http://www.advance.philips.com/newscenter.aspx?id=36&nid=115

http://www.unvlt.com/mediaInfo/doe_letter.pdf

As of today (Jul 1st, 2010) the US department of energy has banned the manufacture and importation of magnetic ballast for one or two lamp F40T12 fixtures and two lamp F96T12 fixtures.

Both were already banned for new fixtures in the US in 2005 and were since then only available as "replacement use only" until today.

Anyway, it appears that the ban only affects F40T12 and F96T12 lamps so magnetic ballast for our other sizes of fluorescent lamps will still be available. According to Universal, magnetic F32T8 ballast are exempt as well as low power factor "Residential Only" ballast and sign ballasts. Whatever remaining in a seller's inventory can still be sold as well.

Eltam in Israel already ceased the production of their megnetic rapidstart autotransformer ballast for the US F96T12 HO T12 lamps. In Israel i think the reason for this is because most of the F96T12 HO T12s we have today are Philips ALTOs and they actually produces less light then even T8 of 36W (With the same phosphor type)(Indeed the two 54W T5 HO lamps in the fixture in the kitchen of my father home are darkening them with their extreme brilliance). But this is also related to the ban of the T12s in our country (As Eltam for example don't indicates T12 wattage in their magnetic ballast for krypton buffered T8 lamps despite that they can actually operate also T12s...).

I'm glad that we can still get magnetic RS ballasts for F32T8 lamps. Now, if we could figure out how to rewire a LPF ballast and convert it to HPF we'd be good. I don't think this should affect us too much though since we can always go down to thrift shops, flea markets or Urban Ore/ReStore type stores and find used fixtures with magnetic ballasts in them.

I've noticed that in some shops around here, 4" T12 fixtures with bad ballasts are being replaced with T8s, probably because the replacements were being phased out.  So, there will be one or two T8 fixtures in a building otherwise lit with T12.  What's funny is that I can think of four places off the top of my head where whoever installed the new ballast/fixture didn't bother to match the color temperature of the existing T12s, and as a result there are a few T8 fixtures with 3000K or 3500K lamps while all of the rest are T12 with either 4100K, 5000K, or 6500K (depending on the location).  I can actually think of a 5th place, but it already had a mixture of CW and WW T12s in addition to the new 3000K T8s. 

I've noticed that in some shops around here, 4" T12 fixtures with bad ballasts are being replaced with T8s, probably because the replacements were being phased out.  So, there will be one or two T8 fixtures in a building otherwise lit with T12.  What's funny is that I can think of four places off the top of my head where whoever installed the new ballast/fixture didn't bother to match the color temperature of the existing T12s, and as a result there are a few T8 fixtures with 3000K or 3500K lamps while all of the rest are T12 with either 4100K, 5000K, or 6500K (depending on the location).  I can actually think of a 5th place, but it already had a mixture of CW and WW T12s in addition to the new 3000K T8s. 

I hate that crap!  There are plenty of times I have replaced bad T12 ballasts with T8, at customer's request, but I always match the color with the existing lamps. I would much rather rewire an existing fixture than to replace it, then have an oddball fixture.  That also looks like crap!

I see mixed colors all the time & i gotta agree it looks bad

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I know one place where in a hall they replaced the lights - originals were standard 4'x2' ceiling
troffers 4 lamp T12 rapid start, the replacements are the same thing but 3 lamp instant start... but
they ran out of 4'x2' fixtures, so instead of getting more they just threw in a couple 2'x2' units
LOL those look so out of place!
The original lights in that hall were also spaced at random intervals (which looked like crap...they
even kept random spacing)
Most rooms & halls  in that same building (thats been renovated or lights "upgraded") is done with
3500k, now there's some 4100k and a few 3000k randomly mixed in

I think the worst place I've seen mixed tubes is on an airplane.  Last year I was on a Colgan Air Saab 340 that was lit with a completely random assortment of 3000 and 4100k tubes.  They really stand out in that situation.

As I understand it, you can still get new fixtures with electronic T12 ballasts and can still get electronic T12 ballasts new.  Only the magnetic ones are banned, so we can still power up F40 lamps, correct?

I feel sorry for you guys i would be really annoyed if they banned magnetic ballasts here, How come you have so many problems with magnetic ballasts in your T12 fittings?

I have old 8' fittings from the late 50s/60s switch start that have never had a ballast change ever! Infact in one of the sports halls i look after they have thorlux 8'125w 1971 fitting used every day not one has had to have a replacement ballast!

No electronic ballast would do that!

I feel sorry for you guys i would be really annoyed if they banned magnetic ballasts here,

Magnetic ballasts will be banned in the EU in 2017, if I remember correctly.

I've noticed magnetic rapid start ballasts are still being sold at Lowe's (in several locations I've seen in my travels, I might add).  Anyone who feels the need to stock up on these should pay his or her local Lowe's store a visit.  (And they're High Power Factor, too...not the inferior LPF or NPF ballasts.)  I think the cost for one is around $20.00, which isn't too steep.  The electronic ones are far more expensive.

Quote from: kevxsi16v on September 07, 2010, 04:21:17 PM

I feel sorry for you guys i would be really annoyed if they banned magnetic ballasts here,

Magnetic ballasts will be banned in the EU in 2017, if I remember correctly.

Yes it is true they are however transtar make a super low loss ballast i do believe that that one is safe! I will be installing them after 2017 even if they are more expensive over retarded electronic ballasts!

Yes it is true they are however transtar make a super low loss ballast i do believe that that one is safe! I will be installing them after 2017 even if they are more expensive over retarded electronic ballasts!

I think it will be banned, all ballasts that arent rated with Energy Efficiency Index A2 or better will be banned. A2 class means for a 36 W T8 lamp, the system (lamp and ballast) is not allowed to consume more than 36 W of input power without under-powering the lamp (this is possible with electronic ballasts without being 100 % efficenct, because HF operation increases efficiency of the lamp so the power the lamp can be reduced while maintaing light output).

Additionally, the EU will introduce minimum effiency requirements of HID ballasts (presently there are none at all, I think) in 2012.