# 8' powergroove lights



## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

We had them in our garage when I was a kid but I never changed a ballast.

The lamps are like 1.5" OD.


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## BBQ (Nov 16, 2010)

Powergrove lamps


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## sparky970 (Mar 19, 2008)

Yep. Watch for pcb's


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## Chris Kennedy (Nov 19, 2007)

BBQ said:


> Powergrove lamps


Thats cool, never seen those before. What was the advantage over reg HO's?


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## Wirenuting (Sep 12, 2010)

sparky970 said:


> Yep. Watch for pcb's


Tastes good, less filling.


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## erics37 (May 7, 2009)

I've replaced a couple with modern lights. If I remember correctly the old ballast was scalding hot and took like half an hour to cool off where I could even touch it :blink:


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## Industrialsparky (Jul 10, 2012)

Ya they get really hot and the ballast alone weight like 10 pounds plus all the metal housing it sucked takin those down by myself


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## wcord (Jan 23, 2011)

Chris Kennedy said:


> Thats cool, never seen those before. What was the advantage over reg HO's?




More surface area for light output.

Initial Lumens 12100 Mean Lumens 9440 

Regular HO Lumens 8280


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## retiredsparktech (Mar 8, 2011)

Industrialsparky said:


> Anyone changed any of these heavy bastards


I aquired a few of those fixtures when the company changed to metal halide. I have then in my workshop. The shades are genuine porcelain enamel, instead of just being painted. I even got a couple of spare ballasts and two cases of tubes. They're nice, because they start in sub-zero temperatures.
I refered to the ballasts as boxcars. They are that large.


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## n5i5ken (Jun 5, 2011)

*power groove lamps*

Were they not refered to as V.H.O. lamps. If I remember they had orange end caps instead to the silver end caps. And yes the ballasts were a arm killer, weighed in at 15 lbs.


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## Norcal (Mar 22, 2007)

Are those PG17 VHO lamps still avail?


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## Industrialsparky (Jul 10, 2012)

Haha yes the ballast are killers and idk if you can still get the tubes with the dips in it but you can still get slim line and power groove bulb t-12 we buy Phillips but are converting over to smaller bulbs


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## Norcal (Mar 22, 2007)

Industrialsparky said:


> Haha yes the ballast are killers and idk if you can still get the tubes with the dips in it but you can still get slim line and power groove bulb t-12 we buy Phillips but are converting over to smaller bulbs


 
T12 VHO should not be too hard but their time has passed, there was a gym that had F96T12 1500ma VHO fixtures installed, someone tried to save a few bucks & use HO 800ma lamps. They have since gone to the scrapyard in the sky.


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## Phase2Face (Oct 28, 2012)

Wow, you can probably recycle those ballasts and get some serious $$$, they look heavy.


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

Phase2Face said:


> Wow, you can probably recycle those ballasts and get some serious $$$, they look heavy.


You may have to pay to dispose of them since ballast have hazardous waste-- PCB in those monsters would be my guess.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

Chris Kennedy said:


> Thats cool, never seen those before. What was the advantage over reg HO's?


Chris,
You must be starting to forget more than the new Journeymen know. :laughing:
These were everywhere here in Miami way back when you were an apprentice.

There was a swap in the 70's to VHO, same ballast, before they all disappeared.
Defiantly a few of them around during our career timeline.


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## Chris Kennedy (Nov 19, 2007)

jrannis said:


> Chris,
> You must be starting to forget more than the new Journeymen know. :laughing:
> These were everywhere here in Miami way back when you were an apprentice.


I didn't become an electrician until around 1990.


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## denny3992 (Jul 12, 2010)

Wirenuting said:


> Tastes good, less filling.


Taste great


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## denny3992 (Jul 12, 2010)

Phase2Face said:


> Wow, you can probably recycle those ballasts and get some serious $$$, they look heavy.


Scrpa yard will take them where i go but cant pay u for pcb ballsts....
Like it matters to them!


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## bobelectric (Feb 24, 2007)

Never understood the concept,except it compressed the gases.Maybe.


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## JohnR (Apr 12, 2010)

AFAIK, you can still get those lamps, and ballasts to go with them. They are not that heavy though.

If I remember right they are sometimes called VHO or SVHO lamps.


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## wireman64 (Feb 2, 2012)

denny3992 said:


> Scrpa yard will take them where i go but cant pay u for pcb ballsts....
> Like it matters to them!


I would save them if they work , there hard to find now . And i still prefer the magnetic ballasts that last more than a week .


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## wireman64 (Feb 2, 2012)

Industrialsparky said:


> Anyone changed any of these heavy bastards


They look awesome , i would have kept them !


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## HARRY304E (Sep 15, 2010)

Norcal said:


> Are those PG17 VHO lamps still avail?



Yes the are...........:thumbup:

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/GE-LIGHTING-Fluorescent-Lamp-1F304?Pid=search

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/ww...6,PG17+6500K&N=0&GlobalSearch=true&sst=subset


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## wireman64 (Feb 2, 2012)

HARRY304E said:


> Yes the are...........:thumbup:
> 
> http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/GE-LIGHTING-Fluorescent-Lamp-1F304?Pid=search
> 
> http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/search.shtml?searchQuery=F96%2CPG17+6500K&op=search&Ntt=F96%2CPG17+6500K&N=0&GlobalSearch=true&sst=subset


Says they have a limited quantity available


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## HARRY304E (Sep 15, 2010)

wireman64 said:


> Says they have a limited quantity available


Yup they are probably not going to make them anymore.


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## wireman64 (Feb 2, 2012)

HARRY304E said:


> Yup they are probably not going to make them anymore.


That sucks, those things are cool looking !


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## HARRY304E (Sep 15, 2010)

wireman64 said:


> That sucks, those things are cool looking !


This was posted by Jrannis before..http://www.electriciantalk.com/f2/very-high-output-vs-high-output-lamps-32244/#post606335








__________________


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## wireman64 (Feb 2, 2012)

HARRY304E said:


> This was posted by Jrannis before..http://www.electriciantalk.com/f2/very-high-output-vs-high-output-lamps-32244/#post606335
> 
> __________________




May 1960 ! To bad its hps or induction now 

T


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## retiredsparktech (Mar 8, 2011)

wireman64 said:


> May 1960 ! To bad its hps or induction now
> 
> T


I've seen the ad, but I never saw street lighting using them.
I did see some ugly old fluorescent fixtures under the el bridges in Chicago. Maybe they used PG17 tubes. They use HPS wall packs now.


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