My TV burned up--so I don't trust power strips.

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My TV burned up--so I don't trust power strips.

Postby IraRat » Wed Sep 14, 2005 9:47 am

Three-year-old Zenith, plugged into a strip with a trip, watching SpongeBob, and zissst, flash, sparkle, black screen, hum, rancid smell in the air.

Dead.

Shouldn't that strip have turned off all the power in a situation like this?
--Ira

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Postby IraRat » Wed Sep 14, 2005 11:16 am

Thanks for the info. I'm obviously going to use a strip in the galley, and I want to make sure I get the right kind.

But I was still surprised that even the breaker didn't trip. It was kind of scary and freaky.

But how can I afford to buy a new TV when I still need a power panel and hatch props for my TD, plus a million other things?
--Ira

"My HD and Wal-Mart have been out of Titebond for weeks, and I think it's a communist conspiracy."
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Postby IraRat » Wed Sep 14, 2005 1:14 pm

powderburn wrote: Have you had problems with power flexuation in the past?


I've had them like you wouldn't believe--and not just during hurricane/storm activity. We CONSTANTLY experience brownouts where the lights almost go off.
--Ira

"My HD and Wal-Mart have been out of Titebond for weeks, and I think it's a communist conspiracy."
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Postby IraRat » Wed Sep 14, 2005 3:03 pm

Down in South Florida, this is a simple fact of life. Why, when there's alightning storm and you want to protect something, they don't tell you to just unplug it:

They tell you to unplug it and move the plug a few feet away from the socket!

32" Zenith, only about $300, $350 new, so I doubt it pays to claim it or try to fight FPL.

They'll just insist I spilled a beer on it.
--Ira

"My HD and Wal-Mart have been out of Titebond for weeks, and I think it's a communist conspiracy."
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Postby TonyCooper » Thu Sep 15, 2005 9:23 pm

Many sets have replace-able fuse(s) inside the cover. It may have blown. Then one has to wonder <why> it blew. If you smelled it burning it is unlikely the fuse.

If the circuit that fried pulled less amperage then the fuse/circuit breaker rating then fuse/circuit breaker would never blow/trip.
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Postby bledsoe3 » Fri Sep 16, 2005 1:17 am

IraRat wrote:They'll just insist I spilled a beer on it.


They must know you. :rofl: :rofl2:
If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got.
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Postby Joseph » Fri Sep 16, 2005 5:39 am

powderburn wrote:How can a guy tell when the surge protection has finally become worn out?

Some of the better ones have an indicator light that lets you know if you're protected or not. For probably more than you ever wanted to know, check out How Stuff Works: Surge Protectors.

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Postby IraRat » Mon Sep 19, 2005 10:23 am

TonyCooper wrote: If you smelled it burning it is unlikely the fuse.



Bingo--and I didn't want to take the chance of having it looked at professionally.

I put it outside of the house at about 8PM, the night before trash pickup. And it was gone by 8:01. (Garbage pickers are big in my area. Since I started building a TD, I became one of the biggest culprits.)

What's killing me is that this was maybe a $500, $600 set a few years ago, straight 32", not flat screen or anything. And looking at the sets now, the choices are limited. Everything's HDTV and VERY expensive.
--Ira

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Postby Paulyboy » Fri Oct 07, 2005 3:08 pm

Sorry for coming into this so late, but I've had 3 zeniths in 20 years, and the one I have now will be the last one I buy. They've all gone out, gone dead, or just gotten so blurred that they were unusable. Terrible product. The 1st time I thpught, nah, just a fluke. The 2nd time, I thpught well, I guess 4 years is about what I can expect. This one is the last one, having lasted only 3 years, with a surge protector, and its gettin fuzzier than a fat ladies navel.
BTW, why would one want to bring a TV on a camping trip?
Last edited by Paulyboy on Fri Oct 07, 2005 3:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby toypusher » Fri Oct 07, 2005 3:12 pm

Paulyboy wrote:Sorry for coming into this so late, but I've had 3 zeniths in 20 years, and the one I have now will be the last one I buy. They've all gone out, gone dead, or just gotten so blurred that they were unusable. Terrible product. The 1st time I thpught, nah, just a fluke. The 2nd time, I thpught well, I guess 4 years is about what I can expect. This one is the last one, having lasted only 3 years, with a surge protector, and its gettin fuzzier than a fat ladies navel.


Buy Sony, I have had 3 and one of them lasted 14 years with me moving around in the military! Great picture too!
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