What is it?

Power Saver is a sturdy metal box of electronics that bolts onto the wall near your switchboard or distribution boards and wired so that the lighting circuits run through it. Microprocessor control provides normal mains conditions for lamp starting then reduces the voltage to a pre-set level to reduce power consumption.

What lights will it work with?

Power Saver will work with either the common fluorescent tubes (standard, triphosphorus and even quadphosphor) that use iron core ballasts (the older type that has a starter) or discharge lighting such as ‘High Bay’ or High Intensity Discharge (HID) lighting such as mercury vapour, metal halide and high and low pressure sodium. Generally the technology may be used with all derivative forms of starters, ballasts (iron core, High efficiency, low energy), power factor capacitors and lamp types.

How much energy does it save?

Approximate energy reduction ranges between 25% and 31% for fluorescent lighting. Savings on High-Bay lighting are up to 30%.

Can you tell me how much I’ll save?

Yes, we can give you projections on energy savings and payback timeframe based upon your conditions. Contact us for more information.

Will the lights dim?

You won’t notice any dimming as the change in light levels is so minor. Testing with equipment in controlled conditions indicate light losses of between 3% and 10% can be expected depending on age and type of tube used.

What lights wont it work with?

Power Saver is not appropriate for use with modern compensating electronic ballast fluorescent lighting 'Electronic Ballasts', or Low Voltage lighting systems that use electronic ballasts. Power Saver is not recommended for use in conjunction with emergency lighting however it has proven compatible in many situations.

How many lights will one box control?

Power Saver is designed for large applications and comes in two different sizes for up to 105 or 210 fluorescent tubes or the HID equivalent. Multiple boxes can be installed to cater for large sites. Special order units will be custom made for three phase type applications.

Can you tell when the Power Saver switches on and off?

The switching happens so fast and the light difference so small you can’t tell by looking at it. LED indicators on the front panel show the current mode of operation.

Will it shorten lamp life or void lamp warranty?

No. Quite the opposite, ballasts will run about 20-30 degrees cooler which means both lower air-conditioning costs and around 30% longer fitting and lamp life reducing replacement parts and maintenance costs. Power Saver units driving HID lights that are on 24/7 should be fitted with an internal timer (a $250 extra) to apply full mains voltage for a short period of every day to ensure the lamp life and light output of the lamp doesn't degrade prematurely.

What’s the warranty?

5 year parts and labour manufacturers warranty on a return to workshop basis. Non warranty parts and labour service can be arranged as required.

Where are they designed and made?

Power Saver was designed in Melbourne to Australian Standard ISO 9001 in a Defence-rated facility and they are manufactured in Australia. The equipment meets all the necessary that regulatory requirements.

Can it be used in a new building?

Power Saver would be installed as part of, or adjacent to the distribution board, eliminating need for load circuit breakers for the lighting circuits affected as it is fitted with internal circuit breakers. This reduces the cost of distribution boards and/or frees up distribution infrastructure for possible later expansion. Designing Power Saver into a new building would allow the circuit loads to be matched against the capacity of one of the models.

Using high efficiency B1 magnetic ballasts the lamp and ballast combination is only three watts more than an A1 or A3 electronic ballast at normal voltages. Link With the reduced voltage from Power Saver the amount of light per watt is actually greater than that of an electronic ballasted system. The main payoff is the reduced cost of such a lighting system and the added reliability that magnetic ballasts enjoy over electronic ballasts.

How does it work?

Power Saver monitors line voltage and current. On application of power to lighting, full mains voltage is provided to the load. A pre-set time delay allows correct starting and stabilisation of lights, whereafter the supply voltage to the load is reduced using an autotransformer. Voltage is reduced by around 14%

Load current is monitored, and when an increase is detected through switching on of additional bank of lamps, full mains supply is restored in milliseconds for the delay period to permit the correct striking of lamps. This we call 'downline switching'.

What does it do to the sine wave?

Voltage sine wave is not distorted or “chopped” in any way as Power Saver does not use Thyristors. The sinusoidal curve is maintained without shift and only the wave amplitude is reduced to lower the voltage level. This is achived by using a hand-wound autotransformer to modify the output waveform, which after conditioning is cleaner providing less lamp ‘flicker’.

What makes it different to other units?

In one word: reliability. Power Saver is unique and does not use the 'Phase Switching' technique employed by other manufacturers such as NCON whose units are marketed variously as the 'Smart Power Controller' or SPC, 'Your Efficiency Solution' or 'YES box', 'Electronic Energy Efficiency' or E³, 'Smart Lighting Controller' or SLC. Other products using 'phase switching’ techniques include Ilumalite, Powersave, ECS, and Clipsal to name a few. Power Saver is unique and does not use ‘phase switching’, and there is no other device on the market like Power Saver that we are aware of.

Power Saver has very few switching components. Relays switch the autotransformer in and out of circuit to achieve power savings and this switching may only happen a few times during the course of the day. On the other hand, phase switching units will typically switch 100 times per second in line with the 50 Hz AC current. This rapid switching must happen within milliseconds to the units to be effective, and when coupled with 100 switches per second means the circuitry is under a lot of strain and can be more likely to fail.

Power Saver is the only voltage reduction unit on the market with a five year warrantee. A high standard of build quality, coupled with the low rates of switching described above, means that the manufacturer is able to stand behind their product for more than twice the warrantee period of comparable units.

What happens when additional circuits are turned on and off?

Nothing changes when part of the load is switched off. When an additional bank of lamps is switched on normal mains supply is applied to all loads for the preset delay period, then energy save mode is automatically resumed.

How are sub circuits connected?

Using circuit breakers on a din rail built into the Power Saver enclosure, which in turn draws it’s supply from the main board. The sub-board configuration is flexible and external lighting sub distribution boards can be utilised where appropriate.

Is a sub-distribution board necessary?

No. Power Saver provides a flexible output din rail chassis for circuit breaker configuration for the load circuit connections and Sub Board redistribution of lighting loads.

What happens to the circuit numbering?

Nothing need change. The original configuration is mirrored in the Power Saver box.

How does the bypass work?

In the unlikely case of a malfunction the bypass will return normal current to the lighting load, allowing time for a service technician to attend to any fault. There are no energy savings in bypass mode. The bypass also allows power savings to be verified using metering.

What about Power Factor?

A small improvement in power factor will be achieved in most cases.

What happens in a brown out?

When output voltage falls to below 185 volts Power Saver will switch into bypass mode and allow full supply voltage through to drive the lights. There are no energy savings in bypass mode.

Harmonics, Noise and Flicker

No additional harmonics are generated. Some attenuation of high frequency harmonics will be achieved through the use of transformers.

How is Power Saver installed?

The power saver is installed by any power saver can be installed by any electrical contractor. Contact us for an e-mail with installation manual, parts list, and suggestions on how to install power saver.

Further Questions

For any further technical questions please contact us on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or via the web at www.powersaver.net.au
Phone within Australia 03 9563 3300 or 0419 334 969 Fax 03 9563 3300

From outside Australia phone +61 3 9563 3300 or +61 419 334 969 fax +61 3 9563 3221