it may just be you??? the time on lotd is dependent on the time you had when going into lotd. if it's less than 20, say 7 seconds, you enter to lotd, automatic 20sec. if the number is higher than 20, that's what you start with, eg; 24sec.

but it's weird ur saying 18sec, never seen that, but lotd was never a guaranteed 30sec unless f&c/wt were used prior to lotd. hope it helps.