Outside mercury vapor light flickering
Tekkie®
I have a mercury vapor light that turns itself on/off intermittently at night.
I called the electrical contractor that installed it and thought I just needed
the bulb replaced. The owners wife who answers the phone said it could also be
the ballast.
What are the prices of these parts?
Would it be more economical to have them install a new one?
Any estiguess as to labor time? It's about 15' up so they used a ground ladder
and one person to install.
When I purchased it from an electrical supply place (as instructed by the oelec
co owner) I noticed they did not appear to be real durable...
Any ideas as to what a modern alternative would be?
Thanks all!
--
Tekkie
Evan
Lamp/Ballast price depends on what type of lamp and ballast you
are dealing with...
You would need to disassemble the fixture in question to positively
identify the lamp and ballast needed there are just too many different
types and lamp sizes out there to be able to give you specific
advice blind over the internet...
How many hours of the day do you leave the fixture on ?
You will only get x-thousand hours of lamp life out of a light
fixture,
and the same logic applies to ballasts...
~~ Evan
The Daring Dufas
Best color, more natural light will be from a metal halide light.
The most efficient as far a light output will be a high pressure
sodium light but the light is quite yellow. I like the metal halide
lights myself.
TDD
Ed Pawlowski
"Tekkie®" <Tek...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:MPG.275f85321...@news20.forteinc.com...
Cold be the ballast. I just ordered part for a metal halide light and paid
$125. It was easier than replacing the entire fixture and save about $60.
Your local electric supply house may have parts or check them out at
www.mcmaster.com
jamesgangnc
> I have one of these lights, the bulbs flciker when they are getting
> weak. - Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -
It's usually the bulb. Metal Halide fixture will have a ballast
transformer and a capacitor. High pressure sodium will also have a
starter. The parts are pretty cheap online. .
Don Klipstein
>
>I have a mercury vapor light that turns itself on/off intermittently at
>night.
>
>I called the electrical contractor that installed it and thought I just
>needed the bulb replaced. The owners wife who answers the phone said it
>could also be the ballast.
My experience is that over 90% of the time, the cause is the bulb
needing to be replaced.
--
- Don Klipstein (d...@misty.com)
Tekkie®
The electrical contractor was here weeks ahead of expectations.
The existing light was a dusk to dawn mercury vapor.
Owner claimed bulbs are not available because of the magic word "mercury"
Replaced with metal halide fixture and wife is happy.
Waiting for invoice.
Thanks everyone for the replies.
--
Tekkie
The Daring Dufas
I'll bet you like the color of the light from the metal halide fixture. :-)
TDD
cl...@snyder.on.ca
Could be worse - it could be Sodium Vapour - - -
Tony Miklos
Is that the pink/orange type? Very ugly. I didn't want light to light
up the sky so I gutted the fixture and left only the light sensor
circuit in it. Installed a 27? watt CFL and mounted the lamp about 6
feet lower than it was. Perfect! BTW, this dusk to dawn works with a
relay so any lamp will work.
The Daring Dufas
Yellow, is the color of light sodium emits when in plasma form.
TDD
Tekkie®
>
> > The electrical contractor was here weeks ahead of expectations.
> >
> > The existing light was a dusk to dawn mercury vapor.
> >
> > Owner claimed bulbs are not available because of the magic word "mercury"
> >
> > Replaced with metal halide fixture and wife is happy.
> >
> > Waiting for invoice.
> >
> > Thanks everyone for the replies.
> >
>
> I'll bet you like the color of the light from the metal halide fixture. :-)
>
> TDD
I do !
--
Tekkie
Don Klipstein
Not always. High pressure sodium usually glows a whitish orangish
color. There is a variant (not common) that glows a "warm white" color.
It's not that hard to force sodium to produce significant secondary
spectral features, and/or to have its main orange-yellow spectral feature
broadened over a considerable range of the visible spectrum. In extreme
cases, sodium vapor has been known to glow with a daylight-like color.
Don Klipstein
in part:
>Owner claimed bulbs are not available because of the magic word "mercury"
>
>Replaced with metal halide fixture and wife is happy.
Metal halide bulbs contain mercury. So do high pressure sodiums.
The Daring Dufas
Well, now that I think of it, I have to agree with you on the color.
Perhaps dark yellow is what I was thinking? :-)
TDD
JIMMIE
Too late to suggest this to you but if you want an outside light like
that contact your PoCo. Pay $4.00 a maoth. Power to it is not metered
and repairs are free usually next day or two after I call it in.
Initial cost was about $250 spread out over a year of power bills. no
interest.
JImmie
MarkA...@u-guess.com
Klipstein) wrote:
>>Owner claimed bulbs are not available because of the magic word "mercury"
>>
>>Replaced with metal halide fixture and wife is happy.
>
> Metal halide bulbs contain mercury. So do high pressure sodiums.
>--
Correct, Mercury is now banned. In fact the government plans to have
NASA explode the planet Mercury by the year 2012, using several
one-hundred-gigaton nuclear bombs. They said that once the space
debris stops falling in 100 to 300 years, we should all be safe.
Mark
Don Klipstein
>On 12/10/2010 6:00 PM, Don Klipstein wrote:
>> In<idc8e6$ogc$1...@news.eternal-september.org>, The Daring Dufas wrote:
>>> On 12/3/2010 6:56 PM, Tony Miklos wrote:
>>>> On 12/2/2010 11:09 PM, cl...@snyder.on.ca wrote:
<SNIP to color of the light>
>>>>> Could be worse - it could be Sodium Vapour - - -
>>>>
>>>> Is that the pink/orange type? Very ugly. I didn't want light to light up
>>>> the sky so I gutted the fixture and left only the light sensor circuit
>>>> in it. Installed a 27? watt CFL and mounted the lamp about 6 feet lower
>>>> than it was. Perfect! BTW, this dusk to dawn works with a relay so any
>>>> lamp will work.
>>>
>>> Yellow, is the color of light sodium emits when in plasma form.
>>
>> Not always. High pressure sodium usually glows a whitish orangish
>> color. There is a variant (not common) that glows a "warm white" color.
>>
>> It's not that hard to force sodium to produce significant secondary
>> spectral features, and/or to have its main orange-yellow spectral feature
>> broadened over a considerable range of the visible spectrum. In extreme
>> cases, sodium vapor has been known to glow with a daylight-like color.
>
>Well, now that I think of it, I have to agree with you on the color.
>Perhaps dark yellow is what I was thinking? :-)
You may have been thinking of low pressure sodium - orangish yellow and
essentially monochromatic. Things look an orangish yellow version of
black-and-white under those, except for some red fluorescent objects or if
other light is coming in to bring in some color. Reds, greens and blues
tend to look dark - often reducing sensation of illumination.
Also, night vision is less sensitive to sodium light than to a
"photometrically equal" illumination by most other light. This is even
worse with low pressure than with high pressure sodium. This is usually
significant in lower illumination levels common in outdoor lighting at
night.
The Daring Dufas
I've actually dealt with HPS lighting for many years. My first job out
of college some four decades ago was working for an electrical supply
company. I installed a number of HPS lights at a marina some 30 years
ago on light poles that me and the owner fabricated from square steel
tubing. It was a fun project, we installed a number of self contained
50 watt fixtures on the poles around the marina which provided enough
light for safely walking around the place at night. I do believe I have
a 100 watt HPS bulb on top of a cabinet in the next room. I know a
little bit about about 'lectricity and lighting. :-)
TDD
The Daring Dufas
Are they going to get the Lexx and Captain Stanley Tweedle to blow up
the planet Mercury? :-)
TDD
Tekkie®
I had that arrangement years ago but they would only mount it to the street
side pole 100 ft away. Not much good for our purpose. But thanks for the
suggestion!
--
Tekkie Don't bother to thank me, I do this as a public service.
Tekkie®
>
> In article <MPG.2762292e7...@news20.forteinc.com>, Tekkie® wrote
> in part:
>
> >Owner claimed bulbs are not available because of the magic word "mercury"
> >
> >Replaced with metal halide fixture and wife is happy.
>
> Metal halide bulbs contain mercury. So do high pressure sodiums.
And so the answer is? It's like pulling teeth; wait a minute the fillings have
mercury.
--
Tekkie
JIMMIE
>
> - Show quoted text -
WOW FP&L put it up right in my backyard.
Jimmie
adhazelett
--
For full context, visit https://www.homeownershub.com/maintenance/outside-mercury-vapor-light-flickering-607503-.htm
micky
>My mercury vapor light, installed by local electric company MANY years ago, just started blinking off & on intermittently. Since it’s their equipment, shouldn’t they be the ones to repair it?
Mario
> My mercury vapor light, installed by local electric company MANY years
> ago, just started blinking off & on intermittently. Since it’s their
> equipment, shouldn’t they be the ones to repair it?
>
installed? What was the agreement prior/after installation? Is it on
your property?
Tekkie©
On Sat, 13 Feb 2021 06:02:58 +0000, adhazelett posted for all of us to
digest...
>
> My mercury vapor light, installed by local electric company MANY years ago, just started blinking off & on intermittently. Since it�s their equipment, shouldn�t they be the ones to repair it?
It needs to be replaced. Who owns it? You or the PoCo? Is on your meter? Is it
mounted to a pole or one of your buildings? If yours get an LED replacement.
--
Tekkie
Ralph Mowery
> >
> > My mercury vapor light, installed by local electric company MANY years ago, just started blinking off & on intermittently. Since it�s their equipment, shouldn�t they be the ones to repair it?
>
> It needs to be replaced. Who owns it? You or the PoCo? Is on your meter? Is it
> mounted to a pole or one of your buildings? If yours get an LED replacement.
>
>
>
request via the internet to get it repaired. A man came out and
replaced the MV with a LED type. No charge for that. This is for Duke
Energey in NC.
micky
good treatment. And replacing it with something that uses a lot less
eletrity afaik when their business is selling electricity. Is Duke
consumer-owned, perhaps?
Ralph Mowery
@fmguy.com says...
> That's pretty surprising that a light on your property would get such
> good treatment. And replacing it with something that uses a lot less
> eletrity afaik when their business is selling electricity. Is Duke
> consumer-owned, perhaps?
>
>
is on a pole by its self about 25 feet tall and about 150 feet of wire
goes to it from the main line. Duke is not consumer-owned,but is listed
on the stock exchange.
It was out only about 2 days from the time I put in a work order.
Clare Snyder
wrote:
>In alt.home.repair, on Sun, 14 Feb 2021 11:10:33 -0500, Ralph Mowery
><rmow...@charter.net> wrote:
>
>>In article <ijXVH.51535$GN9....@fx46.iad>, Tek...@comcast.net says...
>>>
>>> >
>>> It needs to be replaced. Who owns it? You or the PoCo? Is on your meter? Is it
>>> mounted to a pole or one of your buildings? If yours get an LED replacement.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>About a year ago a tree branch knocked out my outdoor light. Put in a
>>request via the internet to get it repaired. A man came out and
>>replaced the MV with a LED type. No charge for that. This is for Duke
>>Energey in NC.
>
>That's pretty surprising that a light on your property would get such
>good treatment. And replacing it with something that uses a lot less
>eletrity afaik when their business is selling electricity. Is Duke
>consumer-owned, perhaps?
farms and other enterprises on a "flat Rate" basis by the electrical
utility - BEFORE the meter - in which case lower power usage is in the
utility's best interest
Clare Snyder
in Duke's favor to use a low power unit - particularly when it costs
them less than a new mercury lamp / ballast assembly.
Bob F
> On Sun, 14 Feb 2021 18:53:42 -0500, micky <NONONO...@fmguy.com>
> wrote:
>
>> In alt.home.repair, on Sun, 14 Feb 2021 11:10:33 -0500, Ralph Mowery
>> <rmow...@charter.net> wrote:
>>
>>> In article <ijXVH.51535$GN9....@fx46.iad>, Tek...@comcast.net says...
>>>>
>>>>>
>>>> It needs to be replaced. Who owns it? You or the PoCo? Is on your meter? Is it
>>>> mounted to a pole or one of your buildings? If yours get an LED replacement.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> About a year ago a tree branch knocked out my outdoor light. Put in a
>>> request via the internet to get it repaired. A man came out and
>>> replaced the MV with a LED type. No charge for that. This is for Duke
>>> Energey in NC.
>>
>> That's pretty surprising that a light on your property would get such
>> good treatment. And replacing it with something that uses a lot less
>> eletrity afaik when their business is selling electricity. Is Duke
>> consumer-owned, perhaps?
> Used to be common for "dusk to dawn" yard lights to be provided to
> farms and other enterprises on a "flat Rate" basis by the electrical
> utility - BEFORE the meter - in which case lower power usage is in the
> utility's best interest
>
more.
Ralph Mowery
cl...@snyder.on.ca says...
> >That's pretty surprising that a light on your property would get such
> >good treatment. And replacing it with something that uses a lot less
> >eletrity afaik when their business is selling electricity. Is Duke
> >consumer-owned, perhaps?
> Used to be common for "dusk to dawn" yard lights to be provided to
> farms and other enterprises on a "flat Rate" basis by the electrical
> utility - BEFORE the meter - in which case lower power usage is in the
> utility's best interest
>
>
The wires go directly to the main line and there is no meter or off/on
switch other than the light sensor at the top of the pole. I have no
control of it at all. The less the power company has in it and the
power it uses, the more they make. I seem to remember that they are in
the process of changing from MV to LED for all those lights.
The light lights up the back yard. It was here when we bought the house
and at the time I was working about 7 nights a month so my wife wanted
to keep it. Probably should have it cut off now, but I am out in the
country and the only close house is about 200 feet away.