It is that time of year when one puts electric advent stars and candlesticks in the windows. I usually use timers to control them, but this year I ran into a problem. Some of my timers were of the type “EverFlourish EMT757A”, probably bought at Clas Ohlson:
Despite having a notoriously bad user interface (that forces me to google the user manual each time I want to use them), the timers, that had been laying in a drawer since last season, showed an entirely blank LCD display, even when connected to a mains outlet. I guessed that an internal battery just need to be charged, so I left them connected for a day to allow them to be charged up. The display however remained blank.
Hmm. I had encountered similar timers before that needed the internal battery to be replaced, so I decided to have a look inside to determine if this was the case again. It turned out that the screws used to keep the units together had tamper proof tri-wing heads. Fortunately, I happened to have bits that fit this kind of head, so this did not deter me.
I found that there was indeed a tiny chargeable NiMH battery inside the unit (the green component with white corrosion on the side, close to the center of the picture below). Despite the unwanted corrosion, I found that the battery was actually charged to 1.3 V or thereabout, which is fine for a NiMH battery. Maybe it did not need to be replaced after all?
But why then was the display dead?
I put the timer back together again and had another look at the front. Pressing any of the normal buttons did not result in any reaction, but there was also a tiny little recessed button marked RESET. I used a pen to press it and voilà! The display came to life!
Stupid me to not try this before I disassembled the unit.
I suppose the reason the timer behaves like this is that the processor controlling the display probably does not have a proper power on reset circuit. So when the supply voltage is ramped very slowly, as it is when it is powered from a battery that is trickle charged from a state of being completely dead, the processor does not jump into action properly, even after the supply voltage reaches its proper level.
You saved my day… Like you I was going to take apart the timer, without pressing the obvious reset button first… (must be a guys thing ;-) )
Thanks again.
I have a different make of time and the reset button did nothing.
Then I tried it while the timer was plugged into the wall socket and VOILA! It burst into life.
I have such timer ,when it is unplugged of the outlet the displays faint digits but when i plug it to the outlet ,the digits become clear and bold,are this normal?
Hi Riad,
I would think this is due to deterioration of the battery inside the timer. The battery is mostly there to keep the time and retain the memory when the timer is not plugged in (or there is a power outage), so my guess is that the timer will work fine as long as it is plugged in and perhaps still keep time and memory even without power for a while. But it does of course become hard to program it unless it is plugged in if the digits are hardly visible.
I have two timers where I replaced the old battery by a suitable supercapacitor to fix a similar issue, but this is not something I would recommend you to attempt unless you really know what you are doing. It is easy to get an electrical shock or perhaps blow up the capacitor.
Per
This is very interesting (and pretty much old comment, unfortunately).
My timer is dead and, since the RESET button is uneffective, I suspect that the battery is dead (a Ni 40mAh battery).
Can you tell me which super capacitor should I use to replace the battery?
If it is still dead when it is plugged in, it might not be the battery. Unless the battery has failed in a way that its terminals are shorted.
If you want to try to replace the battery with a super capacitor, I suggest that you select one that has a voltage rating well above the battery voltage (2.5 V might be a minimum). It also needs to be small enough to fit. Supercaps are polarized, so it is important to connect them the right way. The capacitance is not critical. With higher capacitance the user interface and timekeeping is maintained for a longer time after the timer is unplugged or otherwise loses power.
Brilliant quick fix worked on my timer all the way down in South Africa.
Thank You
Went through pretty much the same procedure myself and almost to the point of ripping it apart or binning it!. Like yourself I also didn’t notice the reset button. How stupid am I also as it sits there almost shouting at you me!!!
THANKS
That looks like a two cell. And yes the processor probably locked up due to the low volt condition.
The reset switch tip was great! Thank you
Hi,
Thank you for all the good stuff posted here. I too have what appears to be a dead EMT757 timer. Even if I had the tri-wing bits, I would be ill-equipped to make changes due to a lack of know-how. Even if I did have it, I would be reluctant to repair what I think is an extremely awkward piece of kit to set up and utilise. So my question is: Can anyone out there recommend a reliable and easy-to-use timer to utilise to control my electric towel rail, please?
Thank you,
Trev
Did you try the reset button? The whole point of the post is that I managed to fix it by just pressing the reset button that is accessible from the front.
life saver post!! Pressed the reset button and display came back up!
Can’t set timer .Is there an instruction paper of instructions please.
Just left a comment. Did not leave type of timer.EMT757-UK 240V-50Hz Max2000W
Second Google hit for me is this manual: https://www.clasohlson.com/medias/sys_master/9542785073182.pdf
I know this is all old but some how I got this timer and I want to use it. Everything on the screen works fine but timer doesn’t come on the time we set. When you press RND it comes on.
Where are we going wrong?
I have four same kind of timers which I haven’t used for many years and was going to throw them away. What a lucky day that I found your blog.
I had a similar switch for a long time and never got it working. Today I decided it’s time to open it and expected to see a corroded battery. Instead, I discovered the screen is not even real, let alone connected! It’s just a dummy glass piece propped by rubber over the connectors.
The brand is Status, model: TEE-1 and I bought it around a year and a half ago from either Argos or Asda. Sadly I don’t keep the receipt.
Here are the photos: https://imgur.com/gallery/0VGK9uL
I like this article. I should have read this before disposing of a similar one. I had the same trouble opening the timer. I need to purchase the bit you mentioned.
I have another issue with a timer. Whilst I can program it (I have 4 others that work ok) the timers will not switch on. I have reset it a number of times and reprogrammed it to no avail
Have you any suggestions that may assist? There is nothing I can find on the net.
Hard to know, but here is an idea: In another device I repaired recently, the transistor driving the relay coil was broken. This is certainly something worth checking as it is a possible failure and it would lead to an inability to switch on.
Thanks Buddy