Is it my bulb? What gives?

waverz · 02/11/2010, 04:28 PM

I have a 29 gallon Biocube with a nanotuners 150 watt HQI upgrade. I am running a 20k Radium bulb and over the last month or so it started flicker then it would turn off after about 5 minutes or so it would turn back on and eventually it started doing this more and more on a daily basis. I decided to do some trouble shooting so I borrowed a bulb from a friend and it ran a whole day without a problem. I then decided to try my bulb again and it worked fine without issues, so I figured maybe it just wasn't seated in the fixture correctly.

Yesterday I noticed that it has started acting up again. This is the weird part, when I have the lid open on my tank and the bulb will stay fired, as soon as i put the lid down, in about 5 minutes or less the light will shut off.

Is it possible the bulb is bad and doesn't like to fire in the "lid down" position? I've never heard of this happening but I'm not sure what else it could be.

waverz · 02/12/2010, 06:41 PM

I did some more experimenting today. Turns out, the light will stay on consistently without the plastic cover over the lights. This leads me to believe that heat might be the issue. Obviously there is something in HQI bulbs that prevent them from restarting right after they are shut off. I wonder if this same mechanism shuts the bulb off if it get too hot? It still doesn't really explain why it runs fine while the lid is propped up in a vertical position though. I dunno, what ever the problem is, by running it without the plastic cover seems to have solved the situation. I am a little concerned with the amount of moisture my components are now being exposed to but I would think everything should be OK at least long enough until I can figure out the exact problem and fix it.

waverz · 02/12/2010, 06:54 PM

Well, looks like I spoke too soon. The light just blinked off. I think tomorrow I am going to try a different bulb and let it run all day. Hopefully, it will run all day without problems and I can verify that the bulb is bad.

tkeracer619 · 02/12/2010, 06:58 PM

Sounds like your bulb is bad or is not a proper lamp for the ballast.

waverz · 02/12/2010, 07:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tkeracer619

Sounds like your bulb is bad or is not a proper lamp for the ballast.

The thing is, it worked fine for 3 months before I had any problems.

nano427 · 02/12/2010, 07:51 PM

I was just going to start a thread about radiums and sunpods but then I just saw yours. My radium is doing the same thing, flickering and shutting off. It did it right out of the box though. This is my second bulb, the first one I sent back thinking it was defective. So after testing the fixture with other bulbs with no problems, it looks to be the bulb and ballast combo. After google-ing this it appears to be a common issue with sunpods. What kind of ballast is in you nanotuners kit?

luther1200 · 02/12/2010, 07:52 PM

It does sound like its getting to hot to me. I am running 150w Radiums on Lumatek dimmable ballsts set at 175w and they are great.

waverz · 02/12/2010, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nano427

I was just going to start a thread about radiums and sunpods but then I just saw yours. My radium is doing the same thing, flickering and shutting off. It did it right out of the box though. This is my second bulb, the first one I sent back thinking it was defective. So after testing the fixture with other bulbs with no problems, it looks to be the bulb and ballast combo. After google-ing this it appears to be a common issue with sunpods. What kind of ballast is in you nanotuners kit?

The kit came with a Sunpark ballast, cant remember the exact model.

I read about the Radiums doing this with sunpods as well. It's just so weird how the problem is so intermittent.

nano427 · 02/12/2010, 08:04 PM

Ya I think the sunpod uses a sunpark ballast as well. It is weird though the it took 3 months to start acting up. But Im pretty sure its the ballast, I've seen others with this same problem. So you could swap in a different ballast(probably cheaper than the radium bulb) or change to a different bulb.

waverz · 02/12/2010, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nano427

Ya I think the sunpod uses a sunpark ballast as well. It is weird though the it took 3 months to start acting up. But Im pretty sure its the ballast, I've seen others with this same problem. So you could swap in a different ballast(probably cheaper than the radium bulb) or change to a different bulb.

What sucks about that being is the problem is it's gonna cost me. If it were the ballast it could be replaced for free because its under warranty. If it were the bulb Radium said they would work on replacing it for me. I maybe SOL at this point.

I wonder if I should try replacing the ballast, Nick at Nanotuners said if it was the ballast he would replace it. Might be worth a shot.

nano427 · 02/12/2010, 08:33 PM

I think that your bulb is good, I think that your ballast is good. I think that radiums and sunpark ballasts are not good. For what ever reason they just dont want to work together. That being said, I have seen them work together in the past. It just seems hit or miss. What Im going to do is sell the radium, I'll lose some money on it. I just ordered an EVC 20k. Dont know much about them so Im gonna give it a try. I used to run a phoenix which was a really nice bulb which never gave me any problems.

waverz · 02/12/2010, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nano427

I think that your bulb is good, I think that your ballast is good. I think that radiums and sunpark ballasts are not good. For what ever reason they just dont want to work together. That being said, I have seen them work together in the past. It just seems hit or miss. What Im going to do is sell the radium, I'll lose some money on it. I just ordered an EVC 20k. Dont know much about them so Im gonna give it a try. I used to run a phoenix which was a really nice bulb which never gave me any problems.

Just looked at Icecap ballasts, there goes my Blue Spot Jawfish money.

rodcpierce · 02/12/2010, 10:46 PM

Waverz just snag yourself a 14k pheonix bulb.

reznor252 · 02/12/2010, 11:42 PM

Radiums are made to be used on 220v ballast. Some of the 110v ballast will have trouble firing them and cause intermittent issues. I have witnessed this with both the sunpark and older icecap ballast. Not sure about the newer icecap's.

This is from hello lights website. They are talking about the 250w mogul bulbs but I have seen it on 150 radium de bulbs too.

Quote:

Q. What ballast do you suggest for the 250W Radium 20,000K bulb?
A. The 250W Radium lamp is a European lamp for European ballast applications. The lamp was designed for a reactor ballast used for 220/240V input voltage and not for 120V operation in the U.S. We recommend the use of a 250W pulse start ballast (ANSI M138) or HQI (ANSI M80) for 250W Radium 20,000Ks because they provide a higher starting voltage and use an igniter to assure lamp starting. It is our experience that M58 ballasts can have problems with these bulbs flickering, not starting and/or being unable to keep the lamp fired (ie. it will go out after a while).

waverz · 02/13/2010, 11:04 AM

Gonna give up on the Radium I guess. Hopefully I can get a decent offer on it to help offset the costs of another bulb.

rodcpierce · 02/13/2010, 12:44 PM

Jeremy, depending on how soon you need them, Ive got 2 pheonix 14k 150 HQI's in my current fixture. Im getting a t5 fixture here soon (within the next couple weeks) and will have these bulbs available. ide sell yah both of them for 50.00 Just depends on if you can wait that long or not. They have roughly 2 months use on them, if that for 8 hours a day.

luther1200 · 02/13/2010, 02:43 PM

FWIW I have also run the 150w Radiums at 150w on thye Lumatek dimmable ballasts. And they run them perectly. I just moved it up to 175w because they are supposed to be run on an HQI ballast. This is why your e-ballast isn't running them correctly. Most e-ballast run bulbs at a lower wattage then HQI. Like others have stated its not your ballast or bulb that doesn't work. Its that the Radium is designed to be run at a higher wattage then your ballast puts out.

I beleive Pheonix bulbs are HQI also. But many say they will run on your type of ballast, but they will be overly blue. So you might want to think about that. Maybe search around a bit and see what bulbs are spec'd to run on your ballast. Pheonix are a great bulb, but they will look bluer than normal on your ballast.

rodcpierce · 02/13/2010, 03:51 PM

Jeremy, is your sunpark ballast not an HQI?

waverz · 02/13/2010, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodcpierce

Jeremy, is your sunpark ballast not an HQI?

Apparently not, evidently it's just a regular MH E-ballast. I am assuming Nanotuners uses these in their kits to keep the heat inside the hood down to a minimum.

rodcpierce · 02/13/2010, 05:25 PM

ah, ok. Ill also have 2 HQI sunpark 150 ballast available. Just let me know if you want em.

rodcpierce · 02/13/2010, 05:33 PM

whats the model number on the ballasts? Do they say HID electronic halide ballast or just electronic halide ballast?

rodcpierce · 02/13/2010, 06:34 PM

just did some research, youve got an HQI ballast or HID ballast.

waverz · 02/13/2010, 08:19 PM

I haven't looked because it's a total PITA to get to, but I am almost 100% sure this is my ballast.

http://www.sunparkelectronics.com/pr...roducts_id=315

rodcpierce · 02/13/2010, 09:15 PM

yeah, you have an HQI ballast. So its gotta be the bulb.

This is Rodney from GIRS by the way. Got all them SPS frags from you.

waverz · 02/13/2010, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodcpierce

yeah, you have an HQI ballast. So its gotta be the bulb.

This is Rodney from GIRS by the way. Got all them SPS frags from you.

Your nick kinda gave that away, that and the fact you knew my first name.

Heh

I don't think its the bulb, its the fact my bulb and ballast aren't compatible.

02/11/2010, 04:28 PM	#1
waverz Slave to the reef! Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Evansdale, Ia Posts: 3,118	Is it my bulb? What gives? I have a 29 gallon Biocube with a nanotuners 150 watt HQI upgrade. I am running a 20k Radium bulb and over the last month or so it started flicker then it would turn off after about 5 minutes or so it would turn back on and eventually it started doing this more and more on a daily basis. I decided to do some trouble shooting so I borrowed a bulb from a friend and it ran a whole day without a problem. I then decided to try my bulb again and it worked fine without issues, so I figured maybe it just wasn't seated in the fixture correctly. Yesterday I noticed that it has started acting up again. This is the weird part, when I have the lid open on my tank and the bulb will stay fired, as soon as i put the lid down, in about 5 minutes or less the light will shut off. Is it possible the bulb is bad and doesn't like to fire in the "lid down" position? I've never heard of this happening but I'm not sure what else it could be. __________________ Member of the Greater Iowa Reef Society. Current Tank Info: 60 gallon Marineland Cube

02/12/2010, 06:41 PM	#2
waverz Slave to the reef! Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Evansdale, Ia Posts: 3,118	I did some more experimenting today. Turns out, the light will stay on consistently without the plastic cover over the lights. This leads me to believe that heat might be the issue. Obviously there is something in HQI bulbs that prevent them from restarting right after they are shut off. I wonder if this same mechanism shuts the bulb off if it get too hot? It still doesn't really explain why it runs fine while the lid is propped up in a vertical position though. I dunno, what ever the problem is, by running it without the plastic cover seems to have solved the situation. I am a little concerned with the amount of moisture my components are now being exposed to but I would think everything should be OK at least long enough until I can figure out the exact problem and fix it. __________________ Member of the Greater Iowa Reef Society. Current Tank Info: 60 gallon Marineland Cube

02/12/2010, 06:54 PM	#3
waverz Slave to the reef! Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Evansdale, Ia Posts: 3,118	Well, looks like I spoke too soon. The light just blinked off. I think tomorrow I am going to try a different bulb and let it run all day. Hopefully, it will run all day without problems and I can verify that the bulb is bad. __________________ Member of the Greater Iowa Reef Society. Current Tank Info: 60 gallon Marineland Cube

02/12/2010, 06:58 PM	#4
tkeracer619 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Westminster, CO Posts: 17,289	Sounds like your bulb is bad or is not a proper lamp for the ballast. __________________ Hobby Experience: 9200ish gallons, 26 skimmers, and a handful of Kent Scrapers. Current Tank: Vortech Powered 600G SPS Tank w/ 100gal frag tank & 100g Sump. RK2-RK10 Skimmer. ReefAngel. Radium 20k.

02/12/2010, 07:52 PM	#7
luther1200 Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: NJ, shore Posts: 4,376	It does sound like its getting to hot to me. I am running 150w Radiums on Lumatek dimmable ballsts set at 175w and they are great. __________________ Matt, 65G reef tank Current Tank Info: 65g reef, mix of sps, lps, few softies. Hoping to upgrade within the year.

02/12/2010, 07:51 PM	#6
nano427 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: AV OC CA USA Posts: 877	I was just going to start a thread about radiums and sunpods but then I just saw yours. My radium is doing the same thing, flickering and shutting off. It did it right out of the box though. This is my second bulb, the first one I sent back thinking it was defective. So after testing the fixture with other bulbs with no problems, it looks to be the bulb and ballast combo. After google-ing this it appears to be a common issue with sunpods. What kind of ballast is in you nanotuners kit?

02/12/2010, 08:04 PM	#9
nano427 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: AV OC CA USA Posts: 877	Ya I think the sunpod uses a sunpark ballast as well. It is weird though the it took 3 months to start acting up. But Im pretty sure its the ballast, I've seen others with this same problem. So you could swap in a different ballast(probably cheaper than the radium bulb) or change to a different bulb.

02/12/2010, 08:33 PM	#11
nano427 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: AV OC CA USA Posts: 877	I think that your bulb is good, I think that your ballast is good. I think that radiums and sunpark ballasts are not good. For what ever reason they just dont want to work together. That being said, I have seen them work together in the past. It just seems hit or miss. What Im going to do is sell the radium, I'll lose some money on it. I just ordered an EVC 20k. Dont know much about them so Im gonna give it a try. I used to run a phoenix which was a really nice bulb which never gave me any problems.

02/12/2010, 10:46 PM	#13
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	Waverz just snag yourself a 14k pheonix bulb.

02/13/2010, 11:04 AM	#15
waverz Slave to the reef! Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Evansdale, Ia Posts: 3,118	Gonna give up on the Radium I guess. Hopefully I can get a decent offer on it to help offset the costs of another bulb. __________________ Member of the Greater Iowa Reef Society. Current Tank Info: 60 gallon Marineland Cube

02/13/2010, 12:44 PM	#16
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	Jeremy, depending on how soon you need them, Ive got 2 pheonix 14k 150 HQI's in my current fixture. Im getting a t5 fixture here soon (within the next couple weeks) and will have these bulbs available. ide sell yah both of them for 50.00 Just depends on if you can wait that long or not. They have roughly 2 months use on them, if that for 8 hours a day.

02/13/2010, 02:43 PM	#17
luther1200 Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: NJ, shore Posts: 4,376	FWIW I have also run the 150w Radiums at 150w on thye Lumatek dimmable ballasts. And they run them perectly. I just moved it up to 175w because they are supposed to be run on an HQI ballast. This is why your e-ballast isn't running them correctly. Most e-ballast run bulbs at a lower wattage then HQI. Like others have stated its not your ballast or bulb that doesn't work. Its that the Radium is designed to be run at a higher wattage then your ballast puts out. I beleive Pheonix bulbs are HQI also. But many say they will run on your type of ballast, but they will be overly blue. So you might want to think about that. Maybe search around a bit and see what bulbs are spec'd to run on your ballast. Pheonix are a great bulb, but they will look bluer than normal on your ballast. __________________ Matt, 65G reef tank Current Tank Info: 65g reef, mix of sps, lps, few softies. Hoping to upgrade within the year.

02/13/2010, 03:51 PM	#18
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	Jeremy, is your sunpark ballast not an HQI?

02/13/2010, 05:25 PM	#20
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	ah, ok. Ill also have 2 HQI sunpark 150 ballast available. Just let me know if you want em.

02/13/2010, 05:33 PM	#21
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	whats the model number on the ballasts? Do they say HID electronic halide ballast or just electronic halide ballast?

02/13/2010, 06:34 PM	#22
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	just did some research, youve got an HQI ballast or HID ballast.

02/13/2010, 08:19 PM	#23
waverz Slave to the reef! Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Evansdale, Ia Posts: 3,118	I haven't looked because it's a total PITA to get to, but I am almost 100% sure this is my ballast. http://www.sunparkelectronics.com/pr...roducts_id=315 __________________ Member of the Greater Iowa Reef Society. Current Tank Info: 60 gallon Marineland Cube

02/13/2010, 09:15 PM	#24
rodcpierce Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Cedar Rapids, IA Posts: 201	yeah, you have an HQI ballast. So its gotta be the bulb. This is Rodney from GIRS by the way. Got all them SPS frags from you.