Emergency Bulb Cooling - What would/did you do? (1 Viewer)

[Ray_P]

With your projector, I know the simple solution for emergency bulb cooling is to buy a UPS system. When the power goes out due to a thunderstorm or whatever, you can still have a safe method for cooling your bulb down. But...

1. What would you do if you didn't have an UPS for your projector? Let's say you took your projector to a friend's house and you forgot to bring along your battery backup. A storm rapidly develops and the power goes out. Is it a crazy idea to put the projector in the fridge? Or maybe sit it in front of a window AC unit (if you had one)? I know these are ridiculous ideas, but what could someone do in the case of an emergency?

And just as a poll...

2. How many cool-down minutes do you give to your projector?

When I first bought my Infocus Screenplay 4800, I used to just wait until the fan speed changed from high to low, then I would flip off the rocker switch (about a 2-minute process). But later on in my first week of owning it, the fan would not run at the regular speed during normal operation. As a result, the projector kept automatically shutting itself off (overheating).

My uneducated guess :b was that since I was always too quick to shut the projector off, I could have heat-warped the fan parts or something and the fan couldn't turn at efficient cooling speed. I exchanged it for a new one and ever since have always allowed 30 minutes to cool my lamp before fully switching it off. Is 30 minutes way more than enough?

 

[DaveGTP]

Ray,

Here's a good quote from the unofficial X1 FAQ, quoted from an Infocus employee -

http://members.shaw.ca/technut/x1faq/


You don't have to worry - only problem would be if the pj fan died while the lamp kept going.

 

[Neil Joseph]

I once had a glass dish that I took out of the oven. After removing its contents, I placed it in the sink and ran cold water on it. The vessel immediately cracked in half.

 

[Leo Kerr]

Yeah, I sort of second that notion:

when you have an unexpected shutdown, do nothing. The shaking of picking it up and moving it around is probably worse than anything else at that moment.

Something to be wary of is that some projectors, when the power comes back up, will turn themselves back on from the unexpected shutdown. If this is in the middle of the night 'cause you gave up on the power coming on before bedtime, then think about using the mechanical switch (if it has one,) or unplug the sucker.

Leo Kerr

 

[Ray_P]

I guess it's just best not forget to always have a reliable UPS in the first place.

No matter what projector you have, do most of you all buy into the "fast cooling" method as mentioned in the FAQ, or the "slow cooling" method?

 

[DaveGTP]

I believe the FAQ, since the info comes from Infocus (who seems to have good customer support and knowledgeable people). Besides, it does make sense from a scientific point of view. The faster the heating/cooling, the faster the thermal expansion/compression, and the more likely you'll get damage.

 

[Ray_P]

Thanks for the reassurance Dave. The scientific p.o.v. does actually makes sense. I think I may stray away from using the 30 minute strategy.