David B July 25, 2010 Share July 25, 2010 My wife and I needed to replace the two ballasts that come with the Oceanic Biocube 14g so we purchased replacement parts online. We decided to use one CF ballast to light the two 24w CF bulbs. We got: 2x 24watt compact fluorescents (10000k and an actinic) 1x compact fluorescent electronic ballast 2x linear 4-pin end caps wiring, plug, etc. We wired everything up according to the diagram on the ballast, hooked the lights into the end caps and plugged it in. The bulbs do nothing, then sometimes flicker quickly after a few seconds and then turn off and never light up. Just putting one bulb in doesn't work either. I thought we had wired everything appropriately (after checking and rechecking it). Any ideas what's wrong? Do we have the wrong ballast? Could it be the wiring? I've included a picture of the ballast to show it's details. Thanks for any help! -David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman July 25, 2010 Share July 25, 2010 How did you wire the yellows? The diagram shows 2 reds to one, 2 blues to the other one, then each yellow splits and goes to each bulb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David B July 25, 2010 Author Share July 25, 2010 Yes, it's hard to show in a picture because we're using a couple sets of wires, but both yellows split and connect the two end caps together. Saying this made me realize that maybe some of the wires could be bad, but I figure that's less likely. From reading online if you see a quick flicker sometimes that means the ballast isn't powerful enough to get the gases lit in the bulb, but the specs on this ballast say it can support 2 Lamp 24 Watt Twin Tube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman July 25, 2010 Share July 25, 2010 I have a brand new, never used, PONY 226CFL that will run 2x24w PCs. I bought it from nanatuners.com ($21.95 plus shipping) a while back and just never used it. I can put it in a padded envelope and mail it off to you for $15 shipped if you are interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman July 25, 2010 Share July 25, 2010 Looks like your ballast will run only one 32w CF bulb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David B July 25, 2010 Author Share July 25, 2010 Checkout http://www.lightbulbsdirect.com/page/001/PROD/CF_BA/C2642UNVME000K It shows my ballast and lists that it supports "1 or 2 Lamp 24 Watt Twin Tube". I'd be willing to take your ballast but want to make sure this one wont work first. What do you think? Thanks for the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iceman July 25, 2010 Share July 25, 2010 I always thought it was the CFT type of bulbs we use as opposed to twin tubes like you see in normal lamps. My ballast specifically states for use with two CFT 18w, 24w, or 27w. The listing on your ballast doesn't have CFTs that I can see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David B July 25, 2010 Author Share July 25, 2010 Ahh, ok. I'll take you up on the $15 pony ballast. You want to PM me your PayPal email address? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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