Anybody ever DIY a T5 ballast?

widmer

widmer

Drug Enthusiast
I know some of you oldschool aquarists have taken the $7 shoplight electronic ballast and used it to overdrive normal output fluorescent lamps back in the day. Has anyone ever done something similar to drive a T5?
 
i have seen people take the ballast out of compact florescent screw in light bulbs...and use it to run PC bulbs...not sure about T5's though...

but Work Horse ballasts are so cheap, i have to ask why? just for the DIY accomplishment?

**EDIT** i guess to overdrive the bulbs you would need to purchase a icecap660...those arent that cheap...but you can find them used anywhere...they are a bit on the bulky side though...
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13775908#post13775908 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by NanoReefWanabe
i have seen people take the ballast out of compact florescent screw in light bulbs...and use it to run PC bulbs...not sure about T5's though...

but Work Horse ballasts are so cheap, i have to ask why? just for the DIY accomplishment?

**EDIT** i guess to overdrive the bulbs you would need to purchase a icecap660...those arent that cheap...but you can find them used anywhere...they are a bit on the bulky side though...
Click to expand...

Where does a person come across a workhorse ballast?
 
Has anybody tried using the same technique as OD'ing T8's with T5's ie joining two wires from the ballast to one bulb ie approx a x2 overdrive.?
Roy
 
I was actually thinking about ordering some cheap t5's and endcaps to try this. I had a ton of the Sunpark electronic ballasts from the $8 home depot fixtures, and I actually have them overdriven on t8's right now and they run fine. I would think they would be able to run a t5ho bulb within it's normal wattage range.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13780138#post13780138 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by zachofalltrades
I was actually thinking about ordering some cheap t5's and endcaps to try this. I had a ton of the Sunpark electronic ballasts from the $8 home depot fixtures, and I actually have them overdriven on t8's right now and they run fine. I would think they would be able to run a t5ho bulb within it's normal wattage range.
Click to expand...

I agree, the only question would be if they have enough umph to start the bulb, I heard T5s need more umph than normal or even vho fluoros

The other only question, is if T5 pins are the same distance from each other as T8 pins, so that maybe the T8 endcaps could be used. I've never had a T5 lamp before...
 
I've heard that T5 ballasts have some circuitry that detects certain types of bulb failures. I guess a regular ballast can continue to try powering bad T5 bulbs and cause a fire.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13778392#post13778392 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Giga
the workhourse ballast are they good as the advace ballast for 2x24"t5h0?
Click to expand...

They are not as good as a true t5 ballast. The workhorse ballast is an instant start ballast, while t5's are designed for a programed start ballast. Plus the workhorse does not have the end of life detection or failure detection. Workhorse ballasts, are good all purpose ballasts, but they are not great for specific things, the specific ballast is normally better.

Kim
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13780240#post13780240 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by widmer
I agree, the only question would be if they have enough umph to start the bulb, I heard T5s need more umph than normal or even vho fluoros

The other only question, is if T5 pins are the same distance from each other as T8 pins, so that maybe the T8 endcaps could be used. I've never had a T5 lamp before...
Click to expand...

I could be wrong, but I think they are a tad shorter, and I know for a fact that the pin spacing is different so no, they won't work in t8 endcaps.

As far as a program start ballast I would think that would have more to do with efficiency than anything. I don't see it starting a fire any more than it would when a t8 goes bad. I'm not going to argue that my cheapo electronic ballast would be anywhere near as efficient as a true T5 ballast. I've seen PAR readings between various manufacturers (not for t5's necessarily, but a good indicator) and it's amazing how much variation there can be, so I don't even want to think about how much less light my $5 Sunpark ballast will put out than a $160 Icecap 660.

It's still an enticing idea to start up a 4x54w t5 diy fixture for basically the price of the bulbs.
 
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