Would you be able to help be debug a curious issue with a dual circline light fixture (12"/32W, 8"/22W) and a TLE54 ballast?

I needed to replace both bulbs. Once I did that, flipping the switch to on results in the lights briefly lighting up for a fraction of a second, and then going dark.

By experimentation I found out that if I connect only one of the two lights, then flipping the switch to ON position will turn the light on and the light will remain on. This is true for both the 12" and the 8" bulb: if I connect only one of them, no matter which one, the fixture works. But the two won't stay on if connected at the same time to TLE54.

The ballast used to be able to drive both bulbs. What is going on, and what do you think I can do to have a fixture in which both bulbs work?


TLE54 and a light fixture


It's not unusual for ballasts to fail.

It appears they make two variations, one with that exact form-factor which I expect is the exact same unit with a fake American brand stamped on it... and a more rectangular unit from several vendors including reputable Philips.

If the better unit can fit in the fixture, I'd try that.

Alternately, you could decide to make the leap over to LED and never worry about ballasts again.

  • Cool. I ended up switching to LED. It took some intervention and improvisation (since I'm no expert and didn't foresee the correct tooling and such), but ultimately I was able to replace the bulbs with LED rings bought off of Amazon. They are much more expensive, but ostensibly would be much longer living. – filmil Feb 1 '18 at 11:04

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