Junk Chinese Ballasts - Electrician Talk - Professional Electrical Contractors Forum

MDShunk · 06-28-2007, 05:51 PM

I hate customer supplied fixtures, but I put them up anyhow. I used to run into a lot of "Heng Fen Heavy Industries" ballasts, and they were absolute junk. If you put up a fixture with one of those in, you might as well toss a coin to determine if the fixture would work or not. A customer supplied me with 6 strips today that had a new type of junk Chinese ballast. "Wuxi HengFeng Electronic Products". I suspect these are the same people. Out of 6 fixtures, one had a totally DOA ballast and another failed to fully illuminate any pair of lamps I put in it. Four worked out of six. For how long, though? That will be the question. Keep your eyes peeled for these, and warn your customer ahead of time if you care to:

yanici · 06-28-2007, 08:38 PM

Can't buy their fish, toothpaste or lights. Darn and I'm real fond of Chinese food. That'll be next.

BTW, I thought all t-12 fluorescents were being phased out. Nobody puts them in anymore and I was told that the t-12 ballasts won't be available in the future. Did I get bad skinny?

MDShunk · 06-28-2007, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yanici

BTW, I thought all t-12 fluorescents were being phased out. Nobody puts them in anymore and I was told that the t-12 ballasts won't be available in the future. Did I get bad skinny?

I think that is true. 2020 was the date that sticks in my mind. I only install T8's if I provide them, and when I come across failed ballasts, I try to upsell a T8 conversion whenever I can.

Skkitzzo · 10-01-2007, 10:48 PM

Oh my i have a feeling it would be a long day if i had to install those, lukily customers out here let us do the shopping, its all about Advanced ballasts with us

Skkitzzo · 10-01-2007, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yanici

Can't buy their fish, toothpaste or lights. Darn and I'm real fond of Chinese food. That'll be next.

BTW, I thought all t-12 fluorescents were being phased out. Nobody puts them in anymore and I was told that the t-12 ballasts won't be available in the future. Did I get bad skinny?

Im not sure of an exact time frame but the our lightning supplier tells me t-12s ballasts are going to be real hard to come by soon. Its been a while since ive installed a brand new t-12, we usually steer customers clear of em

frank · 10-02-2007, 12:12 PM

Change of subject. But - do you still install starter operated fluorescent fittings in the US. Ballast varieties would not normaly be installed in the UK in a domestic or semi commercial situation.

Frank

MDShunk · 10-02-2007, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frank

Change of subject. But - do you still install starter operated fluorescent fittings in the US. Ballast varieties would not normaly be installed in the UK in a domestic or semi commercial situation.

Frank

Yeah, every now and again I'll get a new fixture that takes a starter. They're pretty much a thing of the past, however. I mostly do service, so I have to keep the common starters on the truck for the countless old fixtures that exist. When the starter type ballasts go bad, I normally replace them with a rapid start ballast if there's room in the fixture. People don't realize that when their fluorescent lamps go bad, if they don't replace them relatively soon or leave the fixture turned off, the starter will work itself into oblivion. Normally when a starter is bad, so is the lamp. The failed lamp normally is what took out the starter to begin with.

Bkessler · 10-02-2007, 11:50 PM

I would be careful with those chinese ballast, not because their not reliable but because thats probably leaded black paint on the casing!

rbj · 10-23-2007, 12:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bkessler

I would be careful with those chinese ballast, not because their not reliable but because thats probably leaded black paint on the casing!

Yeh, and the burnt mercury in the tube doesn't help either.

Norcal · 11-30-2007, 01:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frank

Change of subject. But - do you still install starter operated fluorescent fittings in the US. Ballast varieties would not normaly be installed in the UK in a domestic or semi commercial situation.

Frank

When I was in Germany in May 2006 found it surprising how many fixtures had starters in them, here wide spread use of them ended in the 1960s other then low end(cheap)/ smaller fixtures.

HighWirey · 11-30-2007, 02:15 PM

Marc said "I hate customer supplied fixtures"

Been there, done almost that same thing . . .

Had a missle launch tower demolition project. The project was to provide tempory illumination in the elevator equipment room. The engineer, in his infinite wisdom, saved his company some money by providing six 'box store', two lamp 'shop lights'.

They were 'Hecho'ed in China', and what pieces of crap they were! Problem here was the keystones. Seems like the phase of the moon, and every other influence, caused a no light situation! I could count on a message from that engineer every morning!

Must be how he got his exercise, checkin' on those fixtures before work, and calling me! (just to access the jobsight required travel, and a 15 minute, one-way walk up, longer if you smoked).

Journeyman at the time made $30 plus 40% burden, before OH and profit. Profit? Oh - I remember that

.

Seems like we have 20-20 recall on the loosers . . .

Marc, sorry to have butchered your name in times passed. I'm about to straighten up!

Best Wishes