Light keeps cutting out???

neonknight420 · Dec 31, 2013

I am running a 400w HPS and after light has been on for about 6hours it just cuts out. I thought that my timer might need replacing so I bought a new one and still cutting off. I then changed my bulb, and the next day it still cut out. So now I'm thinking it prob is my ballast. I have a magnetic ballast thats about 3 years old. It's showing no signs of going out no humming it's not flickering or running too hot. I forgot to mention that it is a 6'' air cooled hood with a 453cfm vortex pulling through it. Never had any probs before with my house been growing here for 5 years. Any help would be appreciated. :wall:

jimmer6577 · Dec 31, 2013

It sounds like you diagnosed yourself all ready, maybe a short in your cords.

spek9 · Dec 31, 2013

What do you have to do to get the ballast to refire?

-spek

neonknight420 · Dec 31, 2013

spek9 said:
What do you have to do to get the ballast to refire?

-spek

Ballast refires with no prob, I just hit the on/off button and fires right up. I checked my cords etc.. don't see any signs of anything wrong.

ramie auto · Dec 31, 2013

mine was doing same and after replacing numerous fuses i put tinfoil around the ends of fuse on the plug and never had a problem since

fir3dragon · Dec 31, 2013

My ballast did the same thing.. I use a phantom ballast and come to find out one of the pins on my timer was slightly pushed in....

mysunnyboy · Dec 31, 2013

imo you just have to reset it by powering it off and leaving it off for a few. that resets the ballast. i had one 600w do the same thing :eyesmoke:

neonknight420 · Dec 31, 2013

mysunnyboy said:
imo you just have to reset it by powering it off and leaving it off for a few. that resets the ballast. i had one 600w do the same thing

Done it many times, unplug it for about two min and refire. Comes back on for several hours cuts back out. I'm almost six weeks into flowering can't have this stress on my plants.

fir3dragon · Dec 31, 2013

neonknight420 said:
Done it many times, unplug it for about two min and refire. Comes back on for several hours cuts back out. I'm almost six weeks into flowering can't have this stress on my plants.

What kind of ballast? If it's a cheap one then that's why...

neonknight420 · Dec 31, 2013

fir3dragon said:
What kind of ballast? If it's a cheap one then that's why...

It's a Sun System 10 magnetic

Notyourpuppet · Dec 31, 2013

neonknight420 said:
I am running a 400w HPS and after light has been on for about 6hours it just cuts out. I thought that my timer might need replacing so I bought a new one and still cutting off. I then changed my bulb, and the next day it still cut out. So now I'm thinking it prob is my ballast. I have a magnetic ballast thats about 3 years old. It's showing no signs of going out no humming it's not flickering or running too hot. I forgot to mention that it is a 6'' air cooled hood with a 453cfm vortex pulling through it. Never had any probs before with my house been growing here for 5 years. Any help would be appreciated.

Perhaps a deviation in electricity is reseting the ballast. Maybe something is drawing power on the circuit the light is on. Just sayn'.

neonknight420 · Dec 31, 2013

Notyourpuppet said:
Perhaps a deviation in electricity is reseting the ballast. Maybe something is drawing power on the circuit the light is on. Just sayn'.

I thought about that I'm just trying to eliminate things as I go along. I been running this same system for a while now in the same house with no problems till now.

Notyourpuppet · Jan 1, 2014

I also had a breaker go bad once and the symptom was that the kitchen light would go off and on at random. I hope you figure it out, I'd be freakin'

SnapsProvolone · Jan 1, 2014

Capacitors are cheap to replace and are often the cause of this type failure (cycling).

jarvild · Jan 1, 2014

SnapsProvolone said:
Capacitors are cheap to replace and are often the cause of this type failure (cycling).

Have to agree with snaps. Just had to replace my sunsystem 1 430 watt cap earlier this year. Light would fire but wasn't putting out enough light.

Applepie/vanilla icecream · Jan 1, 2014

ramie auto said:
mine was doing same and after replacing numerous fuses i put tinfoil around the ends of fuse on the plug and never had a problem since

Be careful Dude........ Fuses are designed to do just that....BLOW....when there is a surge or some shit going on with crappy wiring or something. Wrapping tinfoil will/or could only cause wires to heat up and the next thing could be a guy in a red truck with a big hose pulling up to your house. Please don't every do that Man. :mrgreen:

FilthyFletch · Jan 1, 2014

I have had this happen before and it was a bad mogul socket in the hood. When it ran and heated up the aluminum inside expanded lost contact and shut the light off. Then like you a restart had it come back on. Didnt always happen but I swapped the mogul socket in the hood and never happened again. Had this happen twice in 20 years.

neonknight420 · Jan 1, 2014

FilthyFletch said:
I have had this happen before and it was a bad mogul socket in the hood. When it ran and heated up the aluminum inside expanded lost contact and shut the light off. Then like you a restart had it come back on. Didnt always happen but I swapped the mogul socket in the hood and never happened again. Had this happen twice in 20 years.

That was on my to do list, thanks.

neonknight420 · Jan 1, 2014

SnapsProvolone said:
Capacitors are cheap to replace and are often the cause of this type failure (cycling).

On these swichable ballast hps/mh do they have sepperate capacitors or just one for both.

SnapsProvolone · Jan 1, 2014

neonknight420 said:
On these swichable ballast hps/mh do they have sepperate capacitors or just one for both.

One capacitor. The hps mode adds the igniter to the circuit.

Light keeps cutting out???

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