Fluorescent to LED Conversion

[SuspicousSodaFountain]

I have 2 different meters, one is pretty simple to use, it has lights that light up starting at 24v AC and goes up to 240v AC. When I use this meter on the fluorescent fixture, it lights up all the way to 240v, tells me it's DC and says it's a dangerous voltage. The other meter measures both AC and DC, but I'm pretty confused on how to use it, it's pretty complicated. Anyway, it sounds like you're right, it's probably DC, but where does the DC come from, I only see one transformer that takes the incoming 120v from the wall and steps it down to 24v to run the machine? There must be some circuitry in the electronic boards that the wires are coming from that is doing it, and that's beyond my pay grade. Like I have said before, there are no ballasts in the machine that I can find, otherwise it would be pretty simple to just bypass those.

is the plug from the wall going dorectly into a box or is it going into a transformer into a box?

[Youk]

If you look at the last picture, that is the transformer, the cord comes in from the wall and is wired into one side, then 24v wires come out the other side and goes up into the circuitry.

[SuspicousSodaFountain]

If you look at the last picture, that is the transformer, the cord comes in from the wall and is wired into one side, then 24v wires come out the other side and goes up into the circuitry.

you might be able to gind a control box somewhere. if you dont, your going to have to locate a flourescent or a replacement. im lucky enough to have mine be 100vac direct in.

[CollinP]

Hi, did you ever resolve the voltage reading issue? I'm going through the exact same procedure and getting the same results. Thanks. Collin

[Youk]

Hi Collin, unfortunately no, I kind of gave up and took a break from the issue for a bit. Do you have the 10 1/2" skinny fluorescent lamps as well? These seem to be wired differently than the regular fluorescents with ballasts.

[CollinP]

Hi,
I found that the system for the fluorescent lights was 24v. Once that was established, I removed the (belly glass) ballast board and all of the associated wiring leading from the ballast to the fluorescent tube contacts.

I then spliced a 12 inch (self adhesive) LED strip into the wiring that was originally plugged into the ballast board.

I stuck the self adhesive LED strip to the housing area (behind the belly glass) and turned on the machine.

The results are in the image below.

I only replaced the belly glass fluorescent tube with the LED strip so I could compare the illumination between the two. I think the 12" strip of 24v LED turned out close to spot on.

Next time I wouldn't be so timid so, I think it would take about 30 mins. with soldering included.
Cheers
CollinP

[MrGneiss]

Looks good!!

[Youk]

Wow, that's a great breakthrough for me Collin, thank you for sharing!!! So the ballasts for these skinny fluorescents (I'm assuming you have the skinny fluorescent bulbs like I do), are actually the boards they clip into? So by doing away with the boards, the wiring going to the boards is 24v? If that's the case, running 24v LED strips off the original wiring should work like yours did? That makes sense. Thank you again for the information, I may not begin to dig into this for a couple of weeks, but I will let you know how it goes.

[AlexKolt]

Fluorescents usually have a higher operating voltage, so it makes sense your meter is going wild. For LEDs, you'll want to make sure everything's running on the same voltage. It might be worth looking into a dedicated LED driver that matches your strip's requirements, which could simplify your conversion by handling the voltage transformation for you.


If you need a detailed guide on how to go about this, or if you’re looking for troubleshooting tips, https://leds.to/ is a resource I've found to be incredibly helpful. They've got explanations and step-by-step guides that could help you get your Bellco machine shining bright with LEDs without too much hassle.