LED lighting problem

[Scott R]

This is definitely the place to ask this. I have basically two working florescent bulbs in my garage. I ordered 20 LED replacement T5 bulbs that said they work with our without the ballast.

I plugged two into the light fixture and they worked for two seconds and now they won't come on again. Google is not very helpful here. Do I need to bypass the ballast?

[masraum]

I would assume if they work without the ballast then Yo's need tip remove the ballast before toy put them in.

[Scott R]

Originally Posted by masraum

I would assume if they work without the ballast then Yo's need tip remove the ballast before toy put them in.

I've not removed the ballast yet.

[masraum]

I hope the new bulbs are ok. I'd be concerned that the ballast fried them.

In a fluorescent lighting system, the ballast regulates the current to the lamps and provides sufficient voltage to start the lamps. Without a ballast to limit its current, a fluorescent lamp connected directly to a high voltage power source would rapidly and uncontrollably increase its current draw. Within a second the lamp would overheat and burn out. During lamp starting, the ballast must briefly supply high voltage to establish an arc between the two lamp electrodes. Once the arc is established, the ballast quickly reduces the voltage and regulates the electric current to produce a steady light output.

[porsche tech]

I replaced all the fluorescent tubes in my garage with LED tubes (what a difference). Mine specified that the ballast must be removed…I did so and they have worked flawlessly for a couple of years now. Mine are all 4 foot ones. Can’t hurt to try again without the ballast.

[cabmandone]

I replaced all of mine. I removed the ballasts and rewired. It would help to know what bulbs you bought.

[john70t]

Those are "direct replacement" bulbs.
I've tried just about all of the brands with several fixtures which worked perfectly before. The fixtures had known-good ballasts. Tried every combo.
None of them worked.
I gave up after a half dozen trips to the store.

You want to use the "ballast-bypass" or "direct-wire" bulbs.
https://www.1000bulbs.com/land/how-to-bypass-a-ballast
The bulbs run directly off of 110V, instead of of the higher ballast output (which I forget at the moment) printed on the box.
Since ballasts buzz and use extra juice anyways, this is a better way to go.

Unfortunately they require some electrical work, but it gets easier after the first one.


Tips:
-Keep the wires as long as possible so there's room to tuck the connections.
-If using braided to solid wire, leave more exposed braided so it can wrap around a few times.
-Gently tug wires and wrap with tape starting at the wires to lock them together.

-Most brands use one bulb end for the connections.
-Some use both ends (GE and some dimmable it think).
-Check the wiring diagram. Make sure you stick with one style if you want to change bulbs later.

-Get the right color range. 3000 are warm yellow and 5000 are harsh blue.
-Bulbs will have different output. My kitchen overhead is way too bright now! I'll have to reduce that to 2 bulbs.

[stevej37]

When my garage was built, they wired it with 8 incandescent fixtures, each with a 150 watt bulb.
I replaced each bulb with one of these led screw ins. Way more light than the incandescents and each blade can be twisted to direct more light where wanted.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VRDS785/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Scott R

I ordered 20 LED replacement T5 bulbs that said they work with or without the ballast.

Sorry, I somehow missed this part. Clearly they should work with the ballasts and you shouldn't have to worry about them, but based on your experience, I'd bypass the ballasts and give them another shot. Maybe the ballasts went.

[Scott R]

OK, got a chance this afternoon to open one of the fixtures. The picture is below. According to the ballast, it's a newer style electronic ballast that should of worked. Regardless, to re-wire I'm guessing it's the hot directly to one side of the fixture, and the neutral to the other? Essentially combining the white wires together in a cap, then going straight to the hot?

A note here too, the bulbs appear to be fine, they constantly come on for two seconds then blink off.