techreef
Premium Member
Anyone else here running a Sunlight Supply T5 2-bulb 54W retro kit? I am, and the darn ballast keeps tripping my Shockbuster plugin GFCI. I'm running all my electrical equipment through a ReefKeeper II controller, and have gone one by one, unplugging things from the RKII. It is definitely the Tek ballast.
At first, I thought that the three wires that plug into the ballast were arcing across each other due to the braided copper wire coming unbraided a little. So I spliced some solid copper wire onto each braided wire, and plugged the solid wire into the ballast. But 12 hours after that fix, my GFCI tripped again due to the Tek ballast.
Could it be moisture on/near those the Tek wires that is tripping the GFCI? The ballast is mounted in my stand, and I have a 30G sump in there with it. I also have an IceCap ballast in there, and it's not giving me any problems, but it has a much nicer plug ending on all the wiring that does not expose the individual wires to the air inside the stand. Could I set up a fan to blow at the Tek ballast, to prevent this shorting? I'd really like some suggestions, because currently I'm running without any actinic lighting in my tank due to the Tek lights being unplugged. I'd like to get my dawn/dusk process back up and running for my tank.
At first, I thought that the three wires that plug into the ballast were arcing across each other due to the braided copper wire coming unbraided a little. So I spliced some solid copper wire onto each braided wire, and plugged the solid wire into the ballast. But 12 hours after that fix, my GFCI tripped again due to the Tek ballast.
Could it be moisture on/near those the Tek wires that is tripping the GFCI? The ballast is mounted in my stand, and I have a 30G sump in there with it. I also have an IceCap ballast in there, and it's not giving me any problems, but it has a much nicer plug ending on all the wiring that does not expose the individual wires to the air inside the stand. Could I set up a fan to blow at the Tek ballast, to prevent this shorting? I'd really like some suggestions, because currently I'm running without any actinic lighting in my tank due to the Tek lights being unplugged. I'd like to get my dawn/dusk process back up and running for my tank.