What is the purpose of a ballast resistor in an ignition system?

What is the purpose of a ballast resistor in an ignition system?

The ballast resistor, supplies the needed voltage during the start up, and then immediately after the arc is established, it reduces the voltage in addition to regulating the current flow. The figure below shows a florescent light tube connected with a ballast resistor and a starting switch.

How do you test a fluorescent ballast?

One probe of the multimeter should touch the hot wire connections, while the other touches the neutral wire connections. If the ballast is good, an analog multimeter has a needle that will sweep to the right across the measuring scale. If the ballast is bad, then the needle won’t move.

How do you know if a fluorescent ballast is bad?

2. Look for warning signs that the ballast is failing.

1. Buzzing. If you hear a strange sound coming from your bulbs or light fixture, like a buzzing or humming noise, that’s often a sign your ballast is going.
2. Dimming or flickering.
3. No lights at all.
4. Changing colors.
5. Swollen casing.
6. Burn marks.
7. Water damage.
8. Leaking oil.

What happens if you put a T12 bulb in a T8 fixture?

If you place T12 tubes in a fixture with a T8 ballast, you will wear out the ballast and have to replace it. If you place T8 tubes in a fixture with a T12 ballast, then the tubes will have a shorter life due to a higher current through the tube.

Can I put T8 bulbs in a T12 fixture?

T8 tubes are simply 1 inch in diameter versus the 1.5 inch diameter of T12 tubes. In an effort to make LED tube lights compatible with the internal dimensions of most fixtures, you will find that most LED tube lights feature a T8 or 1 inch diameter. They can indeed be used in T12 fixtures.

Can I replace a T12 ballast with a T8?

The easiest and lowest price option to replace a T12 is a T8 linear fluorescent. They have become the go-to option for pre-existing T12s. If you still have magnetic ballasts, switching to a T8 will require a ballast swap.

Are T12 bulbs being discontinued?

In effect since July 2012, the legislation eliminates nearly all 4-foot T12 lamps, some 4-foot T8 lamps, most 8-foot T12 lamps, and almost all standard halogen PAR38, PAR30 and PAR20 lamps from the market. T12 technology is over 80 years old.

Will LED tubes work in fluorescent fixtures?

Answer: Great question – and the answer is yes, an LED tube light can be installed in a traditional fluorescent tube light fixture, without the ballast. Bypassing the ballast in a tube light fixture has the advantage of being more energy efficient – you can expect to save another 5 – 10% of energy use per fixture.