Magnetic Ballast For Fluorescent Lamp

Fluorescent lamps almost always experience color variation and fading.

Magnetic ballast for fluorescent lamp.

The ballast is used to create the voltage and current necessary to start and illuminate the fluorescent lamp. Magnetic fixtures required a separate starter to kick start the flow of. Magnetic ballasts are the older ballast technology. When magnetic ballasts break it is often blamed on the bulb.

The ballast provides enough voltage to start the fluorescent bulbs and once they are started it quickly lowers the current to produce just enough electricity to produce a steady light source. Older fluorescent light fixtures utilized a magnetic ballast to control the flow of electricity through the light bulbs. The middle is a low power factor preheat ballast for a single 30 40 w lamp while the bottom ballast is a simple inductor used with a 15 w preheat lamp. And there are two types of ballasts in each family.

After mounting the new ballast replace the ballast compartment cover and bulbs and it should be good for another 20 years. Some older types have starters too. There are two lamp families that work with a ballast. Confirm that the new ballast matches the old one photo below and then install it as shown in photo 4.

Photos 2 and 3 show how to remove the old ballast from the fluorescent light fixture. Due to the very high frequency you will not see the lights flickering and will not hear a buzzing sound from fluorescent lamps using electronic ballasts. Ballast compatible plug and play or direct drop in led tubes make upgrading to cost saving long life led technology easy. Dim light or low lumen output is almost always the cause of one of two things.

So at different stages of the lamp s life different light levels will be produced. Signs that your magnetic ballast has broken. The top is a high power factor rapid start series ballast for two 30 40 w lamps. In time the ballast may need to be replaced.

A quick way to determine if your fluorescent fixtures will work with direct drop in led tubes. For the fluorescent family both t12 linear fluorescents and two pin cfls use magnetic ballasts. They re often a feature of lighting that s activated by motion detection sensors for example toilets in workplaces or public venues and allows the fluorescent light to last for a long time. Simply take the fluorescent tubes out of your fixture and put the led tubes in.

While magnetic ballasts in fluorescent lamps work at a frequency of 60hz electronic ballasts greatly increase that frequency to 20 000hz.