User Guide

About Amperage
About the Maximum Load: What 10 Amps ON AT ONE TIME Means
The maximum load for the 3 track smart chaser is 10 amps ON AT ONE TIME, not necessarily per
receptacle. This means that you have to pay attention to which pattern you choose when determining
how many amps you can run per receptacle, since different patterns have different numbers of tracks
on at one time, and 10 amps is the maximum load that this controller can handle at any one time.
For most of the sequences available on the 3 track smart chaser, only 1 receptacle is turned on at any
given moment. This means that for most of the available sequences, you can run up to 10 amps per
receptacle.
However, in some of the available sequences, there are times in the pattern where ALL of the
receptacles turn on at the same time. This means that if you are running a sequence that includes an
“all on” step, your display’s TOTAL amperage, for all the receptacles that you are using combined, must
be 10 amps or less. Patterns that include an “all on” step are Speller, Build Up, Multi-Sequence, and
Negative Chase. In order to use ANY of these patterns in 2 or 3 track modes, your total amperage for
ALL of the tracks in your display cannot be over 10 amps – if your display’s total amperage is over 10
when using any of these patterns, you will probably blow a fuse.
How to Estimate Your Amperage
To estimate amperage, you can use the table below for a quick reference estimate OR you can use the
formula on the next page for a more exact figure.
Keep in mind that the maximum load (either 10 amps per receptacle OR 10 amps total for the
receptacles that will be on at the same time) only applies to the load of the lights that you will be
plugging into your controller. You do NOT need to include the lights for the rest of the display (that
you will NOT be plugging into the controller) in these calculations.
Which pattern are you choosing? If it is a pattern with an “All On” step (Speller, Build Up, Multi-Sequence, or
Negative Chase), add up all of the bulbs. For any other patterns, just count the bulbs per receptacle.
To estimate the number of bulbs that may be turned on per amp (amperage load),
see the following chart.
Quick Reference Amperage Load Chart
Type of Light
# = 1 amp
# = 3 amp
# = 5 amp
# = 10 amp
# = 15 amp
C9 Incandescent 9 watt
14 bulbs
42 bulbs
70 bulbs
140 bulbs
210 bulbs
C7 Incandescent 7 watt
18 bulbs
54 bulbs
90 bulbs
180 bulbs
270 bulbs
C7 Incandescent 5 watt
21 bulbs
63 bulbs
105 bulbs
210 bulbs
315 bulbs
Rope Light, Incandescent
21 feet
63 feet
105 feet
210 feet
315 feet
C9 LED
140 bulbs
420 bulbs
700 bulbs
1,400 bulbs
2,100 bulbs
C7 LED
180 bulbs
540 bulbs
900 bulbs
1,800 bulbs
2,700 bulbs
Mini Lights Incandescent
300 bulbs
900 bulbs
1,500 bulbs
3,000 bulbs
4,500 bulbs
Mini Lights LEDs
3,000 bulbs
9,000 bulbs
15,000 bulbs
30,000 bulbs
45,000 bulbs
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