Hall effect) clamp meter, that wasn't actually in line with the circuit. The principle used to measure current is completely different between the two. And neither of them has anything to do with the resistance measurement, which was what Clive compared in the previous video.

[@simonhopkins3867]

Good evening everyone.

[@Furiends]

Silver-tin solder with high silver content works pretty well. So don't just blame regulation its also because these things are cheap as fuck. Also these requirements don't really have to with the product but for the people working in the factories most of these products are made in China.

[@richardc2380]

Other than here, is there a way I can contact you Clive?

[@nor4277]

Thank goodness for cob l.e.d.,s lights .I though it was a kits,I have two l.e d. Light kits I havent put together. Yet.

[@nkapila6]

Why does it flicker so much?

[@Balllsy]

Clive, I've watched and enjoyed your videos for ages so 1st of all, thank you! , I have a question for you please. I have an opus bt3100c battery charger it charges 4 batteries at once but recently one of the ports will not charge batteries, as soon as you plug a battery into it, it immediately drops to 50mah trickle charge instead of the set charge of either 200,300,500,1000 etc. Could you give any suggestions to fix this please?

[@bigclivedotcom]

Are the contacts on it clean? If they are I'd suspect a cracked solder joint or component failure.

[@Balllsy]

@@bigclivedotcom OK thanks Clive, I shall take a look inside when I buy a new one, just incase I damage it ireprably! ;)

[@BrucesWorldofStuff]

I wish I had a $1.00 for every Lead-Free joint I had to fix in something new that I bought! I got a 35 watt amp the other day and it worked for a hour and them quit... I reflowed every joint with Lead solder and it worked again. There were 6 bad solder joints so I did them all.... Sad, thanks UE or EU whatever it is.... Great Video Big Clive! :D

[@BoB4jjjjs]

That was a bright idea Clive lol. Sorry!

[@velcro8223]

Cool fix. To bad about that flicker though.

[@bigclivedotcom]

It's just slight ripple the camera picks up. No obvious flicker to the eye.

[@Barracuda48082]

So, what could be added to reduce flicker?? 🖖

[@wingnut2009100]

the flicker is from the camera.

[@ek8710]

Also a driver with a full bridge rectifier as this is only using half the sine wave

[@bigclivedotcom]

It's a capacitive dropper and rectifier, so it's full wave. The smoothing capacitor value could be increased to reduce flicker.

[@ronaldfernandes5697]

Hi why dont you do this project practically it is nice

[@DonaldSleightholme]

i had another idea of using the Catherine wheel to turn a wind turbine electric generator 🤔🙈🤷‍♂️

[@oldbatwit5102]

How much was it Clive?

[@bigclivedotcom]

It cost £3.09.

[@oldbatwit5102]

@@bigclivedotcom Thank you. 100 LEDs for 3 quid!

[@MrMegaPussyPlayer]

5:01 Please do what I would do ... replace the cable.

[@carlubambi5541]

Bad solder joints cause so many problems and failures

[@RFC3514]

9:28 - I don't think Chinese manufacturers care much about EU regulations.

[@5Dale65]

Yes indeed. And if Britains have so much problems with the EU, why the hell they can't just leave it?!

[@RFC3514]

They should have some sort of referendum. Then they'll finally be free from the unbearable oppression of recyclability and low toxicity, and I'm sure they'll change their national laws to allow - or indeed require! - lead in every consumer product.

[@mickeyfilmer5551]

Toolstation sell 60/40 lead solder at £3.97 for a 100g reel if anyone needs some. (Screwfix only sell the shitty lead free crap)

[@charlie123866]

samsung led do just fine for my requirements

[@terrandroid]

Led lights have much shorter life expectancy then the old lightbulb.

[@tin2001]

But use a lot less power, and not a great deal more resources. LED also last longer than traditional fluorescent tubes and compact fluro lamps in my experience.

[@rimmersbryggeri]

Ate least they are not short aluminium core wires

[@Ale.K7]

A no-name Chinese LED lamp with higher power than advertised and running at a sensible current? I'm very confused.