Flourescent tube lights in Gymnasium

[1shortcircuit]

A friend of mine has asked me to pop over and see why one of his fluorescent units is not working in the changing rooms.

The only information I have at the moment is that it's a double strip light unit and he's tried swapping them over with known working replacements and still no light.

There is no starter visible externally.

Am I correct in thinking that it's likely cause could be that the transformer has failed? Obviously I will check all terminations when I am there but my initial thought is that it is this as the unit has been in use for approx 18 months and now both tubes are no longer working?

Assistance very much appreciated.

Regards

1SC

:thumbsup

 

[Marvo]

It's pretty rare for ballasts to fail especially in recognizable brand name fittings. I would just go along armed with 2 new tubes and starters. It could be a series wired fluorescent where if one tube goes down, both stop working.

More importantly, why you worrying about this on a Friday night?

 

[One_of_them]

chances are if there are no obvious starters externally, they maybe located under the lamp itself. However it may be a High Frequency fitting and therefore no starters at all.

If he has changed the lamps and still no light, i'd bet on the ballast. And rather than pee about changing it (unless its extremely easy and cheap) just buy a new fitting

 

[malcolmsanford]

As it is in a changing room is there high humidity, and if there is, is the fitting suitable for the environment. as this may have caused the ballast to fail.

 

[1shortcircuit]

Thanks for your replies guys, went to have a look this morning.

There are indeed no starters and no light. When I tested voltage on the suspect unit I got a reading of 230v going into the ballast and 12v out. I compared this to the unit opposite (3 in same room) and that had 230 in and 230 out.

As there are 3 matching units I believe the best course of action would be to replace the ballast on this occasion.

All I will have to do is find a replacement ballast. Are they easy enough to source individually? I took a couple of pictures

 

[1shortcircuit]

Also, found a fault in the reception area too.

 

[1shortcircuit]

As it is in a changing room is there high humidity, and if there is, is the fitting suitable for the environment. as this may have caused the ballast to fail.

Thanks for the input Malcolm, There are a number of showers in these changing rooms however the suspect unit is the one furthest away and as far as I have been informed this is the only problem reported. Definitely worth reviewing though if problems persist in the future. Thanks

 

[Mr Mark Sparks]

you just need to ask for a 2x58w electronic ballast
stocked by all good wholesalers (and some bad ones!)
if it is just a normal popack type fitting as said before you could replace the whole thing for similar costs

 

[Marvo]

....There are indeed no starters and no light. When I tested voltage on the suspect unit I got a reading of 230v going into the ballast and 12v out. I compared this to the unit opposite (3 in same room) and that had 230 in and 230 out.

Please be aware that some ballasts have protection and shut down the output if tube ignition doesn't happen cleanly or fails completely. The ballast will reset itself when new tubes are fitted if it's of this type.

Regardless of the low output voltage my original advice still stands, try new tubes first or you might be unnecessarily replacing ballasts or even worse you could be sitting with exactly the same problem after you've fitted a new ballast.

 

[1shortcircuit]

Please be aware that some ballasts have protection and shut down the output if tube ignition doesn't happen cleanly or fails completely. The ballast will reset itself when new tubes are fitted if it's of this type.

Regardless of the low output voltage my original advice still stands, try new tubes first or you might be unnecessarily replacing ballasts or even worse you could be sitting with exactly the same problem after you've fitted a new ballast.

Thanks for your input Marvo, sorry I didn't mention that I firstly swapped out the working tubes from the opposite unit and then also fitted brand new replacements and still not even a flicker from the suspect unit.

Thanks for your help, this area is completely new to me:thumbsup

 

[Marvo]

Your welcome.
If you tried new tubes and the ballast still had very low output then that would be time for a replacement (assuming you switched the power off whilst you replaced the tubes and powered on again when finished). Any similar generic ballast should do the job although BAG ballasts have always worked well for me and give much longer lamp life than the cheaper equivalents.

 

[1shortcircuit]

Ha, funny you mention that

When I removed one tube from the working unit both tubes went out so I presumed this was due to someone mentioning that they may be wired in series. Anyway, when I swapped them back the working unit would not come back on... to say I almost sh*t a brick would be an understatement lol

Well, I thought logically and decided to switch off all the power and work under the emergency lighting. I removed the tubes, switched on, switched off, replaced the tubes and then switched the power back on and hey presto... let there be light and there was on the unit that was working before I arrived but the suspect unit has not produced even a flicker

 

[Marvo]

I removed the tubes, switched on, switched off, replaced the tubes and then switched the power back on and hey presto... let there be light and there was on the unit that was working before I arrived but the suspect unit has not produced even a flicker

Yep, it does sound like these ballasts shut down if the tubes fail. It's a nice safety feature to prevent overheating and fires but it can cause confusion when making repairs. Did you get the little scamp sorted out or is it on your list for tomorrow?

 

[1shortcircuit]

Did you get the little scamp sorted out or is it on your list for tomorrow?

It's still on the tomorrow list at the moment, I was in there this evening measuring the depth of another lighting unit that needs replacing I'll report back to confirm either way if replacing the ballast has cured the fault:thumbsup

 

[Mr Mike]

1shortcircuit, hi mate.
The picture of the reception area shows a four pin lamp holder and the next picture shows a two pin lamp.
I will be corrected when I say this but, I am sure these pl lamps need to be matching, ie two pin lamp/two pin lampholder and four pin lamp/four pin lampholder.
If you are already aware, then my appologies.

 

[1shortcircuit]

1shortcircuit, hi mate.
The picture of the reception area shows a four pin lamp holder and the next picture shows a two pin lamp.
I will be corrected when I say this but, I am sure these pl lamps need to be matching, ie two pin lamp/two pin lampholder and four pin lamp/four pin lampholder.
If you are already aware, then my appologies.

I hadn't spotted this so Thank You for pointing this out. I am only familiar with domestic premises so this is the first time I have come across these types of units.

Thanks again, I will look at this more closely. If someone else is able to advise on the compatibility then it would be much appreciated. I guess I'll be checking the other units as well now