New t5 hybrid nonfunctional-please help

[Goubli]

Hello,

I just received my new 61” t5 hybrid fixture and put it together. When I put new bulbs in only one side lights up.

I have done all configurations of bulbs and sockets amd the best I can get is one of the bulbs initially tries to power on and quickly shuts off. Sometimes it is even sort of a flash. The other bulb never even flickers or shows any signs of power.

What is the deal? This thing is brand new out of the box today. Am I missing something? Please help.

 

[Malum Argenteum]

Sounds like a wiring short. New fixture, I'd tell the seller it is DOA and ask them what they're going to do to make it right.

 

[Goubli]

That was sort of my plan but thought I would check here first just in case I missed something. I mean no way the ballast is bad right out of the gate

 

[lakai]

Swap ballasts to see if it works, if it works, then it is the wiring in one of the endcaps for one of the bulbs.

 

[Malum Argenteum]

That was sort of my plan but thought I would check here first just in case I missed something. I mean no way the ballast is bad right out of the gate

I suppose it could be, but whatever the problem it is the seller's responsibility to figure it out and make it right. Heck, maybe the buyer opening it up voids the warranty.

If they ask you to send it back, best get a short video of the glitch before you send it back, just in case you need evidence to make a credit card/PayPal claim.

 

[AquaticLifeProducts]

Sounds like you are describing a bad T5 light bulb. With the bulb flashing and turning off the ballast is trying to fire the lamp but the End of Life protection of the ballast is kicking in and stopping the ballast.

Please see the video links below for the X18 and the Dimmable fixtures. Please note that they use (I) inner sockets and (O) outer sockets. They need to match the end of the lamps they are connected with. Crossed sockets on the same lamp will cause the ballast to act strangely.

X18 and Dimmable fixtures.


Standard fixtures.


You want to follow the steps and label the lamps to prevent mixing them up.

If one lamp is bad, both will not fire. Also, both lamps will need to be installed for the ballast to fire correctly.

 

[Goubli]

When I take the bulbs that work in the working ballast side out and place them in the other side the bulbs do not turn on. Furthermore, all 4 of the bulbs turned on in my old fixture.

Also, only one of the bulbs attempts to initially turn on, the other bulb never flickers.

These were brand new bulbs first installed and working on prior fixture for one month.

 

[AquaticLifeProducts]

I have to check. Too many 61" lamps get damaged and cause the problem you are describing exactly. Customers have returned fixtures for repair and they work fine here with our lamps. Shipping gets expensive if we do not find a defect.

Who did you purchase the fixture from?

Understood on the lamps working prior, the fixture worked too before being packaged and shipped.

Flashing means the ballast is attempting to fire the lamps but is finding a problem and turning off.

 

[Goubli]

Aquarium connection out of Tennessee.
I emailed them essentially my opening post and the reply I got was:
“The fixture is just the mount. What lights are you mounting in it?”

I replied back with explanation of the bulbs I was using but didn’t hear back yet. I wasn’t able to call today before I left work and they are closed so will try tomorrow.

But this seems odd to me. It was definitely a new fixture when I unwrapped it.

 

[Goubli]

Wait-do I need some sort of electrical converter to work this? One side plugs into a wall socket in Arizona and works no issue so I would assume the same for the other side correct?

 

[Goubli]

Nevermind. I followed the videos. It turns out that somehow I got shipped 3(!) bad bulbs. All ati blue +.

I mean what are the chances I put in 3 new bulbs and all are bad? Unreal

 

[Malum Argenteum]

These were brand new bulbs first installed and working on prior fixture for one month.

Furthermore, all 4 of the bulbs turned on in my old fixture.

It turns out that somehow I got shipped 3(!) bad bulbs. All ati blue +.

I mean what are the chances I put in 3 new bulbs and all are bad? Unreal

This doesn't add up.

 

[Goubli]

It does add up but is confusing the way it was typed out. My original bulb order included 4 giesemann tropics, 4 ati B+, and 2 giesemann super actinics.

On my old giesemann fixture I had one of the channels work with one B+ and one tropic. The other tropic and B+ was having issues powering on. I was able to get them to power on but then it would turn off for no reason after about 30 min. I could fiddle w rotating the bulbs and the process repeated. Finally, they wouldn’t come on at all.

In another thread about this, no one suggested the bulbs may be bad. So I ended up replacing the tombstones. That didn’t work. In fact, then I couldn’t get any of them to turn on so we thought it may be ballast.

Long story short I got the new fixture. This is what led to the above scenario in this thread.