Barco B series SM lamphouse - heat damage to adapter bolt

[Leo Enticknap]

Thanks - wlll do. There are some sites, however, where I simply don't have any access to running water. But for others, this sounds like a good solution (no pun intended).

[Marco Giustini]

I second Steve's solution - Don't rub the metal mesh, just press a towel on the filter while resting it on another towel which is resting on a flat surface. That'll do. To get rid of the leftovers water, you can just flap the filters in free air for a few seconds.

[Rick Cohen]

I use a hair dryer to expedite the drying of the filters. The towel trick seems like it would work just as well, though.

[Leo Enticknap]

In a typical booth, standing them to dry against a wall (on some shop towels, to absorb the drips) for 1.5 to 2 hours is enough to dry them to the point of being barely damp, at which point I'm comfortable reinstalling them. On most PM calls, as long as I remember to wash the filters as the first task, I easily have enough time to do that.

The bigger problem is the Series 4 air filters, with a mesh that is so thick that they need 2-3 days to dry properly. We advise those buying a Series 4 projector to purchase a second set of filters along with it, so that when the time comes to clean the set that came with the projector, the second set can be swapped in, and therefore the projector is not out of use while waiting for the first to dry. As a general rule, the only customers who have declined to do that are college campus theater type places, where the auditorium is out of use over the weekend: therefore, the filters can be washed on Friday afternoon, left to dry, and reinstalled on Monday morning. But for a typical multiplex, you're looking at significant downtime if you don't have at least one spare set for the complex.

[Leo Enticknap]

Steve and Jason nailed it:

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...and here is the bolt that was installed new on June 26, with a new one next to it for comparison:

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For now I've contact cleaned all the surfaces with corrosion and/or heat damage evident, reassembled the lamp adapter receiver, lubricated the non-conductive surfaces with lithium grease, and the new bolt with a little copper grease. Next step is to replace the lamp adapter receiver and DC cable.

Many thanks to everyone.

[Leo Enticknap]

Just stumbled across this: DeOxit makes a copper-infused lithium grease that also includes the DeOxit secret sauce, which they claim is specifically suitable for lube jobs on high amperage contacts. It's a bit pricey compared to plain vanilla lithium or copper grease, but I'm going to buy a tube and give it a try the next time I find a high current DC connection that shows signs of either oxidization or heat damage.

[Steve Guttag]

Also, remember, for a B lamphouse, the torque on that rear screw is 5Nm instead of the 2.5Nm of the C lamphouse. I'm not sure why, since both top out at the same current for the S/M lamphouse. The torque on the lug (as shown in the image earlier) remains at 17Nm.

[Mikel Roura]

It is the same problem as when the error 5961 appears on the communication device description: Light pipe-Temperature high?

The fans are all working correctly and the voltages are all correct. The error goes away by lowering the intensity of the lamp.

[Leo Enticknap]

I don't think it's essentially the same problem: the light pipe is on the back of the light engine, and is not part of the lamphouse.

If reducing the lamp current makes this error go away, then it doesn't sound to me like a bad sensor. If the fans are all OK, is the steel mesh air filter immediately underneath the light pipe, and/or its intake on the underside of the projector, clogged with dust? If they are clear and you can feel air passing through the mesh filter when you put your hand immediately above it, the next place I'd look for trouble would be the liquid cooling system (though if that were problematic, I'd expect to see unhealthily high light engine/DMD temperatures, too).

[Steve Guttag]

If you are getting a hot light pipe, I'd suspect coolant flow (insufficient coolant or a clog or a pump that is failing). If this is a DP2K-12C (only air cooled) then you have to have good exhaust and check the reflective plate that goes over the end of the light pipe...if it has darkened/turned grey, then it should be replaced. Without it being reflective, it will become more and more of a heat sink rather than reflector.

[Leo Enticknap]

Here are the temperature readings from a DP2K-23B (with a 4kW lamp in it), that had a new coolant pump (plus a flush and new coolant, obviously) on June 19:

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The liquid cooling system cools the "engine" entries, plus a heat sink on the back of the light pipe. Everything else is cooled by fans, all of which are reported to be OK in Mikel's projector. So if the liquid cooling system is failing (because of a blockage, a leak, or a dying pump, as Steve suggests), I would expect to see all the "engine" readings, plus the light pipe reading, heading north toward warning territory. These readings are from a projector with a big bulb running at near full amps, and with the liquid cooling system recently serviced and in good condition. So if Mikel is seeing significantly higher numbers on the "engine" entries, I'd be inclined to agree with Steve and investigate there.

Of course none of this applies if Mikel's Barco doesn't have a liquid cooling system, such as the DP2K-12C (as Steve notes), or an S or E series model.

[Steve Guttag]

Leo, the others may be higher than "normal" in a liquid cooling system...but it is often the light pipe that will be the first to complain as it is getting hit hard by the heat. Top most DMD is also the first to complain about the heat...in a Barco "C" projector, that is red.

[Mikel Roura]

I'll check.

Thank you very much for your observations Leo and Steve.

[Steve Guttag]

Which projector model do you have Mikel?

[Mikel Roura]

Un BARCO DP2k-12B