"Fred" wrote in message
...
Hello,

How reliable are time switches?

I ask because once a year we use some for our Christmas lights, sow e
are not talking about heavy loads, but they are not working properly.

A few years ago I used some digital ones from Wickes. They stopped
working. I had them exchanged and the replacements stopped working
too.

So then I decided to give up on digital technology and invest in some
clockwork time switches from B&Q. They worked fine last year but this
year they are not keeping time: I am not expecting quartz accuracy but
the dial says 6am when it is 10pm!

Do the clocks seize if not used for long periods? These only get used
in December.

Any suggestions on what type to replace these with?

Thanks.

I had the same experience with cheap 3-pin plug-in timeswitches.The digital
ones forget their settings (even the ones with a backup battery) and the
clockwork ones stop working after a while, presumably due to mechanical
wear.

In the end I bought a digital timeswitch designed to be permanently wired to
an immersion heater, mounted it on a bit of wood alongside a 4-way
powerstrip, and fed it from a 13amp plug on the end of some flex. I think
it's made by Smiths. It has been very reliable, but the programming
procedure was designed by a martian.