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Registered Member #99
Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 06:10PM
Location: florida, usa
Posts: 637
Hello all, I had my electronic ballast fail on my reef tank light fixture. I need some help. I won a nice ballast on ebay, but it is rated for up to 440W. My light fixture is rated for 96W. (4-24W T5 bulbs).
How do ballasts work? Will this 440W ballast allow the 4 bulbs to consume 440W? This would likely destroy the bulbs. I cant seem to find any answers to this, and the manufacturer is very vague. "Up to 440W or up to 16 feet of tube"
Is there a way to limit the ballast? Keep in mind this is an electronic ballast, not the old magnetic type. Thanks! Matt
Registered Member #1911
Joined: Mon Jan 05 2009, 06:30PM
Location: Salem, Oregon, USA
Posts: 165
What matters much more than the wattage of the transformer, in this case, is the lamp and the voltage rating of said lamp - if a lamp is 'over-volted', it will allow it to draw more current than normal, due to the effect dictated by Ohm's law.
My recommendation is to find the specs. of the lamp and of the transformer and let us know before somebody makes an uneducated guess. (That was not meant as an insult, though I see how it may be perceived as one.)
Registered Member #1361
Joined: Thu Feb 28 2008, 10:57AM
Location: Cairns, Australia
Posts: 305
The point of the ballast is to limit the power drawn by the lamps, using one rated much higher than your fixture would allow your lamps to use a lot more power, and they would most likely overheat, or in another case, explode/implode from stress.
Registered Member #99
Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 06:10PM
Location: florida, usa
Posts: 637
Hello, I contacted the manufacturer via email to see what they say. Maybe they will respond, maybe not. I did see on a few sites that people were claiming these ballasts were so advanced that they sense the tube length being used and adjust accordingly.
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Electronic Ballast Help
