Finding A Replacement Ballast For UV Light

[UKJASE]

Hi Guys, my UV light for my koi pond has stopped working, and the local electrical repair shop tells me it is the ballast that has failed, but he has been unable to locate me a replacement one.  I have emailed the manufacturer of the ballast, and i am awaiting a reply, but i have read since, that they have stopped making these ballasts. 

Does anyone know where i could locate a replacement, or find another ballast that i could use as a substitute?  The guy in the repair shop tried a ballast from a ceiling light, but he said it didn't have the power to fully start the bulb, and it just kept flickering.

 

Here is a photo of the ballast, plus the 55 watt UV bulb it was running.  Thanks in advance if anyone can help :o)

 

 

[tifino]

 

you've probably tried eBay, and to see how expensive they are!! US80++

[bankruatsteve]

Buy a new UV light.  (?)  Not that expensive and probably don't need that type of ballast.

[sezze]

Globalhouse , Homehub or similar has ballasts so i would check there .

[KhunBENQ]

Did you buy this stuff in Thailand?

[UKJASE]

3 hours ago, bankruatsteve said:

Buy a new UV light.  (?)  Not that expensive and probably don't need that type of ballast.

1 hour ago, KhunBENQ said:

Did you buy this stuff in Thailand?

the light is for my koi pond, and comes with lots of casing etc, for the water to pass through, and so the whole set was 5500 baht.  i bought it in JJ market.  i would much rather repair it if i could, rather than buy another, as it is only 1 year old.

Do you guys know, am i able to use another ballast, as i have read that these ones are discontinued.  am i able to match the wattage and the voltage, and swap it for a ballast produced by another company?

[tifino]

there's quite a few videos on youtube about setting up koi ponds.

maybe they have details of lighting too?

[sezze]

11 minutes ago, UKJASE said:

the light is for my koi pond, and comes with lots of casing etc, for the water to pass through, and so the whole set was 5500 baht.  i bought it in JJ market.  i would much rather repair it if i could, rather than buy another, as it is only 1 year old.

Do you guys know, am i able to use another ballast, as i have read that these ones are discontinued.  am i able to match the wattage and the voltage, and swap it for a ballast produced by another company?

I will ask somebody who knows , give you answer tomorrow .

[sezze]

Ok , here the answer i got ,

Ballasts (this is a electronic one , but it doesn't seem to make any difference ) make a high voltage peak ( in your pic you see 600 volts but it can be different ) . The starter of the lamp intermittent lets power through and charges the cfl light to start ionising the gas inside the lamp . However the gas has a his resistance so there the ballast kickes in and uses high voltage to overcome this resistance .

Ok , so far the explanation , now what to get :

Any ballast is fine as long as you stay inside range . In your case 56W to it will be a ballast where the range is like 20 to 60W or something like that .

[Crossy]

I wouldn't attempt to replace an electronic ballast with a conventional one (plus a starter) and I've not seen electronic ballasts in the shops over about 36W.

 

That said, they're cheap enough to try, if it does fire the tube you'll only get 36W of UV, but that's 36W more than you're getting now

 

Or get something from AliExpress http://www.aliexpress.com/item/2pcs-lot-55W-UV-Lamp-Ballast-AC220V/32458199730.html

 

EDIT Dash, that link only works if you're logged in to AliExpress, just go to the main site and search for "UV ballast"

[UKJASE]

3 hours ago, Crossy said:

I wouldn't attempt to replace an electronic ballast with a conventional one (plus a starter) and I've not seen electronic ballasts in the shops over about 36W.

 

That said, they're cheap enough to try, if it does fire the tube you'll only get 36W of UV, but that's 36W more than you're getting now

 

Or get something from AliExpress http://www.aliexpress.com/item/2pcs-lot-55W-UV-Lamp-Ballast-AC220V/32458199730.html

 

EDIT Dash, that link only works if you're logged in to AliExpress, just go to the main site and search for "UV ballast"

 

Thanks for your help guys.  i have the link that you sent Crossy.  Do you think that one would work, as i see the voltage on there is 300V and the one on mine is 600V ?

 

If so, do you think i can order one the same here in Thailand, as the Ali Express delivery time is 13 - 20 days, and my fish are starting to complain that the water is looking like pea soup?

[Crossy]

To be honest UK, I don't know.

 

I would get the biggest electronic ballast you can find in the local outlets and hope it fires the tube (you can always use it in a conventional strip light if it doesn't).

 

Meanwhile get one of those from Ali, or hunt for a 600V one.