Setting up
How to set a 24-hour mechanical outlet timer
A mechanical outlet timer looks fussier than it is. There is a dial with the 24 hours around its edge, a ring of small pins or tabs next to the numbers, an arrow that marks the current time, and a switch on the side. Five minutes with it, once, and it switches your lamp or your porch lights every day until you change your mind.
Before you start: what the parts do
- The dial turns slowly, one full turn a day, and carries the hours from 1 to 24.
- The pins are the schedule. On most of our pin timers there are 48, one for every half hour. Pushed down means on, pulled up means off.
- The arrow marks the current time. The pin sitting at the arrow decides whether the power is on right now.
- The switch chooses between following the pins (timer mode) and staying on (always on).
Setting it, step by step
- Set the clock. Turn the dial clockwise, never backwards, until the current time lines up with the arrow. If it is 3:10 p.m., line up 15 on the dial with the arrow.
- Push down the pins for the on hours. For lights on from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m., push down every pin from 18 to 23. That is ten pins at half an hour each.
- Leave the rest up. Every pin that stays up is a stretch of time with the power off.
- Choose timer mode. Slide the switch from always on to the timer setting. On always on, the pins are ignored.
- Plug it in, then plug your lamp or lights into it. The timer has to be powered to keep the dial turning.
Schedules that work
A few patterns people set most often, counted in half-hour pins on a 48-pin dial:
| What you are switching | Pins pushed down | Hours on |
|---|---|---|
| Porch light, evening only | 18:00 to 23:00 | 5 |
| Lamp that makes the house look lived in | 17:30 to 22:30 | 5 |
| Aquarium light | 08:00 to 18:00 | 10 |
| Pool filter in two stretches | 07:00 to 11:00 and 15:00 to 19:00 | 8 |
The pool filter line shows the one thing a pin dial does well that people forget: it can switch on and off several times a day. Every run of pushed-down pins is its own on period. If the pump should run in short bursts, the heavy-duty outdoor timer splits the day into 96 pins of 15 minutes instead of 48.
Indoor or outdoor
Inside, the plug decides. A lamp with a 2-prong plug fits either of our indoor pin timers, and anything with a grounded 3-prong plug needs the 3-prong one. Outside, use a timer made for outdoor use, hang it with its outlets facing the ground, keep the flap closed and plug it into a GFCI-protected outlet, which is what the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission asks for outdoor lights.
After a power cut
A mechanical dial stops when the power stops and starts again where it was when the power returns. After a two-hour outage the dial is two hours behind, and your lights come on two hours late. Turn the dial forward until the arrow shows the right time again. There is no program to lose, which is the point of a pin timer.
Check the load
The timer has a rating in amps and watts printed on it: 15 A for our outdoor pin timers. Add up the watts of whatever you plug in and stay under it. A pump or any motor draws more for a moment when it starts, so leave room. The Electrical Safety Foundation adds that heat-producing appliances such as space heaters should go into a wall outlet on their own, not through a timer or a strip.
If you are unsure which pin timer fits your lamp or your porch, the timer guide sets the pin dial next to the light sensor, digital and remote options, and mechanical outlet timers gathers every pin-dial model on one page.