Halloween 2013: Flicker Lamp using Prop 1 and a high powered SSR

[jukingeo]

Hello All,

While I was working with EFX-TEK products for a while now, this is really the first time I had something operational AND in use for an event.

The project is an overhead caged style lamp post that illuminated a warning sign that warned people not to go into a certain area of the yard unless they wanted to be scared.   However the lamp also flickered every half minute or so.

Here is a video of the lamp in operation at my Halloween display.  It is the light post with the 'stop' sign on it in the background.  The lamp flickers at about 1:18 into the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tbrs540jNGU

I constructed the control box using a prop-1 and a high powered ssr.  The relay could handle 20 amps at 120volts if it were mounted on a heat sink.  I mounted it to the bottom of a metal electrical box, but I still derated the relay to its non-heatsink load, which is 5 amps.  Still, even at that level, I could easily run about 6 such lamps off of one relay.

The finished prop turned out great and worked as expected.  While I didn't get many people mentioning that I have 'something wrong with my light'.  People did notice it as you can even see the woman in the video above turn her head as the light flashes.

In any regards, many thanks goes out to those who have helped me with this project.

BTW, here is a link to the Halloween forum where I posed my entire display for Halloween 2013:

http://www.halloweenforum.com/general-halloween/132545-halloween-2013-magic-mirror-singing-pumpkins-spydro-jumping-spider.html

Enjoy!

Until next Halloween...

Geo