Problems with an IceCap 660

[44Tom]

I've had this ballast for 5 years now. For one year it ran 4 48" bulbs. For a couple more years it ran just 2 48". For the past 2 years it has been running 2 36" bulbs. Yesterday I rewired it for 3 60" bulbs. I plugged it in and bingo no problems. They went on this morning and I left for work. I came home and they were off. I unplugged and replugged them in and they went on instantly. I hung around for a couple of hours and they were working just fine. I came home from dinner and the were off yet they weren't plugged into a timer. I doubt the fuse has anything to do with it since they go back on when I plug it in. I am 1 ft short of the 16ft MAX. Any ideas?

 

[fishpoo]

it sound like a loose end cap or wire not making good connection inside the cap.

 

[44Tom]

I'll double check all the connections. Is it possible that internally something is "shorting out" after a certain length of time? It is nearly a 6 year old ballast. How long do they last?

 

[LFS42]

Yes, Ballast do wear out.
Ice Cep hasn't been known to go that quickly though.

 

[44Tom]

After two hours the lights shut off today. I immediately pulled the plug and reinserted and they went right back on. They stayed on for another two hours and the same thing happend. I did notice that the ballast is much warmer then the 430 next to it. But then the 430 is driving only 2 60" bulbs. I have another idea. I did not mount the ballast with its heat sink plate, because I never noticed it being needed. Could the ballast be shutting down due to too much heat? Does the heat sink make that much of a difference? I am going to pull canopy and remount the 660 with the heat sink in place and maybe that will do the trick.

 

[royy]

It may be because of heat. I had a problem with mine once. I live in NJ so I drove out to Ice Cap. They fixed it for me in about an hour. I haven't had a problem since. If you call them, I am sure they can tell you what you can do. Maybe they will have you ship it to them for repair.

Good Luck,
Roy