What would happen

[mr_big]

What would happen if I poured water into the ballast on a compact fluorescent bulb 

[Ralph]

Pouring water on an energized ballast?

Well, if the water was fresh water and the ballast wasn't too hot - probably nothing exiting in the
short term. (Although I wouldn't really recommend it)

BUT, if the water was salty (Sea Water) -- you could be in for some REAL FIREWORKS!!

Fresh water is not very conductive, while salt water is EXTREMELY conductive to electricity.

************** Safety Notice - DO NOT work on energized electrical devices while wet **************

Ralph

[mr_big]

Pouring water on an energized ballast?

Well, if the water was fresh water and the ballast wasn't too hot - probably nothing exiting in the
short term. (Although I wouldn't really recommend it)

BUT, if the water was salty (Sea Water) -- you could be in for some REAL FIREWORKS!!

Fresh water is not very conductive, while salt water is EXTREMELY conductive to electricity.

************** Safety Notice - DO NOT work on energized electrical devices while wet **************

Ralph

Salt water worked perfectly the lamp started to get dim and the electrodes glowed a little bit but after that the base glowed orange for a long time and then I heard a loud pop and an odd smell with a lot of smoke opened the base the ballast was completley fried and the capacitor had popped

[pSlawinski]

Yikes!!! That's scary stuff playing with something tied directly to the mains like that!!!

[Tim]

Salt water worked perfectly the lamp started to get dim and the electrodes glowed a little bit but after that the base glowed orange for a long time and then I heard a loud pop and an odd smell with a lot of smoke opened the base the ballast was completley fried and the capacitor had popped

...and the point of this is ??

Now would be a good time reiterate Ralph's warning:

************** Safety Notice - DO NOT work on energized electrical devices while wet **************[/b][/color]

[Zelandeth]

I second that.  Playing with mains voltage elecricity is a very effective way of getting yourself either injured or killed.  Don't do it.

Aside from that, I thought the purpose of this place was to preserve lamps, not destroy them...

[Hemingray]

even I have to ask. what IS the point of this?

[pSlawinski]

Do yourself and all of us a favor by not trying this again.  The potential for fire, shock, or explosion is too great.  And the smell you mention was probably all the poisonous gasses coming off that PCB!!! 

[mr_big]

They haven't used PCB's in them since the 70's I doubt that is what it was I also was protected by wearing rubber gloves, rubber soled shoes and I threw it on the lamp from a distance

[pSlawinski]

PCB = Printed Circuit Board, and yes when some of the components burn they release hazardous fumes.  What was the point of this again?

[Chris W. Millinship]

What was the point of this again?

Indeed.

I remember when I was *much* younger, putting a Philips SL in the bottom of our chest freezer to see what happens to fluorescent lamps when they got cold (it lit *very* dimly with an odd salmon pink colour, then warmed up to normal after a few minutes) but would never dream of wetting one on purpose. I only dared experiment with that SL lamp as it didn`t contain sensitive electronics that could fail in potentially dangerous fashion (frozen electrolytic caps probably don`t behave themselves when powered), only a simple iron ballast and glowbottle starter. Incidentlaly that lamp lived on for several years until it rolled off a bench to its untimely death...d`oh!


Do yourself and all of us a favor by not trying this again.  The potential for fire, shock, or explosion is too great.

I second that. And also this:

Aside from that, I thought the purpose of this place was to preserve lamps, not destroy them...

So take care of your lamps. And each other.