Various Causes of LED Driver Heating

The LED driver is connected fine but still very hot, possibly due to the following reasons:

When encountering this situation, use an infrared thermometer or temperature sensor to measure the temperature of the driver surface and internal components, and compare the Ta and Tc temperature values on the LED driver. If the Tc temperature is exceeded, please cut off the power immediately and find the temperature according to the conditions listed below. Find out the cause of LED heating.

*Ta refers to the ambient temperature of the driver's operation, and Tc is the maximum temperature the driver's shell allows.

Driver output current is too high: If the driver output current exceeds the design value, it may cause internal components to overheat. At this time, you need to use an ammeter (multimeter) connected in series between the driver output and the LED lamp to measure the output current of the LED driver and compare it with the driver's rated output current.

Unstable or high input voltage: Unstable or high input voltage can cause the voltage regulation section within the drive to overheat. At this time, you need to use a voltmeter (multimeter) for testing. Connect the two probes of the voltmeter to the driver's input terminal (AC or DC input terminal) and observe whether the voltmeter has large fluctuations.

Overload:The total power of the LED lamps connected to the driver exceeds its rated power, resulting in overload operation. How to judge? We need to add the rated power of all LED lamps to get the total power, then measure the actual power, and compare the calculated actual output power with the rated power of the driver.

Poor heat dissipation:The size of the radiator is too small or the heat dissipation material is not efficient enough to dissipate heat promptly. Or there is no air circulation around the drive and the space is small, which will lead to heat accumulation.

Inferior components: Inferior components are used inside the driver, which have poor heat resistance and are prone to heat generation.

Component aging: After long-term use, the internal components age, resulting in a decrease in heat dissipation performance.

Inefficiency: Power conversion efficiency is low, resulting in more electrical energy being converted into heat.

Electromagnetic interference: EMI/EMC problems cause unstable circuit operation and increase heat generation.

Loose wiring or poor contact: Loose connections or poor contact increase resistance and cause heating.

Poor welding quality: The welding point quality is poor and the contact resistance is large, resulting in overheating.

Frequent switching: Frequent switching of the driver will cause internal components to start frequently and increase heat generation.

Long-term overload operation: Running under conditions exceeding the rated load for a long time will cause the drive to overheat.