So what is the purpose of capacitors on MV lamps? are they always required? I've seen some lacking them and some with them, recently I had a 250W MV lamp capacitor swell up and start leaking, as a result the whole house stinks to high H*** and my father forced me to put the fixtures away   (but I'm moving out soon anyway so whatever) I'm wondering if its safe to just run the lamp without a cap? also did this capacitor just EOL? because it was being run properly, I dont understand whatelse wouldof caused it, could it be a mistake on lamptype? It reads H37 on the lamp body which i have always thought was MV but could i have thrown a MV lamp in a MH fixture and blew the cap? is that even possible? lol never encountered this issue before, and i've been around plenty of lights (I'm also slightly pissed off by the events following this)


also if i hit this thing with a Hammer will it explode? i imagine theres a lot of pressure in there... seems like a fun thing to do 

Caps fail, but here is the question does it say PCB free on the Cap, or do you have the make and model, and no don't hit it with a hammer as tempting as this might be the last thing you need is more PCB containing mess to clean up...

And they are used to limit the current going to the lamp if it's in series with the lamp, on AC a capacitor basically acts like a resistor, and if they are across the line and neutral they are used to correct the power factor used by the ballast, so if it's like the first example no you can't use it until you replace it and the second example yes you can simply remove it and use the light but it will draw more current from the line but unless your demand metered it won't make a difference and most residential power meters are not demand meters ...   

Ok there are 3 types of mercury ballast. CWA , HX , Choke ballast.

CWA stand for Contant wattage Autotransformer
These ballast requries a Cap to provide lamp current regulation. with out a Cap is same as running it with shorted cap, this can kill ballast becaue being unregulated. Best thing to do is replace Cap on any ballast that show signs of degrade. GE lighing caps are not that great.  Only time u worry about PCB if fixture is before 1980s. But PCB ban started in july 1978. But time was needed to run existing stock out.

HX ballast is autotransformer ballast. For normal power factor, how ever Cap is optional to correct power factor
And installed on Line side of ballast. These are cheaper ballast that u find nema heads, gumballs, and yard blaster as well.

The Choke ballast. Is badically a choke runs in series with the lamp. It use on 35 to 150 watt HPS on 120 volts
And mercury lamps on 240 to 277 volt and these dont need a cap.

It was a CWA which means I probably want to get a cap for it (even if not necessarily needed theres a huge hole where to cap was) also Should i be concerned if the cap was PCB, is there an issue if you got soe of it on your extremities (hands,arms) because when i moved the fixture over to the window it was dripping and steaming.

For CWA the cap is a must...
If you have suspicion about PCB contaminating your hands, wash them thoroughly as soon as possible with some "heavy duty" soap (I do not know any exact brand used today, these are usually mixed with some kind of sand, intended for mechanics or so).
The point is just to reduce the exposure timeas much as possible...
Otherwise it is of course better to prevent such contamination if possible...

What type of light fixture is it that blown the cap.?

What type of light fixture is it that blown the cap.?

i think i will just save the ballast or something, unless anyone here thinks i should keep the fixture in one piece... well not one piece but you know Together lol, that panel that is popped off is where the Cap used to be. also that is the bulb i used.

Well it's the right light to use in that fixture so you got an old cap, they will fail from time to time, it happens..