Help! Ballast started smoking all the sudden!

K

Kush28

Active Member
My 1000W hydrofarm magnetic HPS ballast was working fine. But luckily I was in the room earlier when it started making a sizzling noise like it was shorting out, and smoke started pouring out of it. I had to run over to unplug it. If I wasn't here, I believe a fire could have started. :o Does anyone know what may have happened? Has this ever happened to you?
 
tusseltussel

tusseltussel

Well-Known Member
Kush28 said:
My 1000W hydrofarm magnetic HPS ballast was working fine. But luckily I was in the room earlier when it started making a sizzling noise like it was shorting out, and smoke started pouring out of it. I had to run over to unplug it. If I wasn't here, I believe a fire could have started. :o Does anyone know what may have happened? Has this ever happened to you?
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wow that really sucks cant help but i am wondering how old the ballast was. i like to get new equipment every few years but dn't know if that really helps me, i just feel better about it.. glad you were ther to catch it
 
onenumcat

onenumcat

Well-Known Member
wow, sux! I hope you chucked it in the trash...or the recycle center. don't use it anymore! I had a small fire in my upstairs a few years ago...luckily, I have fire insurance, and 3 fire extinguishers around my house and wasn't growing then. fire dept did show up, but they didn't really have anything to do, I had already put it out myself...scary thing that. glad they did though, needed the fire report. insurance co. paid me $5000, as a renter and the owner of my house $3000, that I know of. in your case, if you don't have insurance, you'd probably just go to jail. certainly, if the fire dept show up, they'd report you for growing.
get insurance, if you ain't got it...growing is a fire hazarrd, even if we're careful. at the least, buy a min of 2 extinguishers, of any size. keep one in the grow area and one farther away.

P.S. did you figure out what the cause was? condensation comes to mind...faulty wiring...corrosion, caused by moisture...a short, caused by some loose/free piece of metal inside...
 
panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
onenumcat said:
P.S. did you figure out what the cause was? condensation comes to mind...faulty wiring...corrosion, caused by moisture...a short, caused by some loose/free piece of metal inside...
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Im pretty sure that most modern ballasts are approved for damp location operation,i know for a fact that hydrofarm ballasts are.

Not to hijack the thread but it's a good idea to pull off the protective covers on all ballasts once every grow,then blow out everything with compressed air & wipe the inside of the outer case clean,not forgetting not to touch anything inside the ballast & to visually inspect all components for any signs of corrosion or smoke burn before putting the cover back on.
 
tusseltussel

tusseltussel

Well-Known Member
panhead said:
Im pretty sure that most modern ballasts are approved for damp location operation,i know for a fact that hydrofarm ballasts are.

Not to hijack the thread but it's a good idea to pull off the protective covers on all ballasts once every grow,then blow out everything with compressed air & wipe the inside of the outer case clean,not forgetting not to touch anything inside the ballast & to visually inspect all components for any signs of corrosion or smoke burn before putting the cover back on.
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great advice im gonna chk mine next week when i will be starting anew

I will be sure to do it safely
 
onenumcat

onenumcat

Well-Known Member
panhead said:
Im pretty sure that most modern ballasts are approved for damp location operation,i know for a fact that hydrofarm ballasts are.

Not to hijack the thread but it's a good idea to pull off the protective covers on all ballasts once every grow,then blow out everything with compressed air & wipe the inside of the outer case clean,not forgetting not to touch anything inside the ballast & to visually inspect all components for any signs of corrosion or smoke burn before putting the cover back on.
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it was probably caused by something else, in that case. lots o ppl use some ballasts from other sources and eras...look at these...lol, and those are just a few I've seen :shock:. (personally, I think they're just begging for a fire!)
https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/154082-help-ballast-mh-light-setup.html
https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/148952-400w-mh-ballast-wiring-help.html
that's just good advise, not hijacking...thanks.
 
onenumcat

onenumcat

Well-Known Member
tusseltussel said:
great advice im gonna chk mine next week when i will be starting anew

I will be sure to do it safely
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remember, a ballast can hold electricity for a while after you turn it off. to be really safe, wait several minutes after switching it off and unplugging it from the power outlet before removing the case. stay well.
 
tusseltussel

tusseltussel

Well-Known Member
onenumcat said:
remember, a ballast can hold electricity for a while after you turn it off. to be really safe, wait several minutes after switching it off and unplugging it from the power outlet before removing the case. stay well.
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yea i know about that and probably will have it unpluged for 2 weeks b4 i mess with it im goin out of town for a wedding and it just works out that i harvest just befor i gotta go so im shutting down til i get back and even than i plan to be extra carful
 
panhead

panhead

Well-Known Member
onenumcat said:
it was probably caused by something else, in that case. lots o ppl use some ballasts from other sources and eras...look at these...lol, and those are just a few I've seen :shock:. (personally, I think they're just begging for a fire!)
https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/154082-help-ballast-mh-light-setup.html
https://www.rollitup.org/grow-room-design-setup/148952-400w-mh-ballast-wiring-help.html
that's just good advise, not hijacking...thanks.
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Good god,i looked at them threads ,i wonder how those guys are doing.
 
OregonMeds

OregonMeds

Well-Known Member
After several years the insulation on a magnetic ballasted light will break down and then the coils in the transformer will short, causing smoke until it either burns itself open (no electricity any more) or blows a breaker somewhere. If you placed your ballast in a safe location the odds of fire are low, there's just not enough burneable material in one to really do much other than blow itself out. Setting them on a piece of drywall or other non flammable material and a foot away from anything flammable will always save you from fire... (for those paranoid people...)


But you are usually talking more than 20 years for that insulation to break down. If it went sooner then it may have been defective since day one or you may have been running it too hot for quite a while with inadequate airflow, dust and junk all in it, or driving really really old bulbs all the time.

If you want to check an old ballast to see if it's safe, just see if the insulation flakes off the wires or off the transformer when you touch it. If it doesn't flake off then it's still ok. It is a good idea to blow them out from time to time, and check the insulation if you are concerned. They won't hold a charge beyond 30 minutes either, you don't have to wait weeks to work on it. It's not transformers that hold a charge anyway, it's capacitors.
 
onenumcat

onenumcat

Well-Known Member
OregonMeds said:
They won't hold a charge beyond 30 minutes either, you don't have to wait weeks to work on it. It's not transformers that hold a charge anyway, it's capacitors.
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that guy is going on vacation, for two weeks. he will unplug the ballast cuz nobody is home, probably. I doubt he, or anyone else, thinks the ballast will hold electricity for all that time...:bigjoint:
 
tusseltussel

tusseltussel

Well-Known Member
onenumcat said:
that guy is going on vacation, for two weeks. he will unplug the ballast cuz nobody is home, probably. I doubt he, or anyone else, thinks the ballast will hold electricity for all that time...:bigjoint:
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thats right i wont be home so im just shuttin down evrything but a cfl to keep a mother goin
 
tusseltussel

tusseltussel

Well-Known Member
onenumcat said:
I got yer back tussel! lol

:leaf:
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word> thanks...

might i add that those links you put up really made me uncomfortable im really worried about those guys... i always figure it would be the worst to get busted for growing because you set your house on fire... growing equipment is nothing to mess with i always buy new equipment every few years because im parinoid about it and these guys are takin ballasts out and useind extension cords and re wirein shit that looks like it could light up at any time
 
onenumcat

onenumcat

Well-Known Member
well said, I agree completely. all my stuff is new and wired with the connectors included in the package. of course, I do understand some ppl just don't have the money...
 
KP2

KP2

Well-Known Member
your ballast is old, and shorted. i've had old magnetrons burn up the same. if your ballasts are on something fireproof and away from combustibles, it will smoke, and trip the gfi recepticle (if you're using one) or trip the breaker (if you're using a pannel) or blow the fuse (if running fuse box not rigged with a copper penny {VERY VERY VERY DANGEROUS!!!!!!}). it will not start a fire.
 
sighmon

sighmon

Well-Known Member
i think a quote from family guy went something like: "...and all people who say 'all the sudden' (instead of all OF A sudden) shall be put to death." anyway, i agree don't use that fire magnet if it's smoking.
 
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