I have never seen it done, but interestingly you can run a fluorescent tube directly off of DC by using a starter & resistance ballast like an incandescent bulb in series. The problem with that is the mercury will tend to accumulate at one end of the tube, and it's recommended the polarity be reversed each time the lamp is started. I Don't know why one would want to do that, though.
@NoOne-sn2si
2 жыл бұрын
You can use a mercury vapor lamp with a metal halide ballast but not the other way around
@t687m3
2 жыл бұрын
I bought a brand new 175 watt metal halide and put it in my 175 watt mercury vapor fixture and it came on the first couple of times I used it. It flickered a few times and then came to full brightness (as far as I could tell). But after a few uses, it doesn't do anything now.
@bss1250
2 жыл бұрын
Interesting, I wonder if that mercury vapor fixture puts out a higher voltage than mine. It could be that the first few uses shortened/pitted the electrodes enough that now the voltage isnt high enough to strike
@t687m3
Жыл бұрын
That's what I think happened. The electrodes wore out a little.
@Sparky-ww5re
2 жыл бұрын
Cool video. I would have thought that a metal halide lamp could be run on a mercury vapor ballast, since the metal halide lamp was basically an outgrowth of the mercury vapor lamp and shares a lot in common, in fact multi-vapor (not sure what manufacturer used that trade name) I believe was so named because they were so much alike.
@Bigmeatslapper
3 жыл бұрын
Great video the part where you used an incandescent as a ballast was pretty cool I might try that myself. I mean it saves a bunch of money and looks to work ok
@bss1250
3 жыл бұрын
Yeah the only problem is it doesnt work with longer tubes, anything longer needs a higher voltage to start
@Bigmeatslapper
3 жыл бұрын
@@bss1250 well it attempts to start long tubes also if you use a grill starter and click it right in the center of the tube it does work
@Bigmeatslapper
3 жыл бұрын
So I tried it and it really attempted to start I was using a short tube but it didn't start I am guessing it is because I'm using a 45 watt incandescent and I need something much higher wattage wise. So is that my prob or is it something else
@t687m3
Жыл бұрын
I lit a 250 watt and a 400 watt MH bulb on a 175 watt MV ballast.
@t687m3
Жыл бұрын
I wonder if I can light pulse start metal halides on my 175 watt MV ballast.
@djm5k
11 ай бұрын
@@t687m3 it won’t work. Pulse start lamps require a 4 or 5,000 volt starting voltage to strike the arc.
@worldwidehidcollectorusa3519
Ай бұрын
@@t687m3You can actually use a tanning bed superimposed ignitor to run same wattage pulse start metal halide lamps on mercury vapor ballasts like the 175W M137/M152 pulse start metal halide lamps on 175W H39 mercury vapor ballasts. Those ignitors will work on mercury vapor ballasts because they specifically do not require ballasts with a X3 tap, unlike what you see with most North American ignitors and virtually all North American mercury vapor ballasts do not have the X3 taps that are typically required for 3 wire North American ignitors. Those tanning bed ignitors can easily be identified with their screw terminal connections. If you get them, they will definitely allow you to run same wattage pulse start metal halide lamps on mercury vapor ballasts. I have done that myself by running 400W M135/M155 pulse start metal halide lamps on 400W H33 mercury vapor ballasts by using those screw terminal ignitors often used on tanning beds. Additionally, I am very sure that a Payne-Sparkman ULI-135H Ultrasonic ignitor can also allow you to run same wattage pulse start metal halide lamps on mercury vapor ballasts as well since its wiring diagram shows the X3 connection on the ballast being capped off, which means that it specifically does not need an X3 connection to operate properly. This means that it should definitely run pulse start metal halide lamps on mercury vapor ballasts.
@dalethomasdewitt
3 жыл бұрын
Learn from those before you. Willy nilly experiment is silly.
@cedricwoirhaye8268
3 жыл бұрын
I will see how a MH lamp strikes on a US mercury ballast using a European 2 wire 750v ignitor.
@bss1250
3 жыл бұрын
Would you be using a probe start or pulse start MH bulb?
@cedricwoirhaye8268
3 жыл бұрын
bss1250 Probe start. These ignitors will not cause much damage to the starting probe on hot restrike.
@cedricwoirhaye8268
3 жыл бұрын
My ignitor successfully arrived and I was able to install it in a 175w MV fixture and it was able to run 175w probe start MH bulbs in it successfully!!!
@bss1250
3 жыл бұрын
Very cool, its always neat when experiments like that work out!
@cedricwoirhaye8268
3 жыл бұрын
Check out this link here: www.lighting-gallery.net/gallery/displayimage.php?album=307&pos=4&pid=186857
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