icecap

[Sisterlimonpot]

Why can't my icecap 660 power two 80 watt 5 foot T5's? When I plug them in it comes on for a second and then shuts off.

Help please

 

[disc1]

They do that if there's a fault on one of the bulbs. If the bulbs are good, check the endcaps to make sure the bulbs are seated in them good. Don't know how many times I've had to go in and fix that one. If it's a new set-up, also check the wires into the endcaps. If they aren't making good connection, it will produce the symptom you describe.

 

[Crkbaby]

you can test the resistance in the circuit with an ohm meter at the harness connector to make sure the bulbs are seated in the endcaps properly, other than that there may be a bad bulb. it can also happen if the ballast is bad I have seen it. I would not condemn the ballasts before the bulbs or my connections though.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

The bulbs are new but I just wired it all up so maybe it's a wiring problem. I will check it out in the morning. Thanks

 

[Cozmo4]

It's been two years since I wired my 660 ballast up to T5s, but I had this same problem and if I recall correctly, I had a couple of wires reversed.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

What do you mean by reversed? Do the red wires have a positive and negative? I'm thinking that there's a kink in one of the wires to where one of the solid strands have broke under the insulation.

 

[porksmash]

I just set up my Icecap 660 with 3x 5' bulbs and had the same problem. Turns out one of my wires on one bulb wasn't fully seated in the endcap. Pushed it in better and it worked fine. The wires do not have a positive/negative side so don't worry about that. Just double check your wiring to the diagram. Make sure you are looking at the 660 diagram because I've seen the diagrams for the 430 in the same booklet or PDF file as the 660 ones.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Yeah that's what it was. One of the wires weren't even connected, when I slip the wire into the hole I would pull on it to verify that it was connected. However that one I must have missed. the bad thing is, that I kept unplugging the power chord and plugging it back in and I ruined the ballast. So I had to buy another one.

It was an expensive lesson, hopefully my screw up will save some people from doing the same thing.