Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!shadooby!samsung!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!pt.cs.cmu.edu!sei!rsd
From: rsd@sei.cmu.edu (Richard S D'Ippolito)
Newsgroups: sci.electronics
Subject: Re: Fluorescent light ballasts
Message-ID: <5068@ae.sei.cmu.edu>
Date: 22 Nov 89 17:09:06 GMT
References: <22334@gryphon.COM> <4995@ae.sei.cmu.edu> <7835@ttidca.TTI.COM>
Reply-To: rsd@sei.cmu.edu (Richard S D'Ippolito)
Organization: Software Engineering Institute, Pittsburgh, PA
Lines: 23

In article <7835@ttidca.TTI.COM> Erik Sorgatz writes:

> One point that seems missing, 25 years ago the lighting industry was not
>totally saturated with YUPPIE-MBA assholes! This has had a severe impact
>on the QUALITY of the Ballast transformers being produced.

Hey, lighten up!  I just purchased a new shop light for $9.99 (that's right)
with two 40w tubes, fixture, cord and ballast.  The ballast nameplate reads
"120V 60Hz .85A", UL, minimun starting temperature 50 deg. F."

I'll leave it as an exercise to the reader to decide whether or not it draws
current equivalent to a 250watt load, whether the quoted figures I gave about
power demand are dated, and whether the quality has gone down in 25 years.

More enterprising folks might be able to calculate the power factor.


Rich
-- 
When you can measure what you are speaking about, and express it in numbers,
you know something about it.
Lord Kelvin						      rsd@sei.cmu.edu
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