TECHNICAL TERMS
Ballast is an induction coil which produces high voltage to start the lamp
into operation.
Fluorescent tube is a circular bulb containing mercury vapor and inert
gas with phosphor coating inside.
Frame is the metal housing of the whole fixture.
Incandescent bulb is a light source with a metal filament that glows with
white heat.
Insulation is a nonconductive device covering that protects wires and
other electricity carriers.
Junction box is an enclosure used for splitting circuits into different
branches.
Knockouts are tabs that can be removed to make opening in a box for
cable and conduit connector.
Knick is small cut on wires.
Limelight comes from the incandescent light produced by a rod of lime
bathed in a flame of oxygen and hydrogen.
Non-metallic conduits are electrical materials which are manufactured
to be resistant to moisture and chemical atmosphere.
Photographic lamps as the name implies, are used in photography and
projection service.
Receptacle is an outlet that supplies power for lamp and other plug-in
devices
Screw cap is the threaded base of the bulb that secures it to a lamp.
Solid knobs are used to support or anchor wires as big as No. 8 or even
bigger.
Split knobs are used to support wires smaller than No. 8.
Support wires are wires that physically hold up the filament.
Vinyl Chloride is a toxic carcinogen which has been proven to cause
angiosarcoma, a deadly primary liver cancer.
AWG – American Wire Gauge
PEC – Philippine Electrical Code
PPE – Personal Protective Equipment
PVC – polyvinyl chloride
SPST – Single Pole Single Throw
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INFORMATION SHEET 5.1
Fluorescent lighting fixtures
Fluorescent Lamp –is a form of electric discharge light source. It consists of a glass
tube containing mercury vapor at a low pressure and inert gas like argon and krypton.
The interior is coated with phosphor, which glows or fluoresces when exposed to
ultraviolet light.
PEC Rules on Wire Dressing and Termination
Article [Link] Live Parts. Fixtures, lamp holders, lamps, rosettes, and receptacles
shall have no live parts normally exposed to contact. Exposed accessible terminals in
lamp holders, receptacles, and switches shall not be installed in metal fixture canopies
or in open bases of portable table or floor lamps.
All joints/splices to be done must be properly insulated with spaghetti sleeving,
wrapped with electrical tape having a similar thickness of the conductor used.
Types of electric discharge fluorescent lamps
1. Pre-heat starting, hot-cathode –requires starter (glow switch) and is pre-heated
during starting. It uses a ballast to produce high voltage to start the lamp into
operation and to limit the flow of current.
2. Cold cathode – Requires high voltage in its operation. This lamp has electrodes
made of thimble-type iron. It is not pre-heated and does not require a starter for
starting. Special high voltage transformers operate it. Neon and mercury lamps are
classified under cold cathode lamps.
3. Instant-starting, hot-cathode –The lamp cathode in the instant-start is not pre-
heated. Sufficient voltage is applied across the cathodes to create an instantaneous
arc. As in preheat circuit; the cathodes are heated during lamp operation by the arc.
The instant-start lamp require single-pin bases, are generally called slim line lamps.
4. Hot-cathode, rapid-start –These are similar in construction to the preheat lamps;
the basic difference is in the circuitry. This circuit eliminates the delay inherent in
preheat circuits by keeping the lamp cathodes constantly energized (preheated).
When the lamp circuit is energized, the arc is struck immediately. No external starter
is required. Because of this similarity of operation, rapid start lamps will operate
satisfactorily in a preheat circuit. The reverse is not true, because preheat requires
more current to heat the cathode than the rapid-start ballast provides.
Operation of pre-heat type fluorescent lamp
The tube filaments, starter (glow switch), and ballast are all connected in series,
which constitute a complete circuit once the switch, is closed. As a current flow through,
the gas (inert) inside the starter glows and the electrodes are heated. Since one of the
electrodes is a bi-metal, it bends and makes contact with the other. At this instant, the
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circuit is metallically complete. The filaments of the fluorescent tube are then heated
and partial ionization takes place. The bi-metals in the starter cools and the contacts
open. The magnetic field in the ballast collapses rapidly producing an inductive kick,
which establishes a current between the filaments and fires the tube into operation.
Classifications of Fluorescent Lamp
1. Regular Fluorescent Lamp
Circular type fluorescent lamp
Open type fluorescent
Box type fluorescent lamp
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2. Compact Fluorescent Lamp
Different types of Compact Fluorescent Lamp
Parts and functions of fluorescent lamp
1. Fluorescent tube is a circular bulb containing mercury vapor and inert gas with
phosphor coating inside.
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Parts of Fluorescent tube
1. Ballast is an induction coil, which produces high voltage to start the lamp into
operation. It also limits the flow of current during the operation of the lamp.
Ballast consumes power, which is between 10-20% of power consumed by the
lamp itself.
Induction type ballast
Electronic type ballast
Different types of Ballast
2. Starter is a glow switch that opens and closes the circuit so as to produce a
high voltage or inductive kick across the bulb at the filament during the
starting period.
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Different types of Starter
3. Lamp holder and starter socket are the point of connection of the
fluorescent and starter.
5. Frame is the metal housing of the whole fixture.
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Parts of fluorescent lamp starter
Starter housing
Base contact
Connecting
wire
Current moves in utilizing the rare gas as conducting means and the rare gas
produces a “glow”. The glow generates heat and causes the bimetallic blade to expand.
When the bimetallic blade is heated, it changes shape and touches the fixed
contact. The close contacts of the two starter contacts produce an easy path for the
current to flow.
Parts and operation function of the ballast
Coil inside
Laminated iron core
Terminal block
Ballast frame
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In common with all gaseous discharge lamps, the fluorescent must be provided
with some device for limiting the current drawn by the discharge. Without a limiting
device, the current would rise to a value that would destroy the lamp. A device or
auxiliary called ballast can best meet this requirement.
The ballast for operating lamps on an alternating current consists of a small choke
coil woven on an iron core.
This ballast serves three important functions:
1. It preheats the electrodes to make available a large supply of the electron.
2. It provides a surge of relatively large potential to start the arc between the
electrodes.
3. It prevents the arc current to increase beyond the limit set for each size and
lamp.
THE LIFE SPAN OF FLUORESCENT LAMP
The life of fluorescent lamp is affected not only in the fluctuation of voltage and
current but also by the number of times it is started. Electron emission material is
“sputtered off” from the electrodes continuously during the operation of the lamp and in
larger quantities each time the lamp starts.
Many fluorescent lamps have a rated average life span up to 30,000 continuous
burning hours but with an average of 3 hours burning per start, it could only last for
12,000 hours.
