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Help - Light Won't Go On (think Transformer Issue) How Do I Get Replacement?!

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Offline Zo75

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Help - Light won't go on (think transformer issue) how do I get replacement?!
« on: August 06, 2013, 07:42:39 PM »
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Hi

Finally got my Siamese Fighter Fish today, got home, got him aquainted with water etc, left light off for an hour, went to turn light on, oh! :(  :o  No light.  I had noticed something making an occasional cracking earlier in the day (we hardly have light on at all now due to algae issue so not sure why it's decided to pack up today).

We've had the tank (Superfish Aqua 60, AC: 220-240V/50Hz, Tube 24W PL) for almost 4 years, replace the bulbs when needed but this is definitely not the bulb, cable looks fairly old.

There is a grey box that the wire goes through before it gets to the light, is this the transformer?  Is it possible to replace this?  Where do we get one from?  Or do we need a whole new tank? What do we do? Help!  Really want to look at my pretty new siamese fighter  :'(

Many thanks

Zoe
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Offline SteveS

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Re: Help - Light won't go on (think transformer issue) how do I get replacement?!
« Reply #1 on: August 06, 2013, 09:02:28 PM »
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The grey box is called a ballast.  If it has gone you should be able to get a replacement, either from superfish directly or through your lfs.

Failing that, you can get them from specialist suppliers. Many of these have a presence on the web. I can't point to you toward a specific replacement because you don't give enough detail, but here is a place that sells loads of them.
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Angelfish (1) - Panda Cory (10) - Harlequin Rasbora (10) - Otocinclus (10) - Japonica Shrimp (10) - Honey Gourami (10) - Galaxy Rasbora (10) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Zo75

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Re: Help - Light won't go on (think transformer issue) how do I get replacement?!
« Reply #2 on: August 06, 2013, 09:34:48 PM »
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Hi Steve

Thanks for your reply.  Please could you type the website out for me as I can't get the link to work.  Many thanks  ;)
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Offline SteveS

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Re: Help - Light won't go on (think transformer issue) how do I get replacement?!
« Reply #3 on: August 06, 2013, 09:50:50 PM »
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NO! I hate typing  :) I've fixed the link instead. Sorry.
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Angelfish (1) - Panda Cory (10) - Harlequin Rasbora (10) - Otocinclus (10) - Japonica Shrimp (10) - Honey Gourami (10) - Galaxy Rasbora (10) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes

Offline Zo75

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Re: Help - Light won't go on (think transformer issue) how do I get replacement?!
« Reply #4 on: August 07, 2013, 11:12:36 AM »
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Thanks,  we dried unit out as water had got in through the end of casing where it had warped. Tried plugging baxk in this morning but no luck. How do we ascertain if it's definitely the ballast? Don't want to buy one and find it's not that causing failure. Is it better to just go for completely new light, if so how do we fix it to the hood? Do all lights hsve standard fitting?

Thanks for your help  :)

Zoe
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Offline SteveS

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Re: Help - Light won't go on (think transformer issue) how do I get replacement?!
« Reply #5 on: August 07, 2013, 12:46:38 PM »
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There's not a lot that can go wrong with fluorescent lights.  The things that can go wrong, you should be able to eliminate.
  • The fuse. This is the obvious first step. You should have some spare fuses  :) (You should always have spare fuses)!
  • The bulb is the obvious second step. You said originally that it wasn't the bulb. How do you know?
  • The ballast is the next bet. This is relatively expensive to test unless you happen to have one sitting round (Unlikely, I know) You may have one in another light fitting that's suitable, but it's not very likely either.
  • The switch.  Switches do fail, especially if there has been water around them.
  • The wiring. Ditto as for switches.
  • The socket. My tank is running on an extension at the moment because the spur to the 13A socket has failed and I haven't got round to getting a little man in yet!

So, given all that, what I would do is:
  • Change the fuse
  • Plug something else into the socket
  • Change the bulb
  • Unplug it and test the continuity of all the wiring. I have a multimeter for this, but you can cobble something together using a torch and a bit of wiring

If all that checks out, it is almost certainly the ballast.

If you would rather replace the light. Do lights have standard fittings? In your dreams! :) I would talk to your lfs or Superfish and get a replacement specifically for your tank.
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A Selection of Fish in my Fish Community Creator Tanks
Angelfish (1) - Panda Cory (10) - Harlequin Rasbora (10) - Otocinclus (10) - Japonica Shrimp (10) - Honey Gourami (10) - Galaxy Rasbora (10) -
Note: The user may not necessarily own these fish, these are tanks that they may be building or researching for stocking purposes
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