>Date: Mon, 15 Jun 1998 22:34:21
>To: "Kurt Schmidt" <schmidt_kurt@hotmail.com>
>From: Bert Palte <vortex@wxs.nl>
>Subject: Re: Headlight switch amperage?
>
>At 08:46 15-06-1998 PDT, you wrote:
>>I have a 75B and have noticed that the on/off switch gets quite warm
>>The wiring allows all of the current (a lot) through the switch so the
>>fact that the switch gets warm does not surprise me too much...
>>
>>How much current do others have going through the _brown_ wire feeding
>
>Well.... Let's see!
>Headlights are rated 45 W each, that's 90 W.
>Driving lights, rear lights, licence plate lights etc., say, 30 W.
>Sundry (instrument lamps etc). say 15 W.
>A total of 105 W (a ball park estimate only).
>
>Since you have a 12 V system, this means that you will have about
>(105 W divided by 12 V) or 9 A, say 10 A through your switch.
>(generally referred to as 10 Amps or, more accurately, 10 Amperes).
>This is what you should be able to find...using a suitable instrument..
>
>However, it's not the 10 A that makes the switch hot, but rather the same
10 A multiplied by a certain voltage drop. A new switch will have no
noticeable voltage drop (and thus will not get very hot), but an old switch
will have one. Say a 1 V voltage drop will cause a heat generation of 10 W.
>Or, in other words, the switch will eventually get just as hot as a 10 W bulb.
>(Did you know that a 10 W light bulb generates about 9.6 W of heat emission
>and about 0.4 W of light emission? As a light source, it is really very
inefficient!)
>
>In my experience, however, sometimes it is not the switch that has such bad
contacts but it may also be the wiring connectors on the back of the switch.
>
>Cleaning the contacts may sometimes solve the problem. If the switch itself
is the problem and you don't have access to a new one immediately, you may
try to open the switch carefully, clean the contacts and reassemble the
switch again.
>But, be warned, this does not always provide a lasting remedy.
>
>
>Good luck!
>Bert
>
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