Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Tony Hwang
Water-Lou wrote:
Ghost Voltage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HELP! I just can't figure this out. I installed low voltage lighting
under my kitchen cabinets with 3-way switches. They always performed
rather oddly. I would turn them on and they would light after a brief
delay. I don't know why, maybe something with the transformer.
Well, the transformer finally failed and I bought a replacement. I
checked my wiring to try and find out why I was getting a delay and
found something quite bizarre. I isolated the 3-wire and ran voltage on
the black leg only. Well, my digital meter shows 57 volts on the red
leg. Yes, the red leg is attached to nothing. I suspected the hot legs
were touching each other and bleeding voltage through the insulation. I
rang them out and there is no bleed from red to black or vice-versa.
There is no short to ground. The ghost voltage also appears when I
energize the opposite leg. Is this some kind of EMF? Is it safe to
assume that the transformer remains energized at a low voltage even
when turned off? It can't be anything with using 3-way switching with a
transformer because I get the ghost voltage without the transformer
being connected. The 3 wire runs behind the stove. Maybe the heat from
the stove is melting the insulation enough to cause bleed, but the red
and black legs ring out ok. Does this make sense to anyone? Please
enlighten me, I am defeated.
Hi,
DVM is too sensitive due to high input impedance. Use plain old analog
meter not to get confused.
|
Hello Tony,
Thank you for taking the time to try to help me, I appreciate it very much.
I just remembered a very important point that I forgot on my original post and I completely apologize. I'm just too frustrated.
I took a separate piece of three wire to a separate source altogether and performed the same test and found NO voltage on the red leg when energizing the black leg to 110v using the same fluke meter. Go back home; go to the same set up; use the 3 wire in the wall; ghost voltage on the red leg.
I do have a Greenlee analog, will try!