120 V starters for fluorescent lights

[Adam Funk]

I have a couple of fluorescent light fittings in the house, each containing two fairly standard tubes and two 120 volt starters. I know the starters need to be 120 volt ones because I discovered a few years ago that 240 volt ones won't start the lights.

I think I need some new starters again, but every electrical & lighting shop I've tried so far doesn't have them, and a quick WWW search only shows them in the USA (where they are obviously useful).

Are double-tube fittings wired this way obsolete now?

[Andrew Mawson]

I needed some 120v ones recently (for a fly killer that uses two uv tubes in series) and found some on ebay fairly easily.

AWEM

[Heliotrope Smith]

Adam Funk wrote in news:8udj59xdsg.ln2 @news.ducksburg.com:

I think FS2 starters are what you need. Have a look here.

Posted via news://freenews.netfront.net/ - Complaints to [e-mail]

[Martin Brown]

Have you been able to find a supplier of the the old style magnetic chokes these things seem to use? I have two dead fly killers where the fluoros 2x 110vac magnetic ballast has burned out. The only place I could find online advertising them did not in fact have any stock :(

[NT]

If you tell us the tube specs, the problem should be solvable.

Its odd to have 2x 110v ballasts, 1x 240v one for the pair is more normal.

NT

[Martin Brown]

Sorry to mislead that was from memory. The dead units are sat in the garage. It is on checking it is a single choke driving two 18" 15W tubes in series each with their own starter. The choke is marked Yongxin Dy-30

220-240 50Hz 2x15W 18" tubes and they are absolute crap.

Two flykillers failed about a month after their warrantee ran out in exactly the same way - the choke is now open circuit. The HT zapper still works fine but the flies don't visit without the blue light lure.

[Andrew Gabriel]

Twin tube 18W/24" single ballast is one of the most commonly used commercially, and starters used in these will be easily available from any electrical wholesaler, or a good retail lighting store. These are normally rated for 4-22W, but using starters as you go lower down that power range becomes more wearing on the tubes, and you will get short tube life, particularly if switched on/off frequently. You might want to consider completely removing the starters and ballast and replace with electronic control gear suitable for those tubes.

Meanwhile, you could replace the tubes with a piece of raw chicken, and you'll probably find the zapper is 10 times more effective than it used to be...

[Martin Brown]

I am unsure how the full electronic ballasts would work with a pair of tubes in series like this - fluoro lighting gear really isn't my thing. I just identify the dead part and try to replace like with like.

It is intrinsic that they will be switched on and off once per day.

I don't think the village hall committee would like that solution. I confess I am half tempted to try a pair of 3W blue LEDs instead.

[Andrew Gabriel]

The wavelength used by most insects to navigate is actually in the UV just outside our visible range, although insects can see our visible blue, and to a lesser extent, our green too. I suspect the zapper tubes are matched to this spectrum, but an LED won't be. Also, an insect needs to see a large area of light, not a small intense dot. Blue LEDs are a health risk to human eyes, so considering all this, I would not suggest you try using a blue LED.

[Adam Funk]

Modern proverb: "you can catch more flies with chicken than you can with vinegar"?

[NT]

You just need a 30w iron lump ballast for that. I would also go the electronic route, take 2x CFL 15w ballasts, use one to run each lamp. Glue tiny heatsinks onto the trannies in the ballasts and they should last a very long time.

I found a small bare halogen capsule lamp worked well to attract flies.

NT