hello: i guess you have circuit breakers. go to panel, look to see if any are visibly thrown. most panels have breakers that are towards the middle when "on". when pushed or thrown to outer position, breaker would be in "off" position. however, since we don't live in a perfect world, sometimes the breaker could look on but actually is off because breaker switch did not spring back far enough to be visibly off even though it really is. with thumb and fore finger test each breaker to see if it has resistance to finger pressure. you will know right away if one has tripped or not. all circuit breakers are not created equal; some have more spring resistance than others. later.
Think good thoughts, do good deeds!
Dear Bob:
I will look at the possibility of splitting up the switches even though out of the 26 switches, about 6 have led lights.
Thanks,
jokeman48
Thanks for your response. I have the older ZW's. I have the 26 switches on a separate line connected to one terminal of the ZW. I have all the other accessories connected to another terminal and I have one transformer just for lights.
How do you check the breaker in the panel?
Jokeman48
Thanks for the response. I will try reversing the plugs. I don't have to worry about voltage spikes because I have 4 independent tracks run each running with just one throttle of 2 ZW'S.
26 022's & K-Lines(K-276/K-376 style)? That's 52 bulbs right there. Bob nailed it - you have an overload.
Rob
Each of your transformers has a 15-ampere thermal circuit breaker that should trip almost immediately with a short circuit and not at all under 15 amperes. The fact that your circuit breaker takes a while to trip suggests that you do not have a short circuit but rather a moderate overload. I estimate that your turnouts are using about half the capability of the transformer that is supplying them, leaving a little less than you need for the trains on the two layouts that that transformer's other outputs are trying to supply.
Your description that all the turnouts work (until the breaker trips) indicates to me that you have already connected the U terminals between the transformers, which would be fine except for the overload. I suggest that you split the turnouts into two roughly equal groups corresponding to two pairs of layouts and then try powering each pair of layouts completely independently of the other pair. This may free up enough current from the overloaded transformer so that both transformers and all four layouts can run at the same time.
Bob Nelson
hello; electrical problems are always persnickity to analyze. this is what i do. first recheck all connections to zw's . by the way are they modern ones like mine or older models? modern ones are phased correctly from factory, older ones are not . second, 26 switches don't seem like a lot of draw but if you add illuminated pass. cars and some acces. bingo! third, check breaker in panel. licensed electrician i hired put wrong wire on my train line! OUCH! took us two days to find it. go figure? take your time, you'll find it. later.
Although I don't recommend phasing transformers, what might be happening is that you need to reverse a plug at the wall on one of your ZW's, as they may not be in sync. Also watch out for voltage spikes when going across an insulated section of track from one terminal handle to another if you use more than one ZW handle per track.
The other thing to do is bridge both transformer's U terminals together with a # 10 AWG insulated wire. Inside the Z and the ZW all four U terminals are bridged together by a strip of copper, so only one piece of wire is needed between transformers.
Lee F.
This really belongs on the Classic Toy Trains sight, but it is obvious to me that your trains are bridging a insulation gap in the rails. Where possibly power from one transformer is being shorted to power from another.
i have set up 4 separate, independent layouts using the throttles of two 275 zw transformers. I have 26 switches connected to one of the transformer's other terminals. Everything had been running well and when the trains are running without the switches on, no problem. If I put the switches on at some point the red light indicating short comes on the zw. What could be causing the short from the switches. Without the trains running, I can press the switches and they work fine-mostly 022's and some K-LINES 042 as well.
I read where the transformers should be wired in unison-all U terminals connected together. Is this true?
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