Lionel 0150 Rectifier - selenium health threat?

What about all those places lionel used rectifier disks. Are they selentium based? And H.O. power supplies.

Never noticed any odors from them.

I don't think you have much to worry about. I have never heard about anyone getting sick because of a bad rectifier disc. Maybe in high voltage industrial applications, but not in our O and HO gauge trains. I haven't seen the insides of a 0150, does it use a standard rectifier disc, or more likely a rectifier assembly used in HO packs in the day?

If you search selenium you will find a ton of dietary supplements before you get to elemental selenium.  Selenium is a one of those elements that your body needs in trace amounts.  As long as you are not eating the rectifiers, you should be fine.

C W Burfle posted:

What about all those places lionel used rectifier disks. Are they selentium based? And H.O. power supplies.

Never noticed any odors from them.

Rectifier disks are copper/copper oxide.

Lou N

Lou N posted:

Rectifier disks are copper/copper oxide.

Solves that problem!

Rectifier disks are copper/copper oxide.

That leaves Lionel's HO transformers.
The 0100 uses a rectifier stack that looks very similar to what the 0150 uses.
The other HO Transformers seem to each have their own solution.

The Lionel HO service manual states that the 0150 uses a selenium rectifier.
I did not see where it specified for other HO power supplies.

I did notice that the section on the 0100 stated that there was no circuit breaker on the DC side of the 0100. It said that the rectifier would stop conducting if it overheated due to excessive load.
I don't know whether that would be considered an issue today.
I wouldn't use it with out an external breaker on the DC side.
The AC side does have a breaker.

C W Burfle posted:

Rectifier disks are copper/copper oxide.

That leaves Lionel's HO transformers.
The 0100 uses a rectifier stack that looks very similar to what the 0150 uses.
The other HO Transformers seem to each have their own solution.

The Lionel HO service manual states that the 0150 uses a selenium rectifier.
I did not see where it specified for other HO power supplies.

I did notice that the section on the 0100 stated that there was no circuit breaker on the DC side of the 0100. It said that the rectifier would stop conducting if it overheated due to excessive load.
I don't know whether that would be considered an issue today.
I wouldn't use it with out an external breaker on the DC side.
The AC side does have a breaker.

Please note that there is a large segment of the hobby known as Vintage HO.  All of the transformers from the 50's and probably the 60's (e.g. Scintilla, Marnold, MRC) used selenium rectifiers.  Some of the O scale transformers from that era have massive rectifiers.  These "vintage" folks do run their equipment as it was done in the past, no DCC, older style coupers, etc.

I suspect if there was an issue with selenium rectifiers we would know about it by now.  I have four Marnold transformers with the 160 degree lever throttle that are not headed for the trash.

Lou N

Americans. So delicate.

I wasn't planning on scrapping anything either. I have a selenium rectifer in my workbench power supply to provide D.C. And some assorted Lionel HO power items, including an 0150 rectifier.