Broken timer

[Wannabebotanist23]

So i finally switched to flowering about a week now and tonight i was just awake so on my way to bed, total darkness, i noticed a small glimmer of light escaping(which is normal) so i looked in and my lights were on at 1:30am but were to be off at 10pm, do you think this is going to affect my grow?

[Weasel]

No it won't hurt a thing.
I had it happen so many times, and got so tired of not knowing what was going on inside the flowering room, that I ended up running small extension cords from the two timers that run my two 600w flowering lights. They power indicator night lights outside the room so I can tell when those timers/lights are on or off.

[furrysparkle]

Is your timer mechanical or digital? Mech ones are subject to slight error due to fluctuations in your electric service. I've heard that digital one have battery backup so this doesn't happen but it's a very minor issue for me so I just reset the time every 3-4 weeks

[Wannabebotanist23]

It was/is a mechanical timer, i replaced it last night, need to go buy another spare timer now. But as long as that wont affect anything im good

[Nartak]

I had both of my mech ones break down on me before flower,not broken totally but missing about 8 minutes of feed on the pump and 15 mins of lights on the light one...Got 2 digital ones for 20 euros man really it is worth it..They tell you the time,they have surge protection(most) you can set many programs and they don't skip a second!!! It's worth sleeping easy at nights

[Wannabebotanist23]

I think i should look into it, because i really dont want that to happen again, would have been worse if i didnt notice it when i did

[Nartak]

I put the mech ones for the heater at night time and the other for my kitchen led lights,they are more than welcome to work for such things,away from my garden!!

[Speedygreen]

I have a digital from brinks.got it on the cheap.lose about 4mins.per yr.no big deal rediculously ez to reset

[Weasel]

I've been using only digital timers for the last five or six years. They bring their own issues. For one thing they're prone to burning out. When they do- it's not pretty. The time it happened to me I was away and hit home to a nasty surprise. The timer had melted, there was a big black streak up the wall and the ceiling was black above it. The grow absolutely reeked from burning plastic and the smoke in there must have been awful. I count myself lucky.

They're known to fail like this more easily than the mechanical ones. It's not a good experience

Buy high quality, and if you're running much power through it then make sure to read the fine print numbers on the package. Most will give a separate amperage rating for lighting- which is half the amperage it says on the front of the package.

Another problem with them is they can be very quirky when programming. It depends on the brand. When you program in a change to the schedule they often have a habit of getting confused and not turning off at the end of a lighting cycle. I had this happen many times and it's the reason I had to put in the indicator lights. I won't bother trying to explain alll the stupid programming quirks you might run into. Unfortunately some of you are probably going to find out.

[Nartak]

I've been using only digital timers for the last five or six years. They bring their own issues. For one thing they're prone to burning out. When they do- it's not pretty. The time it happened to me I was away and hit home to a nasty surprise. The timer had melted, there was a big black streak up the wall and the ceiling was black above it. The grow absolutely reeked from burning plastic and the smoke in there must have been awful. I count myself lucky.

They're known to fail like this more easily than the mechanical ones. It's not a good experience

Buy high quality, and if you're running much power through it then make sure to read the fine print numbers on the package. Most will give a separate amperage rating for lighting- which is half the amperage it says on the front of the package.

Another problem with them is they can be very quirky when programming. It depends on the brand. When you program in a change to the schedule they often have a habit of getting confused and not turning off at the end of a lighting cycle. I had this happen many times and it's the reason I had to put in the indicator lights. I won't bother trying to explain alll the stupid programming quirks you might run into. Unfortunately some of you are probably going to find out.

Thats good to know!!

I will start with my electrical setup from the plug!

1 plug gives power to a fuse protected multisocket (8 sockets i use 2)
1 digital timer on the multi socket gives power to the ballast
1 1.5m cable leaves the 2nd socket and goes in the tent where a multi socket connects
A timer for the pump is on the one plug
Dryfan on the other sokcet.

A total of 750w running from one plug is harmless.
600w through the one digital timer which claims 3000w coverage (I wouldn't trust it that far) for the lights
90 the fan + 35 the pump 125w on the other timer.

I believe i will be safe lol

[Nartak]

Also what do u mean throw them out? I paid 11 euros for one in discount because i had a coupon,they cost 18 euros each!! Telco timer!

[Weasel]

Well that one I threw out. They're about $40 here.
I have a fair number of electrical odds and ends and don't want screwed up ones. The fault was in the timer itself. They're the best ones I can find here. I'll go online sometime and find some good ones and order by mail.
Yes your bulb normally needs a couple minutes before it can restrike. It depends on the type of the bulb - pulse start is faster and the older ones which I think are called probe start used to take me ten minutes to get going. I've noticed sometimes if the power interruption is just a mere blink- sometimes the bulb can light back up immediately. I don't know whether it's meant to...

[Nartak]

Yeah it was a quick come n go one..I'll keep an eye on it,i believe it is the timer keeping tho..If i remember correctly the MH did it also after i put the timer on...I will check some time