Hi. I've seen pics of T17 bi-pin preheat(??) lamps in the Gallery, but I've NEVER seen such lamps in real life. I was under the impression that the only T17 lamps were/are the GE Powergroove types. Can anybody shed some light ( :osorry!!)on these lamps? Were they used in the USA or only in Europe? When did manufacturing stop? Were were they used??
WHERE CAN I FIND A FIXTURE FOR THEM?
In grade school and middle school back in the 50s and 60s these T 17 fixtures were used throughout the whole school.
They were warm white and used two bulbs per fixture. the fixtures were placed end to end in rows and hung from the ceiling on pipes. The ballast was mounted on a rail and the end sockets mounted out in the open on both sides so the bulbs were one per side. No reflector used, just the bare T17 bulbs.
I remember they were not too bright at all and even with a whole room of them the brightness was low, but I think that was the idea, to reduce eye strain and have a more diffused look to them.
For a long time back in the 1950s it was thought that fluorescent lights were bad for the eyes and many people would not use them in their homes because of this. Many people were surprised how good fluorescent lights could look when they visited the school for PTA meetings and slowly started using them at home.
I think it may have been because of the blue color the early lamps had that turned many people off to them. The warm white helped to sell the idea that they were not so bad after all.
Back in the 50s and 60s there were many second hand shops, actually junk shops that had all sorts of used stuff cheap, just make an offer. And there I found two old T17 fluorescent double bulb five foot fixtures with the bulbs for a crazy price of only $2.00. Well I really wanted it for the basement to light up my train set as it was just like what was at school. So I saved up my lunch money and bought both of them. I had never bought fluorescent lights before and was excited to get them set up in the basement and see how they looked. Well they looked really good once mounted and wired up with a old extension cord. The bulbs looked huge,it is going to be like day time down here.
So the big moment arrived and I and the neighbor kid that was helping me, plugged it in for the big event. The result? Nothing, not even a blink. Oh great, so I studied the wiring diagram and was sure everything was correct. But still nothing, so it was time to bring in the expert, my father. After looking at it he said, what does this mean? Input 277 volts AC. How do I know I am just a kid in the 7th grade. Yep that is right they were both 277 volt ballasts.
No returns at a second hand shop. Oh well, they did look nice above my train set, but they just did not work is all.
My quest for a 120 volt T17 ballast proved unrewarding, so after that I learned to always read the label on the ballasts first. Actually anything first.
Now I know why they were only two dollars.
lol
Today I don't know where to find any of these T17 fixtures. It has been a long time since I seen one. I think you can still get the bulbs as I have seen them listed for like $30 each plus shipping, so someone somewhere is still using them, but I don't know about the ballasts.
Some times this kind of stuff can be found in scrap yards and even in old auto salvage yards as they end up there as scrap metal. It is amazing how much old stuff ends up in auto salvage yards other than just cars. Metal is metal to them. Some times this stuff sits around for many years waiting for the steel price to go up.
I would guess a some other ballast could be used to power the T17 lamps, as I know you can get by with a different ballast on some applications than the correct one (sometimes).
