need help with my vho as soon as possible

[old hermit]

i have them all mounted and every thing was fine till i put them on the tank and one of them started arking(sp) i took them off checked the wireing fixed the possible problems and turned them on. same thing more arking and it torned the bulb black but the endcap. then i turned the bulb aroung switching ends and it is fine. now im afraid to us them i dont know what was wrong with it. will it catch on fire if i leave them on wile im at work? what should i do?

 

[von_rahvin]

if they ark that is bad
did you double check you wiring?? also the bulbs could be shorted, (not common but anything is possible). I have never heard of such a thing before. What kind of ballast are you using??

 

[wamp]

Is the arching coming from inside the endcap?
If so, you might not be getting a good enogh connection inside the cap. If this is a retro, you can squeze the endcaps inward a little and sometimes solve this problem.
These bulbs opperate at high voltage and and low current. They will arc easily if not tight.

 

[old hermit]

it is an icecap 430 model. the arking has stopped for now. it was comming from inside the bulb and turned the inside of the bulb black up to 1 inch from the endcap. it may have been too loose hopefully it is fixed thanks for all the quick help!!!!!

 

[wamp]

If the arching was from inside the bulb, may just be a bad bulb....