Lights out!!

[MizTanks]

Got up this a.m. and it's white lights are out. Changed all 4 bulbs last night and I think they were working fine. But now that I think about it, maybe not. I thought they looked a little dim but figured it was the new coral plus I added. Guess not.

This is the AquaticLife 4x24w t5ho. It has digital switch with 3 settings. Number 1 setting is the one that's out and it's also the one I use to run the whites.

I thought that maybe I got a couple bad bulbs. Switched em back out for the new/older ones and when I turned it on, 1 bulb blinked but did not remain on. The other did nothing. Tried it again, switching back to the new bulbs. Turned it on and the one blinked again but didn't remain on.

Is this a possible ballast issue? One other question. I can run 2x bulbs but how long am I looking at before my corals start to feel the pinch? I'm running 1x aquablue special 12k and 1x blue plus. Or should I run 2x white and forget about the blue for now?

[larryandlaura]

I would run two aquablue special bulbs, while you wait for aquaticlife to send you a new ballast. The one good thing about there fixtures are the parts are readily available and easy to replace. Your softies should be fine and the Sps should be ok for a week while you wait for the part.

[MizTanks]

Sounds good. Thanks Larry :)

[larryandlaura]

Anytime Jamie :)!

[AquaticLife]

Hello Jaime,

It almost sounds like the end of life protection kicking in. We have a feature in our fixtures where if the ballast detects that a bulb is bad, or is going bad it will shut down both of the bulbs connected to that ballast. This will insure that the ballast does not get burned out by a faulty lamp. Normally the light will flash quicly and then shut off to notify you of this. Feel free to give us a call and we can trouble shoot a bit.

Thanks,
James

888-548-3480

[MizTanks]

Hi James

This happened while I was replacing the old bulbs. I turned unit off. Removed all old bulbs. Replaced them all with ATI 24w HO. Turned the unit on and only the blues fired up. However 1 white flickered but the other remained off completely.

[MizTanks]

Awesome customer service from James at Aquaticlife! New ballast on its way even though my warranty ran out a couple weeks ago. Simply wonderful! Thanks again James!

[MizTanks]

Received new ballast! However the red/blue harnesses cannot be accessed inside the fixture :( actually you can't even see them. Unlike the black/white and yellow which are visible and easily accessed.
What to do now?

[jimsflies]

Did you call AquaticLife? I'm sure they will walk you through it or come up with a solution.

[MizTanks]

Yup. Left a message as they're in a different time zone. 4hrs behind me and they close at 4:00.

[Tom@HaslettMI]

I have never looked at one of these fixtures before so I don't have a specific recommendation. But, is it possible to disassemble the fixture further?

Tom

[MizTanks]

Im sure there is. But do I wanna risk messing something up, no. I did try removing the end plates. 1 came off fine yet the other one has 2 alan screws that are partially stripped. My bit wont make a tight fit and I don't want to strip it further.

I watched their on-line video on how to change the ballasts out. Very simple. But of course my wiring looks nothing like the ones in the video. Access wise. When it was assembled the wire harnesses were tucked away so tightly that I can't get to them.

[Tom@HaslettMI]

No way to "un-tuck"?

Tom

[MizTanks]

Nope and I've tried, believe me!

[MizTanks]

Lights all fixed! New ballast in :)