rrinkerANd turn stuff off. I never understood why people leave everything powered up all the time. I leave the basement, EVERY outlet is switched off.
Opinions do vary on this. Turning things off assumes a set lifetime that will expire at some point so the less time on the item, the better.
There's a contrary opinion on electronic stuff that much of the wear and tear is from temperature cycling due to heating up and cooling down from...being turned on and off.
YMMV
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
Yeah, a surge protector is a very good idea. Used to have a whole house one the power company installed. Then they took it out when they installed the Smart (we'll spy on your) Meters a couple of years back, said they no longer supported them. I was complacent...but that's a little off topic here.
greg,
Thanks for the spot on data point. That's a reasonable time, but also tells me I need to bite the bullet and just buy another command station.
Rich,
I feel your pain on the Priority Mail situation, but like others it's been pretty reliable here. Things may move slower around Chicago right now because of the virus. Then again since I know many of the local PO workers since I used to manage an outfit that leased them space for our downtown PO, could be they're taking care of me?
So now I have another NCE question that I should know the answer to, but don't...
Is the wireless version of the Power Pro 5 amp simply the standard command station PLUS the RB02 radio base? In other words, can I just buy the standard Power Pro 5 amp and plug it into my existing radio system and be good? Or do I have to buy a wireless Power Pro because there's some magic in the command station to make the radio work, too?
ANd turn stuff off. I never understood why people leave everything powered up all the time. I leave the basement, EVERY outlet is switched off. Not a substitute for surge protection, but that's one more gap for any possibly lightning strike to have to jump before it gets to the surge protector - even the best surge protector os not going to stop a direct strike.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Thanks for the reminder to get a surge protector for the new layout.
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
FlattenedQuarter I've had a dozen or more packages delivered on tracked and on time by USPS in the past month
I've had a dozen or more packages delivered on tracked and on time by USPS in the past month
Rich
Alton Junction
on another forum
I finally got my command station back from NCE after seven weeks. Apparently I had a huge short circuit that blew out one of the circuit boards. They therefore charged me $112 to fix it. I finally have power to my track!
greg - Philadelphia & Reading / Reading
Mike, if you do send it in for repair, do not use USPS Priority Mail. USPS is understaffed and packages are not getting scanned, tracked or delivered. Use UPS or FedEx. And, ask NCE not to use USPS when your repaired command station is returned to you. I speak from recent personal experience on seven different packages that I have sent out through the USPS Priority Mail system.
I simply can't understate the importance of good surge protection. Real surge protection, with a short risetime in ns, high current capacity to known-capable ground, ideally the ability to survive repeated events.
For a while I touted the cause of whole-house surge protectors and put them in the houses B&S was building. They cost much more and require the same careful oversight to keep them operating, but spend a couple of weeks with a recording voltmeter on your house power and your eyes are likely to be opened about AC power quality. For this equipment (especially as it gets into what used to be 'computer' cost and fragility) I would recommend a good battery UPS, itself backed up with surge protection, which can completely isolate the layout-room equipment from the AC line, including any loads within the house like compressors or motors that might cause spikes or sags. With the shift from computers to phones and cloud I think it may be getting harder and more expensive to find older used UPS equipment, and you do have to keep up on conditioning and, eventually, replacing batteries, but in my opinion it's better than 'one and done' powerstrips that either 'fail safe' by bricking themselves or quietly give up the ghost and stop even minimal-protecting with only an idiot light on the strip, at best, to indicate that has happened. I would advise checking frequently, especially before known forecast or observed storms, to be sure the protection is 'as advertised'...
Having said this, it also has to be said that if a typical advanced modeler who understands soldering can find a source of things like metal-oxide varistors, fixing bad powerstrips is often possible.
And be sure the path to ground, at least from the layout room, is adequate to sink the diverted voltages and currents, and properly reverse-diode protected. It can be surprising how many corners can be cut with the stuff those green wires connect to.
Mike,
The best thing to do is just email or call NCE. They'll be able to tell you the turnaround time on fixing your PH Pro.
Also, whether it came from a lightening strike, an electrical spike, or just old age, it would be a wise of you to invest in a good-quality surge protector power strip for your layout and electronics - even if you just leave them in unpowered. They aren't that expensive and it's well-worth the insurance should something like that happen again.
Case in point: A few months back there was a spike in the electrical line overnight and it completely took out the surge protector that protected our cable modem & wi-fi router. I noticed that they were both off when I got up in the morning. On further investigation I noticed that the entire surge protector strip was off and would not turn back on. There was also a slight singed odor to it so I surmised that it had given up the ghost.
When I replaced the dead surge protector with another working one, everything fired right up. Had the $20 surge protector not been there, I would probably be looking at $200 to replace just our cable modem & wi-fi router. I think my Power Cab was plugged into it, as well. That would have been another $200.
So, just sayin'...you may want to consider a surge protector power strip for your layout (e.g. APC). A good spike could cook decoders, lighting - anything connected to your layout. Replacement for all those could add up real quick. If you don't want to invest in one then the next best thing would be get into the habit of completely disconnecting your layout from the wall outlet when you are not using it.
Inexpensive insurance can and will pay big dividends down the road...
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
Was working on the layout and it got late...next day I returned, only to hear crickets, not the sound of steam at rest. Ah-oh...
We had an intense storm overnight, complete with a rather significant lighting hit somewhere very close. I think it took out my NCE Power Pro command station. This seems to be the problem area, the IC sitting between the battery holder and the EPROM. If you look closely in the middle of the edge you can see a toasty part (under the "2LC" part of the number.)
On the other hand, it's been on for most of the last 15 years, so could've just gotten old and died.
In any case, I need to get things going again. I may buy a new box, if I can, sans the radio boxes which are already in place. This ione seems worth repairing. I've seen pretty much nothing but great things to say about their CS process and the time or two I needed it a long time ago went well. Never had a major repair, though.
Anyone know how long I can expect that to take (a trip to NCE for repair and back)? Is it cost effective vs buying new?
I do have a Power Cab so not completely on the rocks, but obviously no significant ops (hey there's a pandemic going on anyway.) A back up command station would be good to have so I don't get in this fix again, so considering my options here since obsviously adding another new Power Pro would have me covered for now and I can always send the busted box back at my leisure.