Ummm help? Flexwatt "buzzing"?? new install. . .

I just installed it and it was fine while getting up to temp, as I was sliding in the tubs I hear it buzzing and the connections are good. normal or not? do I need to take action or what?

I haven't been working with flexwatt for a long time but none of mine are buzzing and never have. I would be worried and want to check that out. I know it may seem like a hassle but i would double/triple check your connections.

I will add that i have been working with low voltage wiring for the past 10 years and when there is a buzzing sound there is usually something wrong.

Is it a metal rack?

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...hlight=buzzing

Buzzing usually coems from a not so good connection,wetness,or bad thermostat


Not Normal

not a metal rack. . . melamine. no wetness present and the connection is soldered - solid, tinned first, not a cheapie iron, adjustable 500 to 850 deg., so that only leaves the thermostat. . . the thermostat is a Herpstat, only 3-4 months old. I'm going to bypass it to test for the noise

What type of solder you using.

I use .032 core rosin core solder for all my flexwatt.

Plug the flexwatt directly into a outlet. If it buzzes you have your answer, bad connection. if it dont then its t-stat

yeah, just tested it. no buzzing when plugged in directly. I tried both outlets on the Herpstat II same thing happened, while it was heating up no buzzing, as soon as it started to get near temp the buzzing started. if I entered the menu the buzzing will stop, then when it exits the menu buzzing starts again. . . .ugh.

Have you checked to make sure its not the Fan on the Herpstat

no, unfortunately it's not the fan. . . I wish it was. It seems to be some kind of triac problem because if I let the flexwatt cool down for a minute then plug it back into the herpstat output it begins to warm up silently, then as it gets nearer to the desired temp it starts doing its proportional output thing (the reason they are great) and that when it starts softly and slowly gets a little louder. I just sent an email to spyderrobotics, Im just not sure if it's safe to run. . . I may test out the on/off mode to see if it is different than proportional mode . . .

Do you have a spare piece a flexwatt you can Freshly solder up and test out on the herpstat.

Same length,size,wattage and if that piece does the same then its time to send ti back for repairs

actually I had this problem too it wasnt a constant buzz just a 2 second buzz every 3 seconds but I never figured out what was wrong with it so I threw it out.... then I got a heating pad for my beardie and it buzzed too and now my heat pad for the king is buzzing??? too much buzzing! lol

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

Do you have a spare piece a flexwatt you can Freshly solder up and test out on the herpstat.

Same length,size,wattage and if that piece does the same then its time to send ti back for repairs

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Yeah that's a good idea, I'll do that and know for sure, thanks for the quick responses, much appreciated, I won't be able to sleep til I know it's safe. .

another piece, same result. but here's the weird part. when I put it over the foil tape that I had applied to go underneath it there is the buzzing, but if I put the new piece over the plain melamine, no buzzing. . . I had been asking earlier about the foil tape under the flexwatt and it seems that quite a few folks do that. It seems that I could arrest the buzzing if i were to forego the whole foil tape underneath idea. . . must be some inductive interference

Are you taping off the connections and the end of flexwatt with electrical tape. Sounds like its a short.

oh yes. they're all taped, there's no exposed area of AC runners

even if I hold both ends up and only let the middle section go over the foil tape area I can make the buzzing greater or less by pressing it closer or moving it away. . . and of course, if I don't use the t-stat and go direct it's silent

Post some pictures of how its wired and setup. Something dont add up. Though wood isnt a conductor and the foil tape it. Could be the tape is causing your problem. Try using Clear Packing tape.

here's the only shelf I did tonite. [IMG]http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/...825_214644.jpg[/IMG]
here is after I put the back panel on http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/...825_220242.jpg and the other end [IMG]http://i1204.photobucket.com/albums/...825_220247.jpg[/IMG]

Pictures is how i have my racks heat laid out, so ill go back to saying its the thermostat.

thanks for all of the input, it helps to get to the bottom of this kind of weird stuff.

i use foil tape with flexwatt and I have herpstats and helix no buzzing here. call spyder robotics, I heard that they have pretty good customer service.

You are getting harmonics. This happens with proportional thermostats and some setups. The pulsing of the electricity at certain frequencies next to metal cause the hum. Occasionally metal rack systems experience this as well if they have a metal plate underneath the flexwatt. You can change the mode of the Herpstat to NON-Proportional and it will regulate within a half degree and no longer cause the hum otherwise you are looking at removing the foil. I would recommend not to have foil around flexwatt anyway. When flexwatt fails it often melts through the plastic layer. The foil can conduct and carry the current which could be a possible fire hazard. On a rack if it touches the metal the rack is grounded so it should flip the house breaker.

Dion Brewington
Owner, Spyder Robotics

Well that settles it, right now I'm running it in non proportional mode, later tonite I'm just going to remove the foil tape, apparently I'm one of the unlucky ones with a setup that is not conducive (pun intended) with foil tape. At least there is a good answer. Thanks go out to all who helped, big thanks to Dion, best customer service and great products!

Have you tried using just Clear Packing Tape to tape down the flexwatt. And put the thermostat back on proportional. If buzzing is gone then could explain your problem. As I use Foil tape on my racks and packing tape and NEVER had buzzing unless thermostat was taking a crap

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

Have you tried using just Clear Packing Tape to tape down the flexwatt. And put the thermostat back on proportional. If buzzing is gone then could explain your problem. As I use Foil tape on my racks and packing tape and NEVER had buzzing unless thermostat was taking a crap

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It's worth a try! When I get home later I'll experiment to see if there is some arrangement that works better than the current setup. In the long run, if I have to run it without foil tape underneath I'm probably just going to go that route. The more I think about it tho, I'm kind of doubtful that it will make a difference. One if my experiments last nite included holding a strip over the foil, even without being taped down there was an effect. From what Dion was saying, this can happen to SOME setups sometimes, so it's not too surprising that some folks have the same arrangement and it works just fine. Something about the line voltage or frequency at my place makes this problem happen. I could try a line conditioner but rather than spend more money I'll probably just skip the foil underlayer. . .

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Originally Posted by spyderrobotics

You are getting harmonics. This happens with proportional thermostats and some setups. The pulsing of the electricity at certain frequencies next to metal cause the hum. Occasionally metal rack systems experience this as well if they have a metal plate underneath the flexwatt. You can change the mode of the Herpstat to NON-Proportional and it will regulate within a half degree and no longer cause the hum otherwise you are looking at removing the foil. I would recommend not to have foil around flexwatt anyway. When flexwatt fails it often melts through the plastic layer. The foil can conduct and carry the current which could be a possible fire hazard. On a rack if it touches the metal the rack is grounded so it should flip the house breaker.

Dion Brewington
Owner, Spyder Robotics

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What he said. I had the same issue a few years ago and switching to non-proportional fixed it!

If its what I think it is then its not the thermostat that is buzzing. I believe the noise is coming from the tape itself. The metal in the tape is hitting a harmonic frequency inline with the frequency of the electrical pulses used in dimming.

-Dion

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Originally Posted by spyderrobotics

If its what I think it is then its not the thermostat that is buzzing. I believe the noise is coming from the tape itself. The metal in the tape is hitting a harmonic frequency inline with the frequency of the electrical pulses used in dimming.

-Dion

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Yes, the sound is definitely coming from the tape itself not the physical thermostat device