Jimbo Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 Hello All. Glad to be a part of this fine group, and thankful that we now have a group more dedicated to Austin. I'm also a member of MAAST, but like some others have said, I get tired of going to SA to be treated like a stranger by the locals. I sure do miss the MAAST of old when Jim and Tim were around a lot more... but anyway, my question/problem is this. I've just recently re-setup my 110 after letting things settle following the "Great Flood of 2001" (Ill save that stupidity for another time). My lights have been in storage for a while, but probably had about 4 months of use on them when I put them away. I currently have 2x250w MH and another 220w of VHO, but my problem is with the MH. With the recent power outages from storms last month and threatening ones early this week, I discovered my problem. When the power flashes or is out for less than say 30 minutes, my MH do not fire back up. The ballast is a PFO dual mag, and I have no idea the age. Does is sound like a bulb problem, or is it time to toss the old ballast and replace with electronic? Thanks and I look forward to meeting all of you at some of the close gatherings. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselndixie Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 jimbo, cant answer your question, just saw you lived off parmer and mcneil...I'm in Millwood, off of Dallas. What LFS are you going to? just wondered if you knew of one up here I have missed. Nate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcreonx Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 Sounds like a ballast issue. MHs take a few minutes to turn back on after the power is cut. My old lights would take probably 10-15 minutes to 'warm' back up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 jimbo, cant answer your question, just saw you lived off parmer and mcneil...I'm in Millwood, off of Dallas.What LFS are you going to? just wondered if you knew of one up here I have missed. Nate Hi Nate, I'm off Dallas on Kerrville Folkway. You could probably find the house at night from the "Reef Glow" coming from the entry way hall . Typically, I go to River City, since they seem to have a much better selection of corals...and Carlos and crew keep the tanks clean. I will make the adventure to AA and Aquatek, if I am looking for something specific though. I really used to like Gallery of Pets, but they are hit or miss with SW. I haven't been there since Marge was still the owner, I hear the new owner is more of a fish person than birds, though. And Kathy there at GOP always went above and beyond. I also hear Horizon is getting better with their SW. From my experience there, if things havn't changed, I would never buy from them! Crowded tanks, insufficient lighting, and cyano everywhere. But, we all go through that once in a while. Sounds like a ballast issue. MHs take a few minutes to turn back on after the power is cut. My old lights would take probably 10-15 minutes to 'warm' back up. That's what I was afraid of...bulbs are cheap. I do have another identical ballast at the house, but I didn't want to have to go through the trouble of replacing the other. I guess I will have to replace and then experiment tonight. But, when you say 10-15 min to 'warm' back up, do you get any light from them during that time? Mine are completely out, and I never really gave the bulbs that long to find out. I usually just cut the power to the ballast off for about 30 minutes then fire back up. Thanks, Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos@River City Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 Hey Jim, On some of my older MH units it could take a few minutes (up to 15 or more) for the lights to refire after the power has been cut. I think this has more to do with letting the ballast cool down, but during that time there is no light being produced from the bulb. I'm not saying that this is true on all my past set-ups but on a few. I would give them a few minutes to see if the ballast will refire after a power outage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 Hey Jim,On some of my older MH units it could take a few minutes (up to 15 or more) for the lights to refire after the power has been cut. I think this has more to do with letting the ballast cool down, but during that time there is no light being produced from the bulb. I'm not saying that this is true on all my past set-ups but on a few. I would give them a few minutes to see if the ballast will refire after a power outage. Thanks for the reply Carlos. The only thing that seems funny about the way it behaves now, is that I don't remember it doing that in the past. But then again, I really can't remember anytime except the recent that we lost power during the day, and I was home. Now I really have to experiment. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 Okay. Thanks for the tip Carlos. I shut the lights off at the timer, waited 2 minutes (to simulate the power outtage), and powered back on. The lights came back on less than 5 minutes later. I guess this is what I get for taking the day(s) off during rain storms. drunken_smilie.gif Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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