Busted 400 watt MH bulb

A

Aratilis

New Member
i was doing 18/6 for a almost a week now I have made my on cool tube for my 400 watt MH and yesterday it didnt turn ON, i checked the ballast, ignitor and all that stuff tested it with a new bulb and it works.

I dont seem to understand why a week old bulb got busted, the guy from the hardware store said that it needs a bit of heat and cool tube made the bulb cold and that is the cause of it all. any thoughts on this ?:peace:
 
Did the glass shatter or just doesn't light anymore? I think the guy is talking out his rear about it needing heat. I run 2 air cooled reflectors with a 450cfm pulling air across the bulbs and they are ok. It is basically the same concept as a cool tube.

If you were to pull freezing cool air across a hot bulb then I could see it shattering but not sure if thats the case here...
 
That's a bunch of BS. MH lights are used outside for security lights all the time where it can get extremely cold. Temperature should have NO affect on your bulb at all. Touching your bulb with your bare hands will though. The oil left on the bulb from your hands will create hot spots on your bulb which will cause your bulb to burn out sooner then normal. However, I seriously doubt this would happen to a bulb it that short a time. Every bulb I have gotten in the past comes with a 1 year warranty. They usually etch the date on the mogul base. If this guy doesn't repect your patronage I would never purchase another thing from him in the future. I would go back to the store and ask him to explain why parking lot lights dont require "heat" to ignite in the middle of winter.
 
the glass didnt shatter and i dont think there's finger prints in it either, the store manage to replaced it already after much discussions, looking at the bulb there's no signs of crack or burn on the elements/filaments? inside. Could it be that my lighting setup is hovering? it hangs from the ceiling and with a fan blowing at it there there's a bit of movement or a little swaying of the whole lamp. Is this bad? im just talking about an inch of movement left and right. Or i might had just got a lemon bulb?
 
Probably just a lemon. the movement isn't going to hurt it. I adjust my lights while they are on. haven't lost a bulb yet. One of my Hortilux Super HPS actually rattles inside the bulb and still works. If you look at the end opposite the base there are metal prongs that should have been bent outwards more to restrict the movement of the innards but on this bulb they are not bent out enough and the whole assembly inside the glass moves. Still works for now though. I'm just hanging on to the receipt in case it dies.

You are not doing any hot starts or not allowing the bulb to fully warm up before shutting off are you?
 
is that bad?! I did a couple of hot starts testing it just for the heck of it, its my first grow so im still pretty much dumb with these things. i also did shut it down fully aware its not on its full blast yet. I didnt know that's bad. IS that the cause?
 
No not dumb just inexperienced. Now you know right?

Yes its pretty unhealthy for the bulb. Most bulb/ballast manufacturers will tell you not to do this as it shortens the life of the bulb and its output. Not sure if it will out right kill the bulb like in your situation but just refrain from doing it in the future. I think 30 minutes after poweroff or so is good. I forget but something like that. they sell fancy schmancy timers that prevent hot starts after power failure. It delays the poweron after power is restored for 30 minutes or so making sure the bulb has adequate cool down period.

Also in works reverse let the bulb reach full running temp before powering it off.
 
OK, 2 times shame on ? what Ballast are you using again? You did mention a hardware store you got the lamp from right, not a growers shop? My question is only to ask you. Is it a Metal Halide Lamp you got or is it a Mercury Vapor Lamp? At this point I would look into a new set up from a reputable lighting shop (check out our sponsors) and obtain one that works and will replace things immdiately when a warranty defect happens.No hassles. If you can put a HPS lamp in it and that works than keep it in. I prefer them over a MH but currently am using a combo. MH/HPS
 
we dont have grow shops here in the phillipines, i got it from true value i think you have this store in the US too. Im using HPS ballast, ignitor and capacitor. They said that this ballast can accomodate MH bulbs too.

so then a weird thing happened today now it is working fine again! but it takes like 30 mins to light up and another 10 mins or so for it to full blast. could it be because i have a different brand of lamp.

im still figuring out whats wrong with my light setup.

thanks for the help guys ;)
 
Hey Katayama before you buy anything check the boards here. I didn't buy anything without support. This place is awesome for great info.
Is it that phillipines doesn't allow mailing in or out of these items? I think they are some makers of these items in Malaysia and Thailand. But you probably know that already.
 

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