Did my ballast die?

[reefaholic33]

Well it seems my ballast shot craps today. The setup is 4 icecap VHOs. They were on at the scheduled time today and 2 hours later they were out when they should have been on. Then I noticed a smell that was similar to something burning but a little bit different. It freaked me out so I started looking at everything, the smell seemed to be coming from the ballast directly and there was a very very small amount of liquid coming from around the white electrical connections, I got some of this on my hands and it smelled like the odor I was smelling in the whole living room.
I guess I'm wondering what could have caused this or was it just it's time?
Other thing is I want to make sure this is what the problem is before I buy a new ballast. There is no flicker or anything and everything was working fine the past several months, new bulbs. So I'm thinking this is the only thing it could be.

 

[scsinet]

Most magnetic ballasts are potted in a tar like substance. If they overheat due to a malfunction, the potting material can melt and ooze out of the openings for the wires, which is what sounds like happened.
IMO your ballast probably did die, before you replace it, you should check the obvious things...
- Electrical connections (is everything plugged in)
- Lamps (are they seated properly)
- Sockets (look for corrosion, deterioration, etc)
- Timer (try plugging the ballast straight into the wall)
- Fuses (sometimes the ballast has it's own fuse)

 

[reefaholic33]

Yep that is exactly what happened and I know why it overheated too.
And it passes your checklist so guess I'm gonna start looking for a new one.
How long do you think my sps can go without these? I only will have two t5s on until I get the ballast for the 4 vhos in.
Man I'm glad your on this board, Thanks!

 

[scsinet]

How long are we talking about, and what kind of T5 lamps are they?
Actinic lamps won't do much for the corals, but IMO going without lights for a few days isn't going to hurt too much. SPS corals aren't totally dependent on light for a food source, supplemental feedings of filter feeder foods should keep them happy in the interim.
I've had similar situations to yours happen before, and have always come out okay. If you are worried about it, and you only have actinics, you could purchase a T5 daylight type lamp at your LFS and put it into your fixture, or you could go to Lowes/HD/etc and pick up a cheapo 4' shop light, put 6500K daylight lamps in it, and hang it over the tank in the meantime. You don't necessarily have to replicate the intensity of light that you had before, just enough to "take the edge off."
I've got a halide pendant I bought used for $40. It's banged up and rusty, but it works great as a backup light. You might want to keep your eyes open for something like this in the future, just to have around.

 

[reefaholic33]

Well until the new ballast comes in I have just two 54 watt t5s, one atinic one daylight. I will feed some more phyto the next couple days. I just ordered the ballast and it should be here friday or saturday. I'm gonna def. get a back up light like you said.
And when it rain it pours man, I'm pretty certain I have a hitchhiker eating some zoas and mushrooms, guess I'm gonna start another thread lol.

 

[scsinet]

Sounds like you've got your issue well in hand. The light you have should be okay until the weekend.

 

[reefaholic33]

Thanks again!

 

[socalnano24]

I had this happen with my nano ballast. I was actually in my living room when it happened, there was a crackling sound and a small amount of smoke.
I think the actual cause of it in mine was a short in my system from a submersible light in my fuge that managed to corrode. It shorting out caused the weakest link in the system to short (which was surprisingly the ballast and not the surge protector in my timer).
So you may want to verify all the rest of your electrical is fine.
In my case I was able to put in temporary PC lighting from my fresh tank for three days; and my ballast was replaced under warranty(cause it was only a few months old luckily)
Hope yours works out!

 

[reefraff]

If that was an Ice Cap ballast you should send it in for a repair. Last I heard it was 65 bux. Then you will have a back up should this happen again. Also check on when you bought it. I think they have a 3 year warranty.

 

[reefaholic33]

Originally Posted by reefraff
http:///forum/post/3155709
If that was an Ice Cap ballast you should send it in for a repair. Last I heard it was 65 bux. Then you will have a back up should this happen again. Also check on when you bought it. I think they have a 3 year warranty.
Thank you guys both and the last two reply's.....I bought it used so not gonna be able to get a warranty, but I'm def. gonna try and send it in to get fixed for a back up. I already ordered a new one but in the small chance this ever happened again I wouldn't have to sweat till I got a new one. Esp. for 65 bucks.
And the rest of my electrical is good to go, the ballast over heated cause of my own stupidity when re-routing some wires and hooking up a wave maker.