Troubleshooting: Difference between revisions
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(Created page with "So you just bought a new light and it doesn't work. Here are some pages that can help you troubleshoot what is wrong. Hopefully it will be something simple. At the very least the...") |
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[http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?227518 CandlePowerForums guide] | [http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?227518 CandlePowerForums guide] | ||
Basic troubleshooting boils down to: | |||
Does electricity get to the LED or bulb? | |||
First, and easiest, test. Are the batteries in there? I hesitate to put that in, but I've been fooled that way before. | |||
If they are rechargeable, are the batteries charged? | |||
A voltmeter helps here, the cheapest ones are just as good as the most expensive ones for this sort of thing. | |||
Do the batteries work in another device of comparable current draw? | |||
Remember that a bright AA light can easily pull 2 amps from a cell - alkalines won't last long on that sort of usage. | |||
If the batteries are the right way round and capable of producing current: | |||
Remove the switch and connect the negative of the battery to the body of the light. A paperclip is useful for this. Make sure you find a bare metal part, most metal coatings and anodizing do not conduct electricity. | |||
If it lights up, the problem is in the switch. | |||
If it still doesn't light up, it is time to investigate the head end. Do the batteries touch the positive contact? Batteries can be a bit shorter or longer than they are meant to be. If you need a spacer make sure it can't short out the batteries, this can have unpleasant effects. | |||
In most Chinese-made lights the job of getting a current path from the negative terminal of the battery to the head of the light is done by solder. There is a good example of this here. [http://budgetlightforum.cz.cc/node/932#comment-13924 Poor soldering]. A quick blob of solder will fix this problem. | |||
If these measures fail, it gets more complex. | |||