ballast help

[onefatfish]

hey gang
got a question on some advance ballasts i installed for 40 watt bulbs.anyway sometimes when i turn them on, they dont come on unless i touch the bulb.could this be a ground problem?

 

[melbournefl]

I'm far from an expert in this but ... well before I even open my yap, are you having to touch the ballast or the bulb to get it to start? What kind of end-caps to you have on your lamps? With more info maybe I can give you some starting guesses
Later, Paul

 

[onefatfish]

all i have to do is lightly touch the bulbs and they flick on.granted this is 2 separate ballasts and lamps same prob for both.my end caps are coralife water proof end caps

 

[wamp]

Most likely your endcaps BUT!, I have seen bulbs that sometimes require a touch to come one. Somehting about the resistance you provide to ground or something.. Read about it in class one day and saw it in a lab. Try to tighten your endcaps and if that does not work, bulbs then ballast.

 

[onefatfish]

ah
im pretty positive its a ground problem.end caps are 6mos old so are the 2 ballast.bulbs new.does anybody know what the proper way ground them is.i tried making a ground wire go from the ballest to the reflecter with no luck.no ground on the plug in cord.guesse i will have to call advance.

 

[wamp]

They may be set up to ground through the case of the ballast.

 

[onefatfish]

i dont know ive ran the same but diff ballests for years the same way with out a prob no grounds at all.i know its not right cause of the water issue.but they always worked fine.this prob just started a few days ago.the ends of the bulbs glow alittle but touch them and fire right up.oh just to wave the end caps i have 3 110vho i swapped the end caps and vho fired right up the 40's did not.till i touched them of course

 

[wamp]

Try a new bulb?

 

[melbournefl]

Hmmmm interesting problem, my guts are saying you're right about the grounding problem I've seen it do some really strange things. That said, and remember I'm no expert, I'd have REAL concerns about running *anything* ungrounded a few inches over salt water. Did the advance ballasts not have a ground wire lead? I am in the process of building a 220 and all ballasts that I have gotten so far came with a ground lead. A 40 watt ballast is inexpensive enough to justify swapping it out for a grounded one (IMO). I'm just a born coward when it comes to electricity and water I guess cuz all 14 outlets on my tank are GFCI even though I could have protected both circuits with just one GFCI on the start of the line LOL, just have visions of my soon to be "house guests" with their little fins standing straight out when I wake up one morning. Good luck to you in tracking down the problem but be careful shaking ungrounded lights around too much.
Later, Paul

 

[onefatfish]

ya
got it fixed it was the grounds they needed to be a 1/2inch from the ballest.so far they turn off and on great.kinda funny though they worked for so long without um.and then decided they needed to be grounded