Couple times this month I had my power go out for just a second and come right back on. When the power went out so did my 1000 watt light. In order to get the bulb to relight I have to turn the power off to the ballast for a few minutes otherwise the light won't go back on. I was lucky to be home when this happened but who knows where I'll be next time. Two questions, if my power does go out for just a moment and the lamp goes out will it damage my ballast? Is there any device available to sense a power failure and turn off the ballast for the required reset period?
I'm not really sure, so it would be good if someone else can also comment. Do you have it connected to a GFCI? I think there might be some that are able to reset after a power failure, and others require a manual reset after a power outage. It's much safer having it connected to one. I think the ballast doesn't come on because the bulb needs to be re-struck with a high voltage spike. I found this, wasn't exactly in context but I think it still explains why it might not be turning on.
you could get a UPS to get you through the brownout. If it's out for more than a half hour though, you might get in trouble.
[quote name='"s7exiled"']I'm not really sure, so it would be good if someone else can also comment. Do you have it connected to a GFCI? I think there might be some that are able to reset after a power failure, and others require a manual reset after a power outage. It's much safer having it connected to one. I think the ballast doesn't come on because the bulb needs to be re-struck with a high voltage spike. I found this, wasn't exactly in context but I think it still explains why it might not be turning on. [/quote] Thanks, I'm hoping to find something with a delay so if the power goes out for a brief moment it won't energize the ballast until its ready to restart. There's got to be something like that available. I will keep searching! Thanks again!
I found this, http://www.plantlightinghydroponics.com/cap-hlc2e-15-minute-on-delay-light-control-p-1723.html I would like to find something similar but not costing $60. I have spent a small fortune setting up my grow room, its starting to get difficult getting my wife to believe I've only spent a few hundred, I need to economize for awhile!
I'm glad you found it this is 54$ with free shipping, CAP C.A.P HLC-2E HLC2E HOT START 15 MINUTE ON DELAY SAVES BULBS LIGHTING TIMER (051000100849) | eBay It might be hard to find a knockoff or something cheaper unfortunately
I think this is a more common problem with magnetic ballasts. I have a magnetic ballast for my small tent (400w) and a digital ballast for my big tent (1kw). I've had it happen a few times when I trip the circuit - my digital ballast always comes right back on, whereas my magnetic ballast takes about 10 minutes.
[quote name='"AlteredEgo"']a HID bulb can explode if you try to re-light it when it is hot.[/quote] Mine is a 1000 watt halide. It takes about three minutes to cool enough to restart. The last time my power flashed on and off the light was out for 35 minutes and still wouldn't restart until I unplugged it and plugged it back in.
So if my power goes out or my breaker trips, I should unplug all my lights? The bulbs hooked up to the digital ballasts always come right back on when I reset the breaker...
[quote name='"roostaphant"']So if my power goes out or my breaker trips, I should unplug all my lights? The bulbs hooked up to the digital ballasts always come right back on when I reset the breaker...[/quote] I think your ballast resets automatically, if your lights come right back on you should have no problem.
Dude you gotta wait like 20-45 mins for everything to cool, then turn it back on. It will light back up then. peace! It's cool bro, I freaked out the first time it happened to me and thought I just blew some dough. But gave it some time and everything was fine. There is no device that can auto delay from a power failure that I know of. That is what you would need. A delay. Side note: If your bulb/ballast is already running super cool then your lamp will either turn right back on or only need up to 5mins.
I found a delay that will turn it back on, I have read that it's bad for the ballast to leave it on after the bulb goes out from power failure. I ordered the delay, hopefully that will fix my problem as my power flashed again yesterday. I wasn't home so who knows how long my bulb was out. The delay has an adjustable setting for how long it will shut down the ballast, once the bulb cools it will give the ballast power again.
[quote name='"Dirtbud"']Dude you gotta wait like 20-45 mins for everything to cool, then turn it back on. It will light back up then. peace! It's cool bro, I freaked out the first time it happened to me and thought I just blew some dough. But gave it some time and everything was fine. There is no device that can auto delay from a power failure that I know of. That is what you would need. A delay. Side note: If your bulb/ballast is already running super cool then your lamp will either turn right back on or only need up to 5mins.[/quote] You can pick up auto power on delays for about $60 on the web. They give a delay before powering on after electric failure. http://www.plantlightinghydroponics.com/cap-delay-lighting-controls-c-383_507.html