Short Power failures & MH's

[phillips]

Is it true that metal halides need to completely cool before being turned back on? I have unpredictable & short power losses and wndered if these would pose a problem if I upgraded to mh?

 

[SteveP]

Good question! I've heard you should wait 15 minutes before powering back on. Sounds like enough time to let the bulb cool down. Let's see what the experts say.

Steve
8{I

 

[Bobzarry]

My hamiltons 175w will periodically try to fire up til they finaly do. I wouldnt worry about it.


Bob

 

[pez]

It is true. There is a well documented cycle time for MH. It may apply to all HID for all I know. What do you mean by "short" power loss. The ballast will generally correct any brownout or momentary power loss (in the millisecond range). Some thing enough to cause your tv or clocks to go off would be another story.

-Tom

 

[jdeets]

I have MH lights and use the Blueline E-ballasts. They have an automatic delay feature that will not allow them to fire within 5 minutes of being turned off. So if there's a power failure, they won't come on when the power comes back on unless the 5-minute cool-down period has passed. If the electricity flashes off and on, the MHs will not come back on until the delay has passed.

 

[Anonymous]

hi.
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote

Is it true that metal halides need to completely cool before being turned back on?

No, not completely cool. If you use a more advanced ballast, such as those for automobiles with HID lighting, the bulb can be flash on and off without problem.

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote

I have unpredictable & short power losses and wndered if these would pose a problem if I upgraded to mh?

Should not be a problem. Just that you will waste electricity while the bulb is being cooled.

 

[phillips]

Sorry, I should have been more specific. anywhere form 1 to 5 times a week, I camoe home and my digital clocks are flashing telling me there was a power failure, and these outtages last usually between 1 to 3 minutes, occaisionally up to 30 minutes.
Are Blueline E-ballasts available for HQI bulbs? I'd REALLY like to upgrade to 2-250watt 10,000K HQI's from my current 4-96watt PC's.