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Low Pressure Sodium with CFL Ballast
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I copied yuandrew's setup from here
and it works great.
18 watt SOX lamp connected to a Fulham Workhorse WH2-120-C CFL ballast, about $16.00 US.
The ballast starts it right up, warms up quickly, and both the ballast and lamp are cool to the touch.
I've run it in my office every day now for over a month.
My Kill-o-watt tells me 0.15 amp draw, 17-18watts. I'm currently scrounging for a DIY housing. Working now on a 90 watt LPS.
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There are also other ways to power up the LPS......but why are you using a photocell taped up? You can go without a photocell unless you are actually using the photocell to turn off when sun goes up..
By the way I fixed your description to make your URL clickable....
Most of the LPS lamps takes 9-15 mins to warm up with the correct ballasts.
Thing that i don't understand about LPS and it is why their electrodes aren't preheated before the ignition, or at least heated during it, like in fluorescent lamps, and the lamps just ignited in the manner of HID lamps (With superimposed or semi-parallel ignitors, instead of glow starters or electronic starters that operates in the manner of that of the fluorescents).
The photocell is an old one I had laying around that will be used with it when I will eventually mount this on a pole in the backyard, the tape is so it runs during the day in my office for now.
This thing warms up in about 11 minutes.
I have another 18watt LPS that uses the standard L69 ballast, that one draws 1.05 amps and 32watts. I like this setup better, time will tell how long it will last.
Well expereimenting can help us learn things too...I sorta found using F32T8 one lamp electronic ballast kinda underdrive but 2 lamp F32T8 with the two red wires connected and two blue wires connected seemed to overdrive the 18 watt version...
you could tell if its overdriven by faster warmup and the sodium is a bit way too liquidy when you move the lamp a bit...while in operation....I have an old pic I will look for to show the surprising results!
I also used an Advance Smartmate Programmed start electronic ballast that runs a few types of fluorecent lamps, which powers 2 lamps such as two 42 watt triple, two 32 watt triple, two 26 watt quad, two 26 watt triple and it also can do a few other lamps like one 40 watt T5 circline, two 24/27 long twin tube. I tried powering up TWO 18 watt LPS lamps on it and it seemed to work fairly well!
It will do 3 F32T8 with line current 0.93A