Magnetic ballast's worth rebuilding?

P

Puscifer

• Jul 30, 2013

• #1

Ok, got a ubiquitous Magnetic ballast, you know the one in the white metal box. Mine's 3 years old and suddenly stopped firing the bulb. Well, the glass rod in the bulb was orange but not bright at all and the ballast didn't make it's usual buzzing sound.
I don't know squat about these things but can R&R whatever is needed to fix, IF it's worth it. Wtf could be wrong with it and do you think it's worth fixing?

 

W

watts

ohms

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #2

is it a mh, hps, or a hps-mh all in one? Is it a 1000w or 600w?

i imagine it's either the starter or the capacitor and yes I think it is worth repairing, especially if it has a good transformer

 

P

PuReKnOwLeDgE

Licensed Grower

ICMag Donor

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #3

Yes, if you have a decent brand they usually have 5 year warranty's. Take them to a local grow shop and get it fixed, at least that's how I handle the warranty replacements.

 

dansbuds

Retired from the workforce Bullshit

ICMag Donor

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #4

Yes its worth fixing .... especially if its only 3 years old . my 400 is almost 20 years ... its an old commercial ballast .



You just need to replace the ignitor & the Cap .... it'll save the trouble of opening it again when the other goes bad which it will eventually do. they're really the only 2 things that can be replaced except for the main transformer itself . & if that goes ( rarely ever ) your better off replacing the whole ballast .

the ignitor is why the bulb isn't firing & needs to be replaced . but replace the cap too .... its just as old as the ignitor & has just as much use .

 

Last edited: Jul 30, 2013

P

Puscifer

• Jul 30, 2013

• #5

Yeah, it's an mh/hps all in one, 120/240 switchable.
Ok so general consensus says fix it. How do I know which cap & igniter to get? When I do a search I get a lot that fit the description of what I think i need but some have dif temp ratings.
It's this one http://htgsupply.com/Product-GrowBright-Professional-1000w-Switchable-Ballast.asp
(They come in green or white)

 

V

vapor

Active member

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #6

get the same ones that are on it.....

 

SecondAttempt

Active member

• Jul 30, 2013

• #7

Don't fix it... send it to me.

capacitor
http://www.lightbulbsurplus.com/ind...5&gclid=CJbOkqe11rgCFY6k4AodVmcAig#googlebase

ignitor
http://www.wormsway.com/en/STWI1100

 

W

watts

ohms

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #8

open the ballast up and look and see what it says on your capacitor and ignitor. I believe 1000 watt ballast have 2 capacitors if im not mistaken. It seems to me that a lot of switchable magnetic ballast have more issues than a straight mh or hps magnetic ballast.

 

J

Jhhnn

Active member

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #9

My switchable 1000W ballast has a 52 uF capacitor, necessary for MH operation, while my 1000W HPS ballast has a 24 uF capacitor. HPS bulbs work fine in either system.

Some switchable ballasts may switch circuit capacitance, dunno.

Seems like a problem with the ignitor, given that bulbs generally won't light at all with a bad capacitor in the circuit.

As has been said, the smart answer is to open it up to get the right information to replace both the ignitor & capacitor. I'd replace the components one at a time & test, save the good one as an emergency spare.

Likely ignitor at the same source second attempt offered for the capacitor-

http://www.lightbulbsurplus.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=23_74_75&products_id=294

Save on shipping when you can.

 

SecondAttempt

Active member

• Jul 30, 2013

• #10

Wormsway has both items as well... I've picked them up at a retail location, not my preferred vendor though.

I have the same ballast... the shit I showed as well as the ignitor above should be correct, just went through this 2 months ago myself. Buy 2 of everything while you're at it so if it happens again you're ready. Good luck, you got this.

 

J

Jhhnn

Active member

Veteran

• Jul 30, 2013

• #11

SecondAttempt said:

Wormsway has both items as well... I've picked them up at a retail location, not my preferred vendor though.

I have the same ballast... the shit I showed as well as the ignitor above should be correct, just went through this 2 months ago myself. Buy 2 of everything while you're at it so if it happens again you're ready. Good luck, you got this.

Click to expand...

I wasn't trying to be argumentative. I hope you don't think I was.

I'm curious about the internals of that ballast. Does it use two 26 uF caps in parallel?

I ask because my switchable 1000W ballast uses a single 52 uF cap while my HPS only ballast has a single 26 uF cap.

I'm just trying to understand the hardware a little better.

 

SecondAttempt

Active member

• Jul 30, 2013

• #12

Sorry bro... I also wasn't being argumentative.

Single 26uF capacitor... I've never run it on MH. HPS ALL THE WAY!!!

I'm speaking from my experience with the same ballast from the same vendor but mine is 3 years old things change so take Vapor's advice and get the same as what's in it. All the specs will be printed on the originals... so open her up and take a peek.

 

dansbuds

Retired from the workforce Bullshit

ICMag Donor

Veteran

• Jul 31, 2013

• #13

open the ballast up and look and see what it says on your capacitor and ignitor. I believe 1000 watt ballast have 2 capacitors if im not mistaken. It seems to me that a lot of switchable magnetic ballast have more issues than a straight mh or hps magnetic ballast.

Click to expand...

The only thing they're doing to make a switchable ballast ... is taking the ignitor out of the circuit because a MH bulb (unless its low wattage ... 150 or less ) doesn't need the ignitor to fire off an hps ballast . so the switch is just a bypass switch .

open the ballast get the #'s off the ignitor & capasitor & replace them . theres a ton of online sites or someplace like Graingers or an electrical supply house . as long as its a 1000 watt ballast . 600's are not made commercially & you can't get those any other place than a grow shop . they're made for the hydro industry only .