REPAIR CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

YOU CAN REPAIR YOUR CHRISTMAS LIGHTS BY ANY OF THE 4 WAYS DISCUSSED HERE

1 – Locate Dark Bulbs

Finding the defective bulb in a string of Christmas tree lights is almost always the greatest challenge you'll have. It is not easy to identify the offending bulb. When a single bulb becomes defective it can extinguish all lights on the string. Some burned out bulbs become darker than the good bulbs, and occasionally you can identify the bad bulb as one that is darker, then replace it with a good bulb. But not always.

2 – Locate Built-In Shunt Bulbs

Some of the newer light strings are made with a built-in shunt. In these strings one bulb can become defective without making all other bulbs stop working. If all bulbs on your light string are working except for one, it is likely that this string has the shunt feature built into the string. In this case, you can easily identify the bad bulb as the only one that is not lighted. Then, you can easily replace it by simply pulling it out of its socket.

3 - Use a Hum Tracer

Use a hum tracer to find a defective bulb. If your light string includes three strands—or wires—you should first identify which of the three strands (Strand A) runs from bulb to bulb. Strands B and C do not connect to each bulb. Because all three strands are usually twisted together it is sometimes difficult to tell which of them is Strand A. You may need to spread them apart to find the right strand. Once you've identified Strand A, touch it with the tip of your hum tracer. If you hear an electronic hum, this means there is an electric current flowing through this strand. It is usually at a defective bulb that this current stops flowing. If you can locate a bulb where you get a hum on the incoming strand but not on the outgoing strand, this is an indication that the bulb you tested is defective.

4 – Replace a Bad Bulb

Once you have identified a bulb as one that is probably bad, you can replace it with a new one. If the string lights come on, you have solved your problem. If the new light fails to come on, there are 3 possible reasons: 1) there is at least one other light on the string that is bad, 2) Strand A wire may be severed or shorted, or 3) the new light bulb may be bad. If you cannot find another bad light bulb, you will likely need to replace your light string.

CHRISTMAS LIGHT AUDIO DIMMER

Christmas light dimmer will make it possible to control the intensity of the lights much easier. Making your own dimmer switch isn't actually very difficult.

Materials Required

1.Christmas light

2.Solid State Relay Dimmer

3.Amplifier

We can make the dimmer in 5 steps.

1. Choosing the solid state relay:

The first thing you will need to do is choose the solid state relay, or SSR. This will be the most important component in your audio dimmer project. If you're building this for use in India then you will need to choose an SSR which is rated to work at 220 V AC current (for use in USA choose 120 V AC SSR). Make sure that the rating of the SSR is a minimum of 2 amps, but preferably more. These switches cannot be used on over 200 bulbs as this could cause problems.

2. Acquiring an Amplifier:

You will also need an audio amplifier to use as your Christmas lights dimmer, you don't need to buy an expensive amplifier as you can simply take apart an old set of computer speakers. The amplifier inside the speakers will be enough to control your lights. You can put everything back into the speaker case to keep it nice and tidy.(Or buy a small amplifier which costs about Rs.300)

3. Fitting an Adapter:

Fit the adapter to the case and screw it up so that it can't move

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4. Soldering:

In your amplifier you need to use your soldering iron to remove the cables from the mini jack wire. Re-solder the input wire to a fresh piece of wire. If you are new to soldering, it's a good idea to spend some time practicing first. Soldering can be difficult to get right because you don't want to accidentally connect two terminals together.

5. Finishing Touches:

Now all that's left to do is connect the input cable to the solid state relay switch. Connect the jack to your computer or DVD player and the dimmer to your Christmas lights. Now whenever you play music through your computer speakers the lights will dim and flash.