Converting enlargers from USA to Australia mains?

Trey · Jun 9, 2020

I'm moving to Sydney from NYC at the beginning of July, and I'm shipping over 4 Beseler 23c enlargers. Does anyone know if something like this product would be sufficient to handle a couple of enlargers and timers? I'm leaning towards taking digital timers vs time-o-lites since the digital ones seem to draw less power.

Is there much of a market for used easels and other various darkroom equipment? I'm only doing the sea freight thing once and I feel like I need to pack as much as I can now, but things are getting expensive.

Also I see that B&H is a main choice for Australian film photographers to order stuff. It will be very weird to move to the other side of the planet and shop at the same store I go to here. No more online pickups though I guess.

voceumana · Jun 9, 2020

Be aware that Australia power is 50 Hz, so definitely avoid synchronous motor timers, like the time-o-lite, or be prepared to adjust printing and developing times. Digital timers are probably immune to the line frequency.

I'd contact Beseler, since they make the 23C III in a 230 V version they might offer a conversion kit. It's worth an inquiry.

AgX · Jun 9, 2020

Yes, the frequency still may be problem. Be it for any frequency dependant motor (as in motorized clocks), for electronic circuits that need an external timing signals, and at least in theory even plain transfomers may be affected.

samcomet · Jun 9, 2020

I'll second what Voceumana and AgX says about timer motors. I used to use a 240 v. to 110 v. stepdown trannie to run my entire darkroom at 110 v. here in Sydney. The timer was a Gralab timer and my processed film was consistently "off." I realised that for every 1minute of dev time I was getting 10 seconds less as the motor ran slower at 50Hz ! Later I found a 240v Gralab and a supply of suitable bulbs for my 23C xl II and now everything runs fine on 240 v. mains power. If you want to PM me I can give you a rundown of suppliers here in Oz (all mostly in Sydney & Melbourne) for chems and hardware. Globes are a bit iffy to find though (I bought a dozen when I saw them come onto the usual auction website) ........... best of luck and cheers!
Sam
P.S. I also use 240 v. RH Designs digi timer and meter and tested them against my clock on my phone and they hold up perfectly against my iPhone's timer.

Trey · Jun 9, 2020

voceumana said:
Be aware that Australia power is 50 Hz, so definitely avoid synchronous motor timers, like the time-o-lite, or be prepared to adjust printing and developing times. Digital timers are probably immune to the line frequency.

I'd contact Beseler, since they make the 23C III in a 230 V version they might offer a conversion kit. It's worth an inquiry.

Oh wow I didn't know that. Is there a device to convert the Hz? I know nothing about electricity.

And for the digital ones if i use the converter I guess the enlarger bulb that's plugged in will have issues as well?

Trey · Jun 9, 2020

samcomet said:
I'll second what Voceumana and AgX says about timer motors. I used to use a 240 v. to 110 v. stepdown trannie to run my entire darkroom at 110 v. here in Sydney. The timer was a Gralab timer and my processed film was consistently "off." I realised that for every 1minute of dev time I was getting 10 seconds less as the motor ran slower at 50Hz ! Later I found a 240v Gralab and a supply of suitable bulbs for my 23C xl II and now everything runs fine on 240 v. mains power. If you want to PM me I can give you a rundown of suppliers here in Oz (all mostly in Sydney & Melbourne) for chems and hardware. Globes are a bit iffy to find though (I bought a dozen when I saw them come onto the usual auction website) ........... best of luck and cheers!
Sam
P.S. I also use 240 v. RH Designs digi timer and meter and tested them against my clock on my phone and they hold up perfectly against my iPhone's timer.

Wait so even the bulbs won't work right? Is there any device to fix it?

Pieter12 · Jun 9, 2020

Bulbs are probably going to be cheaper than a transformer. And locally available: imagine if one of your 110V bulbs goes, you won't be able to readily get one. Just invest in a timer instead of a transformer. Of course, if you have a set-up that is more complex than a simple bulb in the enlarger head, all bets are off.

samcomet · Jun 9, 2020

The bulbs for the Beseler 23C series are a "special" small envelope, E26 screw thread, 75 watt opal globe. The 110v. version is the PH140 and the 240v. version is the PH1400 (I think). The bulbs seem to be available from KHB (my supplier) or B & H. If I were you I would be inclined to go the full monty on a 240v. system - less to go wrong. There seems to be plenty of darkroom timers, locally here, to choose from. On the bulb front I would be inclined to order a bunch of 240v. to amortise the shipping costs etc. I don't think that I've ever seen proper PH1400 available in Oz so this might be a consideration for you to purchase before shipping................. If you want a rundown on the local suppliers let me know by PM.
cheers,
Sam

mshchem · Jun 9, 2020

An ordinary 23c no color head enlarger is a simple matter of proper bulb or a dimmer to reduce voltage. Anything with a motor is another problem. Before the USA had a national electric grid, the West was on 50 Hz, rest of the country on 60 Hz. People with fancy electric clocks, paid to have them converted, the rest of them went to the trash or in some cases dumped into the Pacific Ocean.

You will need to check. I would want a timer designed for 50Hz, shouldn't be hard to find outside North America 220 50 cycle power is the norm.

AgX · Jun 10, 2020

Trey said:
Wait, so even the bulbs won't work right? Is there any device to fix it?

To make (Incandescant) lamps work properly, one either

-) has to run the enlarger on a transformer (copper coil or electronic as intended by the OP) to feed the enlarger exactly with the voltage it was made for. (This can be done both with an enlarger which lamp is running directly on the mains, or is running on a built-in transformer.)

-) has just to exchange lamps which are running directly on the mains, for the new mains voltage (in the opposite of the OP's case, namely 230>120V, one might have in addition to exchange the enlarger wiring for thicker wires).

With incandescant lamps frequency is no matter.

Trey · Jun 10, 2020

Thanks for the replies everyone. This is going to be a huge move and I'm kind of on the ledge after getting this new info.

I guess it never occurred to me that plugging in analog equipment would be more difficult than the laptops, phones and chargers I've been carrying with me on trips over the years.

Just to collate my thoughts, here's where I am at this point:

I've got four enlargers
- Three are the blue, old-style, with bayonet mount lamps. I've ordered 10 of these globes which I suppose I'll have to return?
- One is the new 23c III you see in the pic. I've ordered 5 of these globes, which I suppose I'll also need to return.
I have access to multiple timers as I mentioned.
- Sounds like Time-o-lite timers are best left in the US? Would it be easy to convert them?
- Sounds like newer digital timers may work ok if I can verify that the label states it's good 110-220? For instance the label on my laptop charger says "Input 100-240v~1.5A 50-6-Hz" This is what I should be looking for, right?
Heaps of Gralab timers which I suppose should be left in the US?

I kept waking up over the night freaking out that this won't be workable, but I'm realizing that maybe there's a way to do this, and your comments have been very helpful.

voceumana · Jun 10, 2020

Conversion of the Time-O-Lite timers would require replacing the motor (if you want the time to be correct). If you open one up, you can see that it would be difficult to do because the timer is jam-packed.

Voltage conversion requires two things: the correct voltage; note that Australia is 240 Volts, while most of Europe is 220 Volts; they are not the same. Power conversion transformers can adapt for the voltage. The other thing is the correct frequency: 60 Hz for USA, Canada; 50 Hz for Australia. There is no easy way to convert frequency--it can be done, but the cost is prohibitive.

For electronic equipment, look for a rating that includes 240V (not 220V) and 50 Hz.

Incandescent bulbs don't care about frequency, just voltage. If you use a step-down transformer (240 to 120V) you can use the bulbs you bought. Since the only electrical device in these enlargers is the bulb, a step down transformer makes sense.

This sort of transformer would be a decent one, I think: https://www.amazon.com/Rockstone-30...lt+Voltage+Transformer&qid=1591795328&sr=8-13

AgX · Jun 10, 2020

Europe is 230V (with the exception of the UK with 240V).

Trey · Jun 10, 2020

voceumana said:
Conversion of the Time-O-Lite timers would require replacing the motor (if you want the time to be correct). If you open one up, you can see that it would be difficult to do because the timer is jam-packed.

Voltage conversion requires two things: the correct voltage; note that Australia is 240 Volts, while most of Europe is 220 Volts; they are not the same. Power conversion transformers can adapt for the voltage. The other thing is the correct frequency: 60 Hz for USA, Canada; 50 Hz for Australia. There is no easy way to convert frequency--it can be done, but the cost is prohibitive.

For electronic equipment, look for a rating that includes 240V (not 220V) and 50 Hz.

Incandescent bulbs don't care about frequency, just voltage. If you use a step-down transformer (240 to 120V) you can use the bulbs you bought. Since the only electrical device in these enlargers is the bulb, a step down transformer makes sense.

This sort of transformer would be a decent one, I think: https://www.amazon.com/Rockstone-30...lt+Voltage+Transformer&qid=1591795328&sr=8-13

That transformer is pretty reasonably priced, thanks for the link. This is all making me feel a bit unwell.

Where would you recommend looking online for this type on equipment? Looking at auction sites only brings up US vendors.

I'm about to go dig through timers looking for 50Hz models...

AgX · Jun 10, 2020

Modern timers/time-timer-switches most likely have an internal time signal derived from an oscilating quartz. Such devices are independent of mains frequency.

Trey · Jun 10, 2020

Ok, I managed to find some enlarger timers that I think may work. Can someone check I'm interpreting these labels correctly?

I guess then I'd just need something like the converter I listed in the OP?

AgX · Jun 10, 2020

Yes, that one would work, behind a 240V>110V(120V) transformer.

What makes me wonder are the three different types of loads. I have not seen such before. I mean a incandescanr lamp is a pure resistive load too. I do not see why the the swich could control a lamp onkly at half the resistive load. A incandescent lampt has a high switch-on current, but the switch should takev that nonetheless. Weird.

Trey · Jun 10, 2020

AgX said:
Yes, that one would work, behind a 240V>110V(120V) transformer.

What makes me wonder are the three different types of loads. I have not seen such before. I mean a incandescanr lamp is a pure resistive load too. I do not see why the the swich could control a lamp onkly at half the resistive load. A incandescent lampt has a high switch-on current, but the switch should takev that nonetheless. Weird.

Maybe it wasn't clear from the first pic but it's the labels from three timers. I've made it a bit easier to see but you may need to refresh your browser.

Sounding like I'm in good shape though.

AgX · Jun 10, 2020

Yes, three timers. But the outlet designations of the upper one is weird, as I indicated above.

voceumana · Jun 10, 2020

Incandescent lamps are not purely restive loads. The filament is actually very low resistance until it is heated and giving off light. Thus they have a very high inrush current. Switch and relay contacts are rated differently for incandescent and resistive loads. Inrush current can be up to 14 times the steady state current on incandescent bulbs. If you measure the cold resistance of an incandescent bulb, you'll find it's resistance is much lower than the power rating would imply.

Trey · Jun 10, 2020

voceumana said:
Incandescent lamps are not purely restive loads. The filament is actually very low resistance until it is heated and giving off light. Thus they have a very high inrush current. Switch and relay contacts are rated differently for incandescent and resistive loads. Inrush current can be up to 14 times the steady state current on incandescent bulbs. If you measure the cold resistance of an incandescent bulb, you'll find it's resistance is much lower than the power rating would imply.

Oy vey! I'm beginning to appreciate how my wife feels when I start talking about computers.

I've bought a bunch of these and these, will they work in Australia? I don't see any 240v globes with the bayonete mount.

awty · Jun 10, 2020

https://www.vanbar.com.au/catalogue/index.php?item1=LIGHTING&item2=LAMPS&brand=

120 vlts will glow brightly and then blow the filament.

voceumana · Jun 10, 2020

Trey:

I'm sorry you find it overwhelming, but the fact is that different countries have different main power. It's worth understanding the differences in order to protect your equipment and yourself for safety reasons and to ensure the equipment functions correctly and is not damaged.

Inrush current considerations are important for the current (and by inference, power) capability of the switching device. In a timer, this is usually a switch or a relay. Sometimes it is a solid-state relay. My posting about it was in regards to post #17.

You have two issues with regards to the enlargers and timers:

1. The lamp; you can use 120V lamps in Australia with an appropriate step-down transformer. The transformer needs to be rated for the power of lamp. You can probably just use one step down transformer for all the enlargers if you don't use more than one at a time.

2. The timer: forget about motor driven timers--it isn't worth it to convert them to 50 Hz; use a digital timer. Run the timer and the enlarger off the same step down transformer, and everything will work. Get something like the one I posted before, making sure the total Wattage of the highest wattage enlarger lamp and timer does not exceed the power rating of the transformer. Use a power strip on the output of the transformer and plug all the enlargers and the timer into that; just don't use more than one enlarger at the same time to avoid excess power.

Mick Fagan · Jun 10, 2020

Australia's power supply is 230V at 50Hz, has been since the 1990's.

Pretty much most of the world is nominally 230V, including the USA, the frequency is another matter.

If any of your appliances have something similar to this, "INPUT: 100-240V, 50/60 Hz". Then you can safely plug and play.

Mick.

mshchem · Jun 10, 2020

Trey said:
Thanks for the replies everyone. This is going to be a huge move and I'm kind of on the ledge after getting this new info.

I guess it never occurred to me that plugging in analog equipment would be more difficult than the laptops, phones and chargers I've been carrying with me on trips over the years.

Just to collate my thoughts, here's where I am at this point:

I've got four enlargers

Three are the blue, old-style, with bayonet mount lamps. I've ordered 10 of these globes which I suppose I'll have to return?

One is the new 23c III you see in the pic. I've ordered 5 of these globes, which I suppose I'll also need to return.

I have access to multiple timers as I mentioned.

Sounds like Time-o-lite timers are best left in the US? Would it be easy to convert them?

Sounds like newer digital timers may work ok if I can verify that the label states it's good 110-220? For instance the label on my laptop charger says "Input 100-240v~1.5A 50-6-Hz" This is what I should be looking for, right?

Heaps of Gralab timers which I suppose should be left in the US?

I kept waking up over the night freaking out that this won't be workable, but I'm realizing that maybe there's a way to do this, and your comments have been very helpful.

I would just buy bulbs in Australia. Or exchange them for 230V. Transformer will work for bulbs. Buy a modern enlarger timer you are set. Computer power supplies are setup for anything but only supply low voltage DC.

Converting enlargers from USA to Australia mains?

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