These little GU10 LED downlights have been surprisingly reliable, but when they fail they do so with enough of a pop to take out a fuse. Part of the issue might be the electrolytic capacitor being snugged up against the power supply chip, with the risk of an elevated temperature.

One of the annoying things about LED bulbs failing like this is that they can make it tricky to find the faulty light that is causing the breaker to trip. Especially if there are a lot of downlights on one circuit.

I modified this one by removing the lenses and using a suitable thermal glue to hold the LED PCB in place. It was to give sharper point sources of light for a glitter lamp balanced to flow with very low heat.

The 12V mod I mentioned would allow an off-grid cabin to use these lights on a 12V supply by using a resistor as a simple current limiter for the three series LEDs.
A 33 ohm 1W resistor would give a current of between 100mA to 150mA on 12 to 14V.



If you enjoy my videos and would like to buy me a coffee or cookie, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

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Alternatively, for a single coffee contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYcKJQQzUXY

I got some LED power supply modules from AliExpress to check out.
The layout of the circuitry is very neat and logical, but they have dropped the ball on safety.

The class Y capacitor that bridges the mains side to the low voltage side for electrical noise reasons is not the correct type and can fail in a manner that could result in an electric shock.

The mains voltage transformer is fabricated in a manner where the low voltage secondary winding is in physical contact with the mains voltage primary winding, meaning the only separation is a very thin film of lacquer. That could degrade over time or get damaged by something as simple as a static discharge, and then cause the low voltage output to be referenced to the mains supply.

I really recommend only buying power supplies from a prominent supplier in your country. That could be Rapid Electronics, RS. Farnell or CPC in the UK and Mouser or Digikey in the USA.
That way you'll get a power supply that is tested and approved to local safety standards.

When you buy from amazon, ebay, wish, aliexpress or other sources of grey imports then there is no guarantee that the power supplies are safe.
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZxjyj7xpSg

These power saver plugs are a scam that has been going on longer than the Internet. They used to be sold through newspapers and magazines, but are now pushed via modern media platforms with carefully fabricated (but fake) stories about how some young kid invented it, and then defied "big oil" to make it available to everyone so they could save money.

The only active thing in these plugs is the indicator light, and some of the plugs may pose a fire risk or damage your sockets due to bad circuitry and rogue plug sizes.

Some of the websites selling these items may charge you for a multiple of them when you only wanted one, or set up a subscription link to your card as well as taking the card details for other uses.

If you really MUST have one then search on AliExpress for "power saving plug" and get a cheap one for the feelgood factor.
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQEegthk5bs

Thankfully the sellers of strings like this are going in the direction of selling USB or battery based ones instead - not because they care about your safety, but purely because they are cheaper for them to buy and make more profit from.

This style is still widely available though and has many safety issues. The wire is ultra thin and only single insulated meaning that it can easily be damaged and a short circuit poses a genuine fire risk.

The LEDs have no wire strain relief and a very thin insulating sleeve that solder spikes can sometimes pierce exposing live connections.

The controller has a flimsy clip on cover that can easily pop off (sometimes during shipping) to expose live electrical connections.

The sellers on platforms like eBay often claim these lights are suitable for outdoor use. They are absolutely NOT suited to outdoor use. The open ended sleeves around the LEDs can wick water in and pose a shock risk, and the water will also corrode the LED leads and make sections of the lights fail very quickly.

I recommend buying light strings from local high street retailers with accountability and a reputation to protect. They will generally sell LED strings with safe SELV (Separated Extra Low Voltage) plugs.
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFdHgDP6q0w

This thing looks amazing inside. Like some kind of warp core reactor off a spaceship.
I got the country wrong. It's a Spanish product from 2011. The company (Eurozon) is still actively making ozone generating equipment.
https://eurozon.com/

This came from eBay. It arrived with the heavy transformer rattling around inside and no sign of the missing hardware in the packaging, so they must have felt it rattling when they packed it! Fortunately the tubes have survived the shipping, and the transformer now has new fixings.

This ozone generator uses the dielectric barrier technique for creating a large area of plasma. The neon gas is purely to couple current to the inside of the glass tubes, and that then capacitively couples to the external stainless steel mesh creating a corona discharge. When air passes through a corona discharge it is split into separate gas atoms, and they can partially recombine as the highly unstable three atom oxygen molecule called ozone.

Ozone is so keen to get rid of its third atom of oxygen that it happily liberates it onto anything it can, oxidising it in the process. It's notable for its ability to deactivate airborne viruses, bacteria, spores and other organic materials, and is often used to create a more sterile environment or suppress odour.

There's a rough rule of thumb that if you can smell ozone there's too much, and there is a risk of lung irritation with prolonged exposure.

An ozone generator like this might find use in a refrigerated food storage room to keep food sterile and prolong its shelf life. (You can get small rechargeable units for use in your home fridge.)



If you enjoy my videos and would like to buy me a coffee or cookie, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

https://www.patreon.com/bigclive

Alternatively, for a single coffee contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRKjRigLUr4

Another batch of slightly weird stuff I bought from AliExpress. As requested, I'll itemise the items with links below.

Note that these links may already be sold out or not work in some countries. But they may be a good starting point. They are affiliate links, but that will not affect the normal price. If you buy something I get a few cents towards buying more gadgets for us to explore.

The urinal mat, available in various colours and aromas. The thin packaging does an amazing job of keeping the aroma in. Once opened, this one has a very strong lingering lavender smell.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4VEPiql

The glow in the dark tape. It is NOT impressive. The glow time is so short that I think it may be based on the older technology activated Zinc Sulphide (Zinc Sulfide).
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4k8E0lL

The USB adjustable buck/boost voltage converter with red or green display.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4a1TCAH

The selection pack of heat shrink sleeving. Also available with a hot air pen.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c35bPreZ

Cable-tie style trim buckles.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4a8Z6Zb

Magnetic USB strip light.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4UDUaJB

The rainbow collection of squirty toilet gems.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3jejaDj

And of course, the promised link to Ashens - the King of glorious tat.
https://www.youtube.com/@ashens



If you enjoy my videos and would like to support me with a dollar or two for coffee, cookies and gadgets to take apart, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

https://www.patreon.com/bigclive

Alternatively, for a single coffee contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3zxyvdCYjw

It's kinda frustrating when you come across a design of a power supply that is really quite good, but then the manufacturer skimps on a few components that then makes the unit dangerous to use.

In this case it wasn't just the substitution of an important safety capacitor with an ordinary one, but also the corner cutting on the transformer that results in the mains voltage 120/240V primary being in physical contact with the low voltage secondary winding. If they'd used wire with thicker insulation or even just a bit of sleeving, then that risk could have been reduced massively.

That might not result in an immediate risk, but all it takes is something like an electrostatic discharge or time and heat related degradation to result in the output of the power supply becoming referenced to the mains input side. The scary bit being that the output will still put out 12V and everything will seem to work, but it will be referenced to the mains and capable of giving a bad shock.

If I found myself in a situation where I had no other power supplies, and it was a simple load like fixed LED lighting, then I would probably earth/ground the negative of the 12V output to ensure that any insulation breakdown could result in a proper fault current path to trigger protection and reduce the voltage that the output could rise up to.

I didn't do a load test on these supplies. But the power ratings of products like these are best treated as being "ambitious".

In summary

Pros:-
Nice case
Rugged terminals
Nice sensible circuit layout
Proper snubber network

Cons:-
Earth terminal is floating
Class Y capacitor substituted with ordinary one
No input noise filtering
Transformer lacking proper separation
Windings are copper coated aluminium



If you enjoy my videos enough to buy me a coffee or cookie, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

https://www.patreon.com/bigclive

Alternatively, for a single contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOAIm2crPYk

With the colder months approaching for much of the world, it's time for Facebook and Tik Tok to start wheeling out the adverts for many scam devices, including tiny plug-in heaters and magical power saving plugs that instantly cut your electricity bill in half.

The sellers of these plugs often use emotional stories to manipulate people into buying the products at a very high profit. They use stock images and video to give the illusion that some kid invented these power savers and refused to let "big oil" buy them out, because they wanted to make the world a better place. Add some heart warming (but fake) testimonials and make sure that the payment processing is done in a less regulated country, and then just drop ship them directly from a Chinese warehouse to the unwitting customers.

The circuitry has changed though. In the early days these devices used to use a large capacitor normally used with things like fan motors. Those capacitors were often the cheapest they could get and posed a fire hazard when they failed. Then they started including the capacitors, but connecting them to blank pads on the PCB just to give the illusion of being connected. But now they are either using fake capacitors (empty cases filled with sand and resin) or just none at all. So that actually makes the products safer.

The main circuitry in these units is just to make the power indicator LEDs light up. And I'm glad to say that it is actually greatly improved over the original ones that had very odd and stressed circuitry.

If you want to buy some of these for fun, to reuse the cases or to plunder the purses of old ladies who are far too trusting, then I got these ones from AliExpress (not a sponsor).
These are affiliate links, but that will not affect the price you pay.

The traditional shape with a single flickery LED:-
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007663363152.html

The fancy one with the luxury flashing LED:-
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4MeSNFv

The nicest looking one with green back illumination of the case features:-
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3DrviaL

The typical cost including shipping is around £3 ($5?). They are available in various plug styles and you can also just search for keywords like "electricity saver plug" or "power saver box".

These units aren't a new thing. In the days before the Internet they were sold through newspaper and magazine adverts.

if you are experiencing a high electricity bill then check for things like a faulty water heater that is running too hot or not cutting out at all. Look for things like attic lights and heaters that have been left on. You can also make a huge difference to winter heating costs by turning the house heating temperature down by a few degrees and wearing warmer clothing.

If you use a heat pump for your heating and cooling then make sure it is kept clean with good airflow for maximum efficiency. One of the biggest issues with heat pump systems is the heat exchange fins on the outside unit getting clogged up with debris.




If you enjoy my videos and would like to buy me a coffee or cookie, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

https://www.patreon.com/bigclive

Alternatively, for a single coffee contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9oy0aMhqsI

Another batch of electronic stuff I bought from AliExpress. As requested, I'll itemise the items with links below.

Note that these links may already be sold out or not work in some countries. But they may be a good starting point. They are affiliate links, but that will not affect the normal price. If you buy something I get a few cents towards buying more gadgets for us to explore.

The power monitoring plug that shuts off power for a programmable time when the voltage goes too high or too low. You can set the voltage thresholds and the time delay.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3cpne3z

First scam power saver plug.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007663363152.html

The unusual LED string with surface mount LEDs on a three core green ribbon.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3YR5KnH

Second scam saver plug.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c2RxqWVt

Solar powered prayer wheel.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4qCktwJ

Third power saving plug (with flashing LED).
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3yaUwAx

Flickery UFO light of disappointment.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4lfooH1

Useful security bit set.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3aHwitp

Very small multi-screwdriver kit with completely non standard bit size and rough ends.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4EedbjD

Shady "outdoor" 12V power supply.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c2ILaljv

10 piece motorbike fuel filter set.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c35HglG7

Mushroom night light.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c31xWfQB

Coax cable stripper.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4WWYMvD

PIR triggered light bulb.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3bIWl3D

Angle adjustable E27 lamp holder adaptor.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4NzN2Ib

6-LED vehicle lights.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005009393535857.html

Smaller number/licence plate lights.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3TSdhyb

Tiny little USB-C light for use with phone.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4biRo3V

"Cubic Zirconia" gemstones.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3fRmEnN

LED COB vehicle bulbs.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c3MzedGx

Rubbery LED bulbs.
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4LVkP7p



If you enjoy my videos and would like to buy me coffee and cookies, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

https://www.patreon.com/bigclive

Alternatively, for a single coffee contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc8F3_j4Ots

Although modern fast chargers can put out a range of voltages with a suitable communication chip, the older standard was limited to just 5V. For higher voltages like 9V and 12V you can use these little adapters that take the 5V in and boost it up to the desired voltage.

Note that these are probably only suited to about 500mA at 12V.

An interesting use for these could be for powering short sections of 12V LED tape from a USB power bank. For longer run time you could also power the tape from a 9V version at the expense of intensity. The lower voltage and current could allow you to run much longer strips.

The voltage selection is either hard wired in with two resistors forming a bridge, or on some it can be adjusted with a small knob. For the fixed voltage versions it is viable to modify the resistor values to get a custom voltage. The boost converter chip in this unit is looking for a feedback voltage of about 0.6V at the required output voltage.

You can buy these from many online sellers. Here's a link to a typical one on AliExpress (not a sponsor):-
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006890061479.html



If you enjoy my videos enough to buy me a coffee or cookie, you can do so by supporting me on Patreon. I release videos without adverts for critique and feedback on Patreon as soon as they have been made. I also release Patreon-only backstage videos when I'm working on shows.

https://www.patreon.com/bigclive

Alternatively, for a single contribution you can use PayPal:-
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/bigclive


#ElectronicsCreators
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOTj-4wwwBU