rob333
Well-Known Member
theres always a risk thats why there is insurance
Metal Halide questions.
- Thread starter HashSmoke420
- Start date
Silky Shagsalot
Well-Known Member
if you have a, ahem, non-digital ballast, old core ballast, they get loud when they get old/problematic.
HashSmoke420
Active Member
OH MY GOD ... The igniter (electrostart) is still hot after 2 hours and a half of no usage.
Looks like the igniter runs WAY TOO HOT but the capacitor is not swollen and it is only partially burned by the igniter ... If they are separated I think it could last until I can afford a new capacitor and then igniter ... That measured in time will be maybe 2 months? Lol ...
chuck estevez
Well-Known Member
yeah, that is toast, you can replace that pretty easy. I wouldn't run it like that, all the stuff leaked out.
HashSmoke420
Active Member
The current question ... Can I do anything with that current shit I got?
I think I can make it last longer if I separate the parts so they don't conduct heat to each other, or at least not in that vital degrees.
Ooookay after research, the igniter is designed to be able to run at even 130 Celsius. So the whole problem in fact comes from the capacitor being too close to the igniter and got burned a bit. However my friend was using this thing for ages, it did hummed for ages ... And yet no crashes. I guess it was close to 1 by the looks of the capacitor, but the igniter, even running that hot seems solid. I'm gonna experiment on a separate fuse for stability of this bitch tomorrow. Gladly a new igniter is affordable for me! ^_^
Case isn't yet solved for me however, any further comments might always come in handy!
I think I can make it last longer if I separate the parts so they don't conduct heat to each other, or at least not in that vital degrees.
Ooookay after research, the igniter is designed to be able to run at even 130 Celsius. So the whole problem in fact comes from the capacitor being too close to the igniter and got burned a bit. However my friend was using this thing for ages, it did hummed for ages ... And yet no crashes. I guess it was close to 1 by the looks of the capacitor, but the igniter, even running that hot seems solid. I'm gonna experiment on a separate fuse for stability of this bitch tomorrow. Gladly a new igniter is affordable for me! ^_^
Case isn't yet solved for me however, any further comments might always come in handy!
Last edited:
HashSmoke420
Active Member
Soo, in the morning I actually investigated the ballast furthermore, appears voltages and amps are all fine, the only issue was that this capacitor is not built to be nearby the heating igniter, which in fact produced all the issues in the first place!
What I did was extract the capacitor to a safe location far from the heat radius of the igniter. The capacitor is not swollen at all, it's silicon coat is a bit damaged, so molybdenum extraction is a potential danger, but i also contained this problem repairing the coat, the igniter itself is a very old stuff, so it indeed does heat up a lot under many hours of usage so I added cooling system to it to sustain the average 100 Celsius it is capable of reaching from 130 Celsius maximum temperature. After the overhaul was complete, I started the lamp and:
1st - The heat is contained, in fact an additional overheat was conducted by electro-magnetism committed between the capacitor and the igniter. With the additional cooling system and properly fixed integral scheme heat is no longer a crucial factor in any manner.
2nd - The noise is contained, there is yet this little buzzing you hear, but you can't really notice it in a perfect silence and 3 meters away from the lamp!!! No more ultra strong humming at all!
3rd - Lol ... Flickering stopped totally, there is not even a singular flick anymore.
4rd - Nothing to do about it .. But it all eez fine!
I want to thank everyone who participated in this thread and helped me fix my problem! I hope to never be able to return the favor, don't get me wrong, I hope you guys never have any trouble! Happy growing everyone!
What I did was extract the capacitor to a safe location far from the heat radius of the igniter. The capacitor is not swollen at all, it's silicon coat is a bit damaged, so molybdenum extraction is a potential danger, but i also contained this problem repairing the coat, the igniter itself is a very old stuff, so it indeed does heat up a lot under many hours of usage so I added cooling system to it to sustain the average 100 Celsius it is capable of reaching from 130 Celsius maximum temperature. After the overhaul was complete, I started the lamp and:
1st - The heat is contained, in fact an additional overheat was conducted by electro-magnetism committed between the capacitor and the igniter. With the additional cooling system and properly fixed integral scheme heat is no longer a crucial factor in any manner.
2nd - The noise is contained, there is yet this little buzzing you hear, but you can't really notice it in a perfect silence and 3 meters away from the lamp!!! No more ultra strong humming at all!
3rd - Lol ... Flickering stopped totally, there is not even a singular flick anymore.
4rd - Nothing to do about it .. But it all eez fine!
I want to thank everyone who participated in this thread and helped me fix my problem! I hope to never be able to return the favor, don't get me wrong, I hope you guys never have any trouble! Happy growing everyone!
Greenhouse;save
Well-Known Member
U think urs was old school have a look at this monster..
Attachments
HashSmoke420
Active Member
Looks just custom and great to me, Greenhouse;sav! I also customized mine, I'm about to only work on the noisy part, the whole lamp is still vibrating under pressure, the bulb wasn't screwed properly by the old owners so I also fixed that, but the issue with the vibrating noise is rather 'cause the lamp is not made to stay in a horizontal position, but rather in a vertical, when I put it vertically it stops the noise, when I put it horizontally, it starts shitting on me again. 
Just the design of the lamp which I'm gonna fix!
Just the design of the lamp which I'm gonna fix!
Greenhouse;save
Well-Known Member
Yea mate ur a bit hands on like myself I'm sure you'll get a few more hrs out of it yet at least until yea get the cash for an upgrade keep me posted on how u get on..
Greenhouse;save
Well-Known Member
Try straps mate c if that makes it any better?
Greenhouse;save
Well-Known Member
Liked the way u improvised taking the seating off the chair to create a stand great minds and all that..
HashSmoke420
Active Member
Breaking new discovery, as I moved through further tests it appears that the capacitor, even though partially damaged in the coat is working all but fine, the old igniter is also working fine, even though it heats up to about 100 degrees, it's built to withstand 130 degrees Celsius. The extensive humming is not coming from the bulb, not from the capacitor and not from the igniter, but from the igniter not being seated all strong!!! Once the lamp reaches full heat and power in about 30 minutes of usage the igniter is vibrating at a severely higher intense which in fact makes it produce this humming noise. The cheap hair shaving machines work the same way, I also got 1 like this, and this is how I found out about the real issue.
About the capacitor being toasted, it's a capacitor from a Tessi boiler a very very recent one, it's built to actually withstand all until 185 degrees Celsius, after that the metal breaks and the intrusion will make a surge. However the igniter only made it up to 100 degrees Celsius so there is nothing to worry about in fact.
Of course this lamp will prolly not survive 2 - 3 years of growing usage, but it will most definitely enable me to finish this grow, which will enable me to get new equipment afterwards for a grow of much higher quality!
Now the question is, should I make a journal, considering my light problem is fixed?
About the capacitor being toasted, it's a capacitor from a Tessi boiler a very very recent one, it's built to actually withstand all until 185 degrees Celsius, after that the metal breaks and the intrusion will make a surge. However the igniter only made it up to 100 degrees Celsius so there is nothing to worry about in fact.
Of course this lamp will prolly not survive 2 - 3 years of growing usage, but it will most definitely enable me to finish this grow, which will enable me to get new equipment afterwards for a grow of much higher quality!
Now the question is, should I make a journal, considering my light problem is fixed?
skunkd0c
Well-Known Member
lol i was thinking it looks like a stolen security light
"i found that drum machine in a ditch"
HashSmoke420
Active Member
Lol'd