please help me! Is my ballast already messed up (only had it running for 20 hours)

[Aurora_Indicas_Dad]

i got a problem!!i unhooked my ballast so i could move it to the other side of my room and when i went to plug it back in,as soon as i plugged it in it was making a buzzing noise and it looked like a buch of lightning bolts throughout the sodium in the bulb.is this thing messed up,or is it because i didnt give it time to cool off before plugging it back in,is the ballast just hot?i obviously unplugged it as soon as i realized it was doing this but, if somebody can give me a quick responce on this,i'd really apreciate it,i already have to call hydrowholesale tomorrow about sending my other ballast back,due to the fact it wouldnt work when i took it out of the box.im so p'd off right now,luckly the ballast has a 5yr warranty,but i'd rather not pay the $30 to ship it back.anyways,if you have an answer for me,by all means please post a reply.thanks alot-peace

 

[Aurora_Indicas_Dad]

i just went back upstairs to see if i could get it to turn on and sure enough,popped on like normal.so maybe it was in fact just too hot.does it help to have a fan blowing on the ballast?

 

[clanchattan]

hot hid lamps take a bit to relight. perfectly normal in my experience. big 1500w athletic lights take longer than say a 400w. older lamps take longer to restrike than newer ones. it stresses the lamp though. keep it to a minimum esp. with hps's because of the starter/ignigtor. you should be cool....

 

[lyfr]

howdy AID, the instructions that came with mine say to wait 15 min to restart if you turn it off. dont know if that was it but thought i'd throw it out there.

 

[BuddyLuv]

Yes you should invest in a CAP hot start module thingy. It plugs into the outlet your light plugs into and keeps the lamp off for 15 minutes in case of a power outage or surge. It is bad for both the ballast and the bulb to do a hot start. You should let them cool down before firing them back up. Also what kind of ballast are you using, digital or magnetic?

 

[lyfr]

Yes you should invest in a CAP hot start module thingy. It plugs into the outlet your light plugs into and keeps the lamp off for 15 minutes in case of a power outage or surge. It is bad for both the ballast and the bulb to do a hot start. You should let them cool down before firing them back up. Also what kind of ballast are you using, digital or magnetic?

I did not know there was such a thing, thanks Buddy

 

[BuddyLuv]

No problem lyfr, here is the actual name:
C.A.P. UPM-1 UNIVERSAL POWER MODULE

 

[I Eat Valium]

What kind of ballast? Just wonderin... And always let them cool b4 plugging back in.

 

[Aurora_Indicas_Dad]

thanks buddy,ill have to look into a couple of them.

I called hydrowholesale about my ballast and they said they'd send me a label to put on a box and send it back,they said they'll have a new one sent my way by the end of the week. This companys such a good company to deal with.They gave me no problems what so ever about sending it back.

 

[Aurora_Indicas_Dad]

itheyre sun system 10 ballasts