- Buzzing. If you hear a strange sound coming from your bulbs or light fixture, like a buzzing or humming noise, that’s often a sign your ballast is going. ...
- Dimming or flickering. ...
- No lights at all. ...
- Changing colors. ...
- Swollen casing. ...
- Burn marks. ...
- Water damage. ...
- Leaking oil.
What is the most common reason for fluorescent lamp failure?
Loss of Mercury
Or, the mercury can be even be absorbed by the glass tube itself or the electrodes on either end. Since fluorescent lamps are now being made with lower amounts of mercury than in the past, this has now become a much more common problem for the failure of the fixtures.
What causes a fluorescent light to go out?
A dead fluorescent can be caused by lack of electrical power (tripped breaker or blown fuse), a dead or dying ballast, a dead starter or a dead bulb(s). ... defective starters, defective bulbs or a defective ballast. IMPORTANT: Flickering fluorescent tubes can cause the ballast to overheat and fail prematurely!
What do you do if your fluorescent light doesn’t work?
If a fluorescent tube neither lights nor flickers when switched on, first check to see that the fixture is plugged in and that no fuse has blown or circuit breaker has tripped . If this does not help, try wiggling the tube gently in its sockets by rocking it back and forth and from side to side.
How can you tell if a fluorescent light ballast is bad?
One probe of the multimeter should touch the hot wire connections, while the other touches the neutral wire connections. If the ballast is good, an analog multimeter has a needle that will sweep to the right across the measuring scale. If the ballast is bad, then the needle won’t move .
Do you need an electrician to change a ballast?
Yes . As a matter of fact, you do need a lock out tag out device in place for changing a ballast. ... ‘An electrician is replacing the ballast on a fluorescent light.
How much does it cost to replace a ballast?
The average cost of ballast replacement is $150 for materials and labor. Materials cost an average of $27.50, and labor costs at least $100 to install a ballast replacement. Homeowners often spend $35 per ballast for programmed-start ballast installation and labor.
How long do electronic ballasts last?
According to the Certified Ballast Manufacturers Association, the average magnetic ballast lasts about 75,000 hours, or 12 to 15 years with normal use.
How many hours does a fluorescent tube last?
Fluorescent lights age significantly if they are frequently switched on and off. Typical lamp life for a fluorescent bulb is about 20,000 hours , but this can degrade as a consequence of frequent switching (turning on and off).
What does it mean when a fluorescent light turns pink?
Loss of Mercury
As you know, all fluorescent lamps include a small amount of mercury liquid inside them. ... When a fluorescent lamp is beginning to lose its mercury, you can tell as the light it emits will begin to look pink.
Why wont my fluorescent bulbs work?
Troubleshooting dead or flickering fluorescents... could be a bulb, the starter or the ballast!! A dead fluorescent can be caused by lack of electrical power (tripped breaker or blown fuse), a dead or dying ballast, a dead starter or a dead bulb(s). ... When all else fails, the ballast should be replaced.
Why has my strip light stopped working?
Bad Pin Connection – If your LED strip light fails to turn on at all, then check your pin connections. Most likely, the pin is not inserted correctly. In rare cases, the pin is faulty. ... If your RGB strip lights won’t change colors try flipping your strip light around and reconnecting it.
What happens when fluorescent ballast goes bad?
When your fluorescent light flickers or makes a loud and annoying hum, a degrading ballast is the cause. The ballast takes in electricity and then regulates current to the bulbs . A typical ballast will generally last about 20 years, but cold environments and bad bulbs can decrease this lifespan significantly.
How do you test an electronic ballast?
To measure it, set your digital multimeter to around a thousand ohms resistance setting . Connect the black leads to the white ground wire on your ballast. Afterward, test every other wire with the red lead. When you do this test, a good ballast will return an “open-loop” or max resistance.
