A tale of 5 ballasts

[maryjane481]

You should find what you need here.
http://capacitorking.com/

 

[MrShpongle]

Thanks! I also found them at http://www.lightingsupply.com/ for even less ($17.95). They are also known for offering the lowest prices in the US on CMH bulbs, as well as flat rate shipping.

 

[Heymikey]

Hey, great thread. Time to open up the old ballast!

 

[elgwedoloco]

Simon - - Thank you do much for this thread. I'm a noob who likes to read(icmag/droidxforums), drink coffee, and of course have some of my fav-o-rite greenery by the side. Even if I think I know everything I still wanna read more to prove my theories wrong. Well my reading turned very beneficial today. Thanks for this, I'm sure fellow growers would like to know this. Plus I'm not afraid of a little unplugged electricity. OK, enough rambling. Thanks for the info dude.


****IF YOU KNOW SOMETHING HOLDS A CHARGE AFTER BEING UNPLUGGED JUST TURN IT ON & OFF 2-3 TIMES, THIS WILL SUCK ALL JUICE OUT. LEARNED THIS ONE WITH COMPUTERS****

 

[rives]

****IF YOU KNOW SOMETHING HOLDS A CHARGE AFTER BEING UNPLUGGED JUST TURN IT ON & OFF 2-3 TIMES, THIS WILL SUCK ALL JUICE OUT. LEARNED THIS ONE WITH COMPUTERS****

This is untrue, particularly in reference to capacitors. They will recharge virtually instantly when you turn the power on.

 

[Ckali559]

I have an SS1 it hasnet been yielding much and i was wondering if it was either the bulb or the ballast, Which capacitor did you use? I have SS1 600 hps 120/240v

This... Every place I go to only seems to have 400 & 1000 watters. And eBay is ugh

Edit: would these work??? http://www.elightbulbs.com/catalog_product.cfm?source=NexTagCSE&prod=FB10897

 

[setaemies]

Does a broken capacitor affect ballast power factor? I measured an old 600 and it draws 730+ watts

 

[rives]

Does a broken capacitor affect ballast power factor? I measured an old 600 and it draws 730+ watts

Yes, anything that disrupts the inductive/capacitive relationship of the circuit will impact the power factor. You would not be able to see the difference on a wattmeter, however. Reading power factor takes specialized instrumentation that is usually only used on industrial customers.

 

[setaemies]

Thanks for the reply! I kind of asked a wrong question, as english isn´t my native language. Does my current draw that I measure with a wattmeter drop with a new capacitor?

So the power factor actually describes the relationship between active and reactive power? (Hope I got the terms right using a translator ) That leads me to question that do smartmeters bill me for the reactive power too?

 

[rives]

The capacitor shouldn't affect the wattage draw, but will have a huge impact on the light output. I haven't been around the smart meters at all, so I don't know for certain if they measure reactive power, but I doubt it. There wouldn't be any motivation for including that feature - residential billing isn't set up to charge for it. Very few residential customers operate equipment that has a significant influence on the power factor.

 

[setaemies]

Thanks again! Funny, the 600w ballast doesn´t even heat as much as my 400w. Just wondering where the hell all that electricity goes

 

[caljim]

For those that are looking for 1k hps capacitors. About $16 bucks a pop.

http://www.kolmart.com/26uf-525V-Capacitor-Dry-Film-260525_p_691.html

 

[paper thorn]

Just took my 1 k ballast apart and it looks easy enough to replace the cap or starter, but I'm wondering if my transformer is OK, because the wire going from the black wire in the plug to the 120 v terminal on the transformer fried. I think the insulation on the wire going into the transformer melted a bit.
Whole ballast kit is like 140 to buy i think.

 

[Clayton_Bigsby]

Thanks Simon, you just saved my ballast from being dumped. More importantly you saved me $$$!!!

I obtained an old 400 watt hps magnetic ballast from a friends friend. The ballast was a no name brand and the side says it was built in 2006. I've been running it for about 4 months and its just looked weak. I thought nothing of it because I had it next to a brand new 600 watt Super HPS running off a lumatek ballast. Then the other day i noticed it wouldn't start up. The bulb would just flicker and try to ignite but just couldn't. I checked the bulb with my other ballast and it worked fine so i narrowed it down to an old ballast going bad. Before i threw it away i thought i would do some research. THATS WHEN I CAME ACROSS THIS THREAD!

I checked the capacitor and NO charge at all! I figured its an old ballast so I just ordered a new Capacitor and Starter. Ill post back when they come in and I install them.


EDIT: Just installed my new Capacitor and Ignitor and the bulb is brighter than ive ever seen it perform! i think the capacitor has been bad since i got the ballast 6 months ago. it was built in 2006 and im sure no one has ever taken a look at the insides before me.

 

[bigdrov1x]

I just stumbled across this thread. I have been dealing with major yield issues for about a year. I used to get like a pound out of 4 plants under a 1000 watt, but lately have been lucky to get a 1/4lb. I thought maybe my nutes were off, bug problems like aphids etc. were the problem. I have an off brand magnetic ballast, and yesterday took it apart to look at the capacitor. Btw the ballast is about 2 yrs old. It runs pretty hot. I can leave my hand on it, but it is hotter than I would like. The capacitor is an american made oil filled by Aerovox. It has the specs of 26uF and 525 vac. The exact same one can be found on the internet. It says nothing about being two capacitors in one. My ballast is also switchable, but I only use it for flowering hps. Are switchable ballasts supposed to have 2 capacitors? I bought a dry film one with the same specs online. I hope that this works. Also I am gonna leave the metal shell off of my ballasts, I think that the fans will cool it better than keeping all of that heat in the shell. My questions are: Is there an mh and hps capacitor? Or does one pretty much do the same job as two smaller? Will a dry film capacitor with the same value work more efficiently for longer than an oil filled one? I am getting the cap on Tuesday, so I will post back and give some feedback on how the replacement went. Thanks guys for all of the help. I am literally going insane trying to figure out why my yields have gone to crap.

 

[rives]

It has the specs of 26uF and 525 vac. The exact same one can be found on the internet. It says nothing about being two capacitors in one. My ballast is also switchable, but I only use it for flowering hps. Are switchable ballasts supposed to have 2 capacitors? I bought a dry film one with the same specs online. I hope that this works. Also I am gonna leave the metal shell off of my ballasts, I think that the fans will cool it better than keeping all of that heat in the shell. My questions are: Is there an mh and hps capacitor? Or does one pretty much do the same job as two smaller? Will a dry film capacitor with the same value work more efficiently for longer than an oil filled one? I am getting the cap on Tuesday, so I will post back and give some feedback on how the replacement went. Thanks guys for all of the help. I am literally going insane trying to figure out why my yields have gone to crap.

After checking 1000w ballast information, 1000w HPS calls for a 26uf capacitor and MH takes a 24uf. While not optimum, it is doubtful that a difference that small would create problems. The primary selling point for dry capacitors is that they don't make a big mess if the case ruptures - I think that oil-filled may have the edge in longevity, but they are too close to worry about.

 

[Rampant]

Thanks for the post Simon, i suspect my capacitors are due a change as well. Great info

 

[watts]

I notice most of the links in this thread are for generic or off-brand capacitors?

Supposedly the Phillips Advanced capacitors (made in usa) are the best. They cost about $25 - Anyone know much about this? Higher quality magnetic ballasts like the SS1 use these capacitors.

 

[rives]

Watts, Philips makes premium components. They are typically going to be made with better materials and subject to a more stringent QC process than the generics, which can have a wide range of quality. However, it looks like you could probably buy two of the generic ones for the price of a Philips.

 

[growshopfrank]

After checking 1000w ballast information, 1000w HPS calls for a 26uf capacitor and MH takes a 24uf. While not optimum, it is doubtful that a difference that small would create problems. The primary selling point for dry capacitors is that they don't make a big mess if the case ruptures - I think that oil-filled may have the edge in longevity, but they are too close to worry about.

another difference is the HPS caps are rated 525VAC VS 400VAC for the MH caps