Halide Not Working

[smelly shelley]

Hi

I have a 250w halide unit which also has 2x 22" T5 bulbs. Today it stopped working.Not to hot on electrics, but i changed the bulbs and checked the fuses but it still does not work. The unit does not even humm when turned on so im thinking it might be the transformer or the ballast unit.

Could someone help before i throw it away.

Cheers dan

 

[HappyGeorge]

Have you checked the fuse in the plug? As a rule of thumb with any fault finding start with the easy things. Sorry that sounded sarcastic wasn't meant to be, but worth checking easy/cheap bits before buying replacement expensive bits.

 

[smelly shelley]

Hi Yes i have checked the fuse in plug it works. Is there a fuse in the units.

 

[HappyGeorge]

Well I'm new to salty and not great with lights. Does the transformer get warm when you plug it in? If so I would suggest that's probably ok. As for ballasts I have absolutely zero knowledge, when I first read about ballasts I had to google it and read a few tech forums to find out how they worked, as for fault finding on them I would have to work my way through step by step. Sorry, but I'm sure one of the faithful will be on here tomorrow and can point you in the right direction.

 

[smelly shelley]

Hi

Thanks for the help, the transformer is making a very quiet buzz not the normal humm. There are 2 cylinders at one end. I think one is a capcitor (spelt wrong) not sure what the other is, i would like to google it but i dont know what it is.

Cheers dan

 

[woody88]

Does the ballast smell like a burning smell. Are there any brown marks around it. Are the connections brittle. Get a voltage tester or a light stick and test supply and load side of ballast. Some metal halides have an igniter (cylindrical) which are prone to burning out. Test to see if u have power at the lamp holder. If so could be break in neutral. Check lamp holder probes as they can weld to the lamp and ark creating an insulated scorch mark.
Yes I'm a spark! Lol

 

[ozzie2011]

Is the whole thing dead, the t5's and the halide? Ballast only controls the halide as far as I know

Also there should be a fuse in the ballast

 

[smelly shelley]

Hi

Yes the hole thing is dead halide supply by 1 lead and plug and the 2x T5 supplied by one lead and plug. There is no switch on the unit for each bulb just a lead and plug.

Thanks DAN

 

[ozzie2011]

This sounds stupid but have you tried plugging the unit into a different socket, i find it odd the whole unit has gone?

 

[smelly shelley]

Hi
Yes i have tryed the unit in different sockets but no luck. Running out of ideas now is it time for the bin!

 

[woody88]

Hi
Yes i have tryed the unit in different sockets but no luck. Running out of ideas now is it time for the bin!

Seems strange that there are 2 seperate supplys feeding this unit and they both stopped working at the same time.

On the off chance, have you got, or can get a schematic or a basic wiring diagram of the unit. That way I can get a general idea of how its wired and what the potential problem could be.
One thing for sure tho, the chances are it is something small causing the problem, and should'nt be an expensive fix so don't chuck it yet mate.

This may sound stupid but it is possible that a power surge from a sudden change in voltage/wattage could have caused the lamps to blow and fried the lamp holders.

 

[smelly shelley]

I have just required a multi meter so im got to test the out puts of the ballast unit to the bulb holders to see if there is voltage.
As for the power surge im not sure as it happen when i was away over the weekend. I havent noticed any blackness about.

 

[woody88]

I'm intrigued by this now and dying to find out what it is. Do you know the make and model of the unit so I can try and look up a schematic for it or is it a custom unit.

 

[smelly shelley]

I'm intrigued by this now and dying to find out what it is. Do you know the make and model of the unit so I can try and look up a schematic for it or is it a custom unit.

The make and model is Bavaria Aquaristik.WWW.bavaria-Aquaristik.de not sure what this is it might help.

 

[woody88]

I'm intrigued by this now and dying to find out what it is. Do you know the make and model of the unit so I can try and look up a schematic for it or is it a custom unit.

The make and model is Bavaria Aquaristik.WWW.bavaria-Aquaristik.de not sure what this is it might help.

Cheers mate. Will do a quick search for it.