Hi,
I need some electrical help. I came across two older flourescent shop light fixtures (2 bulb) – really heavy duty fixtures that you can’t get today. The reflectors alone must weigh 5 lbs. One light in each fixture lights and the other does not or loghts very dimly. both sides work with one bulb. I’m assuming I need to replacve the very old ballasts and I need help wiring them. The old ballasts have three wires coming out of each end and the fixtures have two starters (see diagram). The new Workhorse 5 ballast has a white and black coming out one end and has two red wires grouped together and and another two red and a yellow wire groiuped together coming out the other end. The “guy” at the lighting store said I do not need the startes wioth the new ballast and can get rid of them. Any ideas on how to wire this thing up with teh new ballast, with or wirhout starters?
George
Replies
You will connect both wires on both light sockets at one end of the bulbs together (4 wires to one wire, to yellow) and on the other ends both wires from one of the sockets goes to one red wire from the ballast the other two wires on the other socket connects to another red wire from the ballast . The other 2 red wires get capped with wire nuts (unless there are more than 2 bulbs).
Black and white go to power, and the ballast has to be grounded to start correctly.
You need t8 bulbs with that ballast.
Ballast wiring
Thanks. So this would be the new wiring diagram, right?
Ballast wiring
Thanks. So this would be the new wiring diagram, right?
Not quite, you have to take one red wire to the two wires on the end of one bulb, and one red wire to the two wires on the other bulb. You drew it crisscrossed.
Here's the drawing
http://www.fulham.com:8080/Reseller/Products/Python_Scripts/select_FILE_py?FILE_ID=1053
Yeah, you don't want to use starters anymore, since you can't get the right lamps for them anyway.
Best to toss out (well, recycle -- they're toxic) the ballasts and tombstones and start with everything new if you can. Wire up according to the chart that comes with the ballast. The new ballasts will not wire up like the old ones.