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Homemade Street Light (full brightness 2)
There is my Homemade street light, again... This time there is a 35watt HPS bulb in the fixture and I mounted it on a tree in the back yard. - - - On the other side of the tree there is a 35watt HPS wall pack that is powering this light through a 25foot extension cord! Why such a long cord? Well I am testing to see how far the igniter could be from the bulb (I thought I heard somewhere it could only be 2feet?) and at 25feet it is working like a charm! Also to see if I could have the ballast box away from the light, like sitting on the ground. Is it okay to have the igniter that faraway from the bulb? Tell me what you think! And yes, I live on the lake!
Keywords: Misc_Fixtures

Homemade Street Light (full brightness 2)

There is my Homemade street light, again... This time there is a 35watt HPS bulb in the fixture and I mounted it on a tree in the back yard. - - - On the other side of the tree there is a 35watt HPS wall pack that is powering this light through a 25foot extension cord! Why such a long cord? Well I am testing to see how far the igniter could be from the bulb (I thought I heard somewhere it could only be 2feet?) and at 25feet it is working like a charm! Also to see if I could have the ballast box away from the light, like sitting on the ground. Is it okay to have the igniter that faraway from the bulb? Tell me what you think! And yes, I live on the lake!

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File information
Filename:IMG_1783_new.jpg
Album name:Parrot / Light fixtures
Keywords:Misc_Fixtures
Wattage:In the photo: 35
Lamp Type:HPS
Filesize:196 KiB
Date added:Aug 06, 2012
Dimensions:960 x 1280 pixels
Displayed:376 times
Color Space:sRGB
DateTime Original:2012:08:05 21:05:50
Exposure Mode:0
Exposure Program:Program
Exposure Time:1/15 sec
FNumber:f/2.4
Flash:No Flash
Focal length:4.28 mm
ISO:800
Make:Apple
Model:iPhone 4S
URL:http://www.galleryoflights.org/mb/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=12568
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Comment 1 to 7 of 7
Page: 1

streetlight98   [Aug 06, 2012 at 10:30 PM]
If it works i see no issue. I wouldn't advise putting the ballast box on the ground though. It'll be better protected if mounted on the tree or if you dont want to drill into the tree, hammering a small piece of wood about 4ft long or so and mounting the box on that would work. I would urge you to use a cord length appropriate for what you're using it for. There's no need to have a cord that long. You should be fine with a 35W lamp but for higher wattages a longer cord will get too much stress if it's too long.
Parrot   [Aug 06, 2012 at 11:19 PM]
I understand what you mean about the ballast box being mounted up off the ground and I would do that if I had it out for more than a night. But I am big into easy to put up, take down and transport because my family has gatherings at many different places throughout the year and they ask me to do lighting for them and I want it to be easy to put up, take down and transport lol. Also I would not use a 25foot cord, like I said this is just a test, I would definitely use a smaller one! With the 35watt 25feet is okay at max? So what would be okay with 50watt? 15feet? 10feet? Thanks.
streetlight98   [Aug 07, 2012 at 12:23 AM]
As long as it's not permanet you're fine then. Smile For the actual power supply (meaning the cord that powers the ballast and lamp) you could probably use up to 50 feet with no problem (is that the cord you meant?)

As for the cord that connects the lamp to the ballast, you may not want to go more than 15 feet though because there's more than 120V going to the lamp and that can ruin the cord. If the cord is rated for 125V or 250V, i wouldn't recommend using it. I'd use individual conductors that can be bought at Lowe's (you'd need one conductor (wire) for each wire in the cord currently) for roughly a dollar a foot. I'd use either 12 gauge or 18 gauge wiring; which ever is used on the balalst leads. Hope this helps. I'm not an expert nor do i know every rule in the code book but if it's just for temporary use you can probably get by a little easier.
Parrot   [Aug 07, 2012 at 12:39 AM]
How many volts does a 35watt HPS ballast put out? And how many volts does a 50watt HPS ballast put out? I think its 55volts or something like that because doesn't it say that on the igniter? I could be totally wrong though...
streetlight98   [Aug 07, 2012 at 01:02 AM]
I don't know. Jace would though.
Parrot   [Aug 07, 2012 at 01:22 AM]
I guess I answered it for myself... I found a nice chart in one of AEL catalogs titled "HPS Servicing Guide".
35watt: New lamp voltage range: 46-62volts End of life: 84volts Amps: .83
50watt: New lamp voltage range: 46-60volts End of life: 84volts Amps: 1.18
So I think anything rated for 120volt 15amp should be fine!
streetlight98   [Aug 07, 2012 at 02:13 AM]
Ahh okay then you'll be fine. BTW, this is a very clever yet basic design. I like it. Smile I love simple lights that get the job done and still look good by day and night. Cool

Comment 1 to 7 of 7
Page: 1