Fit for Purpose Products - Aldi Outside Light
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ericmark
Project Manager
Project Manager
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Joined: Fri Oct 02, 2009 9:49 pm
Location: Llanfair Caereinion, Mid Wales.

Fit for Purpose Products - Aldi Outside Light

by ericmark » Fri Feb 12, 2016 11:36 am

I was asked by wife to fit outside light, I pointed to street lamp just outside garden wall, but next thing was a Aldi outside lamp. A silly quartz halogen lamp just within the legal limit at 120W.

Did not want to fit it but had to so made it easy to remove again just one screw into wooden landers. Some cable and simply plugged in.

3 days it lasted and the tube failed, to be far likely because I only used one screw and it was vibrating, but next was replacement for the failed tube. Took lamp down while waiting 3 weeks for a LED replacement for quartz halogen tube now down to 5W.

OK worked for a little longer this time ran for 3 weeks, then stuck on as PIR at bottom of lamp filled with water. No vent in bottom of lamp capillary action means water always sticks around the joints so as the lamp heats up in sun then cools in the rain it will naturally suck in water unless a vent is provided and that vent clearly needs to be at the bottom.

So now there is a very small hole at the bottom. Read the instructions and it did say protect from adverse conditions like hail stones. Who are they kidding no way am I going out in the hail to bring the lamp in. It cost under £5 Aldi special, but with cable, plug and lamp it grew to £15 and if I take it back I only get £5 refund so stuck with it.

Again reading instructions it goes down to every little detail, but does not actually say something as simple as mount this way up. I am sure many people do take things like this back, so why don't manufacturers drill that little hole themselves? For me I had to take it apart first to see where I could drill without hitting the electronic board. But for manufacturer so easy.

How many others get these items which clearly are not fit for job? Now it has been full of water how long will it last? Onto day three next time I will buy the lamp.

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