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Registered Member #152
Joined: Sun Feb 12 2006, 03:36PM
Location: Czech Rep.
Posts: 3384
This type of ignitor should work for all types of lamps. Is the lamp new or used? I think it may have reached its end of life. But there are some types of ignitors which are suitable only for HPS lamps and firing MH with them is not reliable.
It is used but only about 1000hrs of use on it, so in terms of expected life it is pretty new. It is the only bulb that I've found won't start with this ignitor in, but it was taking ten or more minutes to start up without the ignitor anyway, so I'll just toss it and declare it a fluke EOL.
I just found out today when talking to the previous owner that these are all H39 MV ballasts which were "converted" (I suspect no actual conversion was done to them) for use with MH bulbs. H39 and M57 ballasts are relatively comparable in terms of function. The main difference is that true M57 ballasts have about 30-50V more OCV, and slightly lower short circuit current. This may explain why I've been getting probe electrode ablation and hard start issues. I would not have discovered this discrepancy if not for going up there to install these Tridonic ignitors; one of the ballasts still had a remnant of a sticker on it that said H39, which prompted me to ask about it.
I'm certainly not about to start putting in 175W MV bulbs, as even the DX White ones have poor CRI, lower CCT (3900 at best), and far less lumens. It is no wonder they started putting MH bulbs in. I did test some old MV bulbs on the upgraded fixture, and they fire right up immediately, even the EOL ones.
If bulb life seems to be shortened even when using pulse start bulbs then maybe I'll have to see about installing new M157 ballasts, but I'd rather not plunk down that kind of money. If that turns out to be the case it may even be cheaper to take down all the HID fixtures and put up fluoros, though the HIDs do help with the winter time.
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Designing a retrofit HV Pulse starter for Metal Halide and Mercury Vapor HID Ballasts
