August 16, 2009
I initially used 3 digital timers to control my bird room lights. I used 1 timer to control my main T5 fluorescent lights, 1 timer to control a 5 watt night light, and the third timer to control a 40 watt night light. The first light to come on in the morning was the 5 watt light, then the 40 watt light and finally the main T5 lights. The timers were used in sequence in an attempt to simulate dawn and dusk by turning on each light in sequence to create a dimming effect or brightening effect, although abrupt. The birds are given 30 minutes to settle down for the night and 30 minutes in the morning to get ready for the main lights to come on.
Dawn simulation seems to work well but dusk simulation did not work as well because I would find one or two birds on the cage floor when the lights went out. The birds don’t seem to completely settle down before all the lights went out because the lights go from being on to off without any gradual dimming. I could have added more night lights to create a more gradual dimming effect but the number of timers and night lights that I would need will definitely clutter the bird room and changing the on/off time on all the timers would become unwieldy.
Using 3 timers was OK during the non breeding season but during the breeding season I was worried that I would lose some fertile eggs or chicks because the hens would be caught off guard and get stranded out of the nest. It is tough enough to get borders to produce any chicks so I wanted to give the birds every possible chance to produce a few chicks. This led me to search for a light timer with a dimmer. After lots of searching, I was unable to find a light timer with a dimmer made for North America’s 120V 60Hz hydro service. If you know of one, please let me know. I talked to a couple of fanciers and they both told me that they had their light timer/dimmer custom made or modified by electricians. I didn’t want to go through that hassle so I kept searching and I ended up finding a universal power line bus (UPB) device made for automating home lighting. This technology uses the existing electrical wiring in the home to send signals to the receivers. If I wanted to, I could use the controller to control all the lights in my home as long as I replace the normal switches with the UPB receiver switch. Take note that only incandescent lights can be dimmed.
I ended up purchasing a controller/timer
, a dimmer switch receiver, and a lamp module receiver. The dimmer switch replaced the wall switch in the bird room and the lamp module plugs into a wall outlet. The main T5 fluorescent lights are plugged into this lamp module. The controller is programmed to signal to the dimmer switch receiver to turn on the incandescent light at 100% brightness and then gradually dim the light over a span of 30 minutes to simulate dusk. The fluorescent lights are turned off 1 minute after the incandescent light is turned on. In the morning the switch is signaled by the controller to gradually turn on from 0% to 100% over a span of 30 minutes. The main lights are turned on 1 minute after the incandescent light reaches 100% brightness. A short buzz could be heard coming from the controller/timer when signals are sent to the receiver.
The controller/timer is programmed using a computer software and it is not the easiest thing to program. If you are not comfortable with computers, it is a good idea to have a computer savvy relative or friend program the controller for you. Once the controller is programmed, it is quite easy to change the time to simulate fall or spring. After the controller/timer is programmed, the on/off time is configured and changed using the controller/timer. I no longer find stranded borders on the cage floor because the light gradually dim down from 100% brightness to fully off, creating a more natural dusk effect. Also, I noticed that the birds are more calm and settled before the lights dim out.
