problem with my halides

[jwalters103]

i just got a new set of halides and i have been having all kinds of problems with them. they are 250 watt xm 10k running off of icecap ballasts. the ballasts seem to have a hard time lighting the bulbs, but thats not the real problem. the problem is that one of the bulbs started flickering really badly about 2 hours after first being fired up. it did it quite a bit for a while, but the bulbs have been running for about a week now, and the it only flickers occasionally now, and not very badly. the bulbs also occasionally emit a loud high pitched buzzing noise that usually goes away if you tap the socket or the top of the canopy. any ideas? do you think the bulbs were knocked around too much during shipping? should i keep running them to see if the problems disappear altogether since they seem to be getting better?

 

[gbecker]

Don't sweat it. I experienced the same thing. lt took about two weeks for mine to get broken in.

 

[jwalters103]

thanks. ive been pulling my hair out trying to figure out if i need to file a claim for them being damaged in shipping, or if that was normal

 

[StupidsReef]

Most bulbs take around 32 hours of burn time to "burn in" from what I've heard. Rich1972 just set his up about 2 weeks ago, they did take time to fire up for about a week. But they didn't flicker. Diffrent brands may react diffrently I'm sure. I'd say if there burning then keep using them.

 

[dela]

I think the offical burn-in time for MH lamps is 100 hours. But from my understanding, this is more a color/intensity issue than simple starting.

I would check to make sure the lamp is properly seated in the socket. Those FC2 sockets really $uck as far as I'm concerned. They are bulky and they don't make good connections. I recently had to replace a socket after the metal melted away due to lamp/socket arcing. Had to repace the lamp too!

 

[backprop]

I agree with dela. The buzzing can be due to the bulb not being seated properly. That sound, coupled with the flickering, could very likely mean that the connection is arcing. Like dela, I had to replace a brand new bulb and socket recently after it went out completely and I noted the entire connection was melted.

 

[jwalters103]

where was the bad connection, the wiring or in the socket itself where the bulb screws in? any recommendations for a decent socket. do you think the sound and flickering are more likely from a bad bulb connection, or is it possible there is an arcing between the components inside the bulb if they were handled roughly in shipping?