Talk of The Villages Florida - Light activated lamppost switch

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Nucky (Post 1826534)

I have a whole house surge protector which got a test about two weeks ago. We had a lightning strike about 50 feet from our house. Most of the Electronic Equipment survived. The main victims were the LG Dual Oven and one computer that was charging at the time of the strike and the Xfinity Modem.

We learned that there was insurance one level above the one we had that would have covered everything. It wasn't available when we activated the Surge Suppressor Plan. It's a shame because I would have chosen the all-inclusive plan from Duke. Our plan only covers any item that has a motor in it. The better plan is only a few dollars more per month.

I never liked that stove anyway. I must say that Duke and their contractor, Advanced Electric of Leesburg have been responsive and have helped us out greatly. We appreciate them. I am grateful it wasn't the house that took the hit. We love this house. The most modest home we've ever owned turned out to be the most comfortable. Go figure. I sure could use a day without having to call them for something, I hope that is today.

Just to clarify, the Duke insurance will only cover a power surge that comes through the surge device at the meter. This type of surge could be caused by lightning striking a nearby power line. But, it will not cover any damage from a direct lightning strike, or any surge in your telephone or cable lines. So, if lightning strikes your lamppost or any other part of your house directly, the Duke insurance will not cover the damage. Also, the Duke insurance coverage document was apparently written by a large team of lawyers because there are tons of special conditions and exclusions of coverage.

Our “original” lasted 12 years.

Doesn't sound right. Replace and see what happens

Buy Generac Generator - takes care of the whole house. I have used this on my home in PA and was worth every penny.

Quote:

Originally Posted by davem4616 (Post 1826163)

you may have had a defective switch initially installed....swop it out with a high end manufacturer's switch

the little light sensor on our lamppost didn't last 3 months before we had to have that swopped out

A few years ago, I had a similar problem with the lamppost sensor switches that I purchased from Lowes. After two sensors from Lowes that only lasted a few weeks, I bought a different brand from Home Depot; the one from Home Depot is still working after several years. I am a retired electrical engineer, and my experience leads to the theory that there were manufacturing defects in the ones that I purchased from Lowes during that period of time. My suggestion is to switch brands.

There are several’grades’ of lamppost light detectors, get a quality one and be sure to instal it correctly, consider a licensed electrician. I replaced mine and it lasted only a couple of years. Had an electrician replace and he showed me what I had done wrong. If you do opt for whole house lightning rods make sure you use an UL licensed installer. Apparently there are a lot ‘bad’ or unlicensed installers out there.

[GFIs used to have RED resets, but don't anymore.

There are two causes for a defective lamppost light. The light sensor located in Th'te light pole and the Ground Fault Circuit interrupter outlet (GFI or GFCI).

Both can fail. The GFI is the same as the one in your bathroom. It is designed to prevent shock/electrocution. Because of this they are sensitive to voltage surges. The light detector can also fail but at a lower tate. GFIs are prone to fail after lightening. Your lamppost GFI is located in your garage.

Original post:
A whole home surge protector will not prevent the GFI for your lamppost from failing, mine did

Don't fix a 20 dollar bad GFI problem with a 350 dollar whole house surge or a 4,000 dollar lightening rod set

Just replace or reset the GFI in the garage and move on.

Oh I have never seen a GFI outlet with a red reset button. So don't zero in on red.[/QUOTE]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JudyLife (Post 1826137)

We have a CYV in Hadley & our front lamppost light activated switch seems to have lasted only 6 months. ACE Hardware mentioned it could be todo with lightning & surges. We don’t want to have to keep replacing the switch every time we visit. Any suggestions? Thank you.

Mine is wired thru a GFI switch in the garage. It "pops" ocassionally so you might want to check that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC (Post 1826263)

Now you have me concerned.

We had a whole house surge protector put in by Seco and have individual surge protectors on high value stuff.

If we have a surge on the main power line are you saying we are not protected?

What else can we do to protect ourselves?

SECO told me when our TV, DVD and modem were blown out by lightening that the surge protector ONLY protected motorized appliances. So much for thinking I was protected. But, even with the stuff on a surge protector, they were toast.

I've replaced close to ten light post sensors between mine and neighbors. Some last a few months and some last a few years. Some of the old ones do not like florescent or LED bulbs and the new ones say they are made to work with them. After replacing mine in my old home several times, I ended up using a screw-in the socket light sensor that was cheaper and easier to change. In the past three years, I have replaced the sensor on this house twice. If it happens again, I will go to the screw in type.

My house was new last year and warranty had to replace the device that’s light activated in less than 6 months.

different brands

I found the cheapest one at ACE about $10 did not last, after about three of them; then found a more expensive brand around $13 which lasts. Both may be at ACE. Forgot the names. Just go for the premium brand.

A lot of the lighting in and outside have extended and some lifetime warranties. Check with the manufacturer.

I put a solar light on the post. Works great.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC (Post 1826324)

What about a grounded lightning arrestor on our roof? In my research had no idea how many electrical storms were going to visit.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toymeister (Post 1826342)

....Don't fix a 20 dollar bad GFI problem with a 350 dollar whole house surge or a 4,000 dollar lightening rod set....

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC (Post 1826392)

Wow lightning rod set 4000 bucks, thanks you help me make a decision to stop at where we are now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wiserbud47 (Post 1826440)

We had a lightning protection system installed in our house 6 years ago. We had lightning rods installed and also had our gas lines lightning protected. The cost was $1600. It's the same as any kind of insurance. If you never need it, you had the security of knowing that you had it. Every time we have a thunder and lightning storm, we feel better knowing that we are safer than if we didn't have the system. Everyone has to decide the value, based on their own personal needs.

The likelihood of a direct lightning strike is so unlikely that I sometimes say I'm almost embarrassed to have put in a lightning protection system. Virtually the only reason we did so, however, is, like Wiserbud, we are in a home built with natural gas for cooking, clothes drying, water heating, and occasional home heating in very cold weather. The Developer was permitted to use gas piping that IMHO is about the durability of heavy cardboard. THIS is why we have lightning protection; the gas distribution panel in the attic is grounded separately as well.

But in terms of cost? Holy cow, we can't just make up numbers and throw them out there. We did ours about 7-8 years ago; our home is about 1,650 sf plus garage plus fair-sized bird cage (which is also grounded for lightning protection), and the total cost for all this was $1,200. At that time there were only three companies who did proper lightning protection system installations which we learned from a class we took and our own research, and ours was done by one of the three (sorry, cannot remember name).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snowbirdtobe (Post 1826220)

Lamppost switches should be on a Ground Fault Interrupter (GFI). The GFI can be tripped by plugging in an extension cord or power tool to ANY outlet connected to the GFI. All outside outlets must be connected to a GFI. Resetting the GFI on an electrical box is usually done by switching it off and then on again. If you had it replaced by a handyman or you replaced the switch by yourself simply shutting off the breaker and turning it on again may clear the fault. The GFI may be in an outlet in the garage and needs to be reset by pressing the red button on the outlet.

Agree. I noticed my lamppost light wasn't turning on. Found a breaker tripped in the garage. Little used circuit. Don't know what triggered it and it hasn't happened since.