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Registered Member #609
Joined: Wed Mar 28 2007, 04:18PM
Location: Muurame, Finland
Posts: 6
Hi.
I got MOT and after reading this forum, i realised that it needs ballast. I don't fully understand english, but i understood that ballast is coil that limits current coming from MOTs secondary, and it is installed in series with MOTs sec.
So, can i use flyback from TV ballast or will it just burn or melt? Or is it possible to use just some 230/12 or similar transformer as ballast?
Registered Member #75
Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 09:30AM
Location: Montana, USA
Posts: 711
Hi, you don't necessarily need a ballast, you can try without, but it might blow your circuit breaker.
It is a lot easier to have the ballast on the primary side, and you will not be able to get away with a flimsy wall-wart transformer. Figure a piece of iron about as big as your MOT, with thick enough wire to support the 5A or so that the MOT takes.
Registered Member #187
Joined: Thu Feb 16 2006, 02:54PM
Location: Central Ohio
Posts: 140
The best and easiest way I have come across to ballast a MOT (or pretty much ANY 50/60Hz transformer for that matter) is by a minor and fairly simple rewiring of a variac so it ballasts the primary of your xformer. This allows you to adjust the amount of ballasting from nearly zero all the way to full current. The best part is, the output voltage (open circuit) stays the same all the way through the sweep. This is especially useful on HV transformers.
I'm sure just about anyone here can describe how to rewire one if you need help, that is, assuming you have a variac.
Registered Member #79
Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 11:35AM
Location: Arkansas
Posts: 673
It only needs ballast depending on what you are doing with it. Most people (on the cheap) use another MOT to ballast their other MOT's.
To convert the MOT into a ballast, connect one end of the secondary to the MOT's core (which is usually already done anyway) Then, connect the other end to the core as well. Voila! You have a ballast. Just put the primary of the ballast MOT in series with the MOT you are trying to ballast.
There is an article at my site under the articles section. Click on "Current Limiting."
Registered Member #540
Joined: Mon Feb 19 2007, 07:49PM
Location: MIT
Posts: 969
the socondary was not open. before I used lamps but it was hard to get enough power and I wen up to about 900W woth it. I then used a hair drier instead and it was better.
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MOT ballast..
