Bob, are you sure that the "dc fixed" that you tried is actually DC? HO power supplies typically put out variable DC for the trains and fixed AC for accessories.
Bob Nelson
Really? That's interesting, I didn't know that.
Looks like George Westinghouse was more correct than he knew in pushing AC.
My stuff runs on AC anyway so I don't need to lose any sleep over this. Thank goodness, I've got enough stuff to lose sleep over!
Actually, incandescent lamps are vulnerable to a phenomenon called "filament notching", involving uneven migration of the tungsten. Running a lamp on DC exacerbates the notching and shortens its life somewhat.
Incandescent bulbs don't care if you give them AC or DC voltage, and either/or won't influence the bulb life. LED's definately care, they want DC! Just for the heck of it I shot some AC to an LED bulb and POOF!
As far as brightness, you'll just have to experiment to find the sweet spot. You may want to try a separate power source for the tower or add a second DC transformer if that's the way you want to go.
HI folks, I am debating ac or dc current for my street lights and light tower. I was using a HO transformer for dc current and adjusting the reostat of get the right light level. I am now tripping the circuit breaker after about 30 minutes run time. I tried moving in to dc fixed and that seems to work but the brightness is lower than I would like. I tried my fixed ac voltage on my TW transformer and it works great but I am concerned with bulb life. I have a combination of incondescent and LED lights. Thanks, Bob
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