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Re: Neon life (and death)
From: gweaver[SMTP:gweaver-at-earthlink-dot-net]
Sent: Thursday, October 30, 1997 12:47 PM
To: Tesla List
Subject: Re: Neon life (and death)
At 07:18 PM 10/29/97 -0600, you wrote:
>
>From: ghunter-at-mail.enterprise-dot-net[SMTP:ghunter-at-mail.enterprise-dot-net]
>Sent: Wednesday, October 29, 1997 3:20 PM
>To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
>Subject: Neon life (and death)
>
>What's the typical lifespan of a neon TC power supply? One
>subscriber to the list has suggested that a pile of used neon
>transformers is good to have around, because they don't last very
>long. I find this most disturbing, as I own only ONE neon
>transformer, and it wasn't free. I've seen working luminous sign
>transformers in downtown New Orleans that appear to have been on
>continuous duty for decades. Obviously, neons are built to last. So
>why would a TC shorten the life of a neon so drastically? I'm aware
>of the need for output chokes, and mine will be protected with four
>(4) robust, home-made units (2 big air-cores, and 2 fat ferrite
>cores). I'm also including a safety gap. What more can I do?
>Series power resistors maybe?
>
>Greg
>
Its hard to say how long a neon will last. I think it has something to do
with how old the tar inside the neon is and how much it has dried out. When
the tar dries out it gets lots of cracks that contribute to the neon
failure. If you put a neon in the kitchen oven for about an hour to melt the
tar it does wonders for good working neons and will fix most bad neons.
Collect all the bad neons you can get from sign shops and bring them back to
life by putting them in the kitchen oven. If you want more details see my
web page http://home.earthlink-dot-net/~gweaver
Gary Weaver