exploding bulb!

Hi there!

Our mate's 1000w bulb exploded this morning, the filament carrying on burning & singeing the tops of his plants for maybe up to 5 hours.

They're beautiful things, these bulbs, but we don't know much about them. Are they vaccuum or gas-filled? if not vaccuum, then what gas is in them? What happens when they blow - are they safe? or is the light spectrum shifted to something more harmful? If so, is it harmful to plants as well as humans? Our mate's plants could've had up to 5 hours of radiation, & he's a tad worried!!

I reckon he should just call it Kryptonite-A & sell it. :D

Any info looked forward to!

Ummm....

If it where me in that situation: I would discard the bulb.

Don't use it. Even if it lights up. Just, throw it away. Buy a new one.

Many engineers spent many, many hours designing that bulb to work with the initial design... they didn't consider what would happen if the glass would crack.

Just my 2cents... buy a new bulb. :)

Sounds like a recipe for disaster. Ditch the bulb and go new. The gases inside it effect the light spectrum -- so even if it lights -- at most it'll probably just start a fire.

Yeah, sorry, mustn't have explained that very well - he doesn't want to USE the bulb, he just wants to know what it might have done to his plants. It was still lit when he found it so he switched it off as quick as poss, but doesn't know how long it was possibly irradiating his crop!

Anyone know anything about safety aspects of these bulbs??

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Originally Posted by Ratlady

Yeah, sorry, mustn't have explained that very well - he doesn't want to USE the bulb, he just wants to know what it might have done to his plants. It was still lit when he found it so he switched it off as quick as poss, but doesn't know how long it was possibly irradiating his crop!

Anyone know anything about safety aspects of these bulbs??

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I wouldn't think that anything bad happened to your plants.

Trully... I think they're fine. In fact, I'm sure that right now they appreciate their life even more than before.

They just had a brush with death, in the form of a 1000 Watt smoldering ball of fire... They'll be happy to be alive now. ;)

all you all can do is hope for the best...I would trim the burnt parts off, so the plant does not try to repair it. and hope for the best...what stage are they in?

ya cant ever let any water or fluids hit a hot bulb. also I have heard to wash the oils from your hands off them with a little iso alcohol before use. I doubt it would help due to any oils would heat up as the bulb heats up and therefore wouldn't crack the glass like a cool liquid would.

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Originally Posted by harmonicminor

ya cant ever let any water or fluids hit a hot bulb. also I have heard to wash the oils from your hands off them with a little iso alcohol before use. I doubt it would help due to any oils would heat up as the bulb heats up and therefore wouldn't crack the glass like a cool liquid would.

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DON'T touch the MH or HPS lamp at all. Wipe it off with a clean towel before screwing it in and use the towel to hang onto your lamp. Just like a fingerprint, there's no way to wash your hands clean enough to handle the bulbs. Have a good grow! :thumbsup:

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Originally Posted by Psycho4Bud

DON'T touch the MH or HPS lamp at all. Wipe it off with a clean towel before screwing it in and use the towel to hang onto your lamp. Just like a fingerprint, there's no way to wash your hands clean enough to handle the bulbs. Have a good grow! :thumbsup:

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True, true.

The grease/oil from your hands/fingertips will stick to the bulb's outer glass shell... when the bulb fires up, that oil will cause hot spots on the surface of the glass shell... which will, eventually, cause it to go "pop".

Like Psycho4Bud (hehehe.... funny name) says, clean it (I use alcohol) and handle it with towels.

Also consider purchasing a smoke detector, don't end up like a bud and burn ;)

You can't touch the bulbs with your bare hands. The oil of your body will cause the bulb to explode. Always use a cloth when screwing in or handiling HID bulbs and make sure they are free of dust and oil before installation.

don't use a towel!! u can't get any grip. use a brand new clean rubber glove cos it's easier to screw in with rubber than it is with a towel.

I assume it was in the basement. I used to grow in a bedroom with a wood floor and I had a 400 watt HPS bulb exploid. Anyway it almost light my house up good thing I was home. I would not worry about them getting any more raditation then they already do from the bulbs. When a bulb pops it does not work any more to clear that up. The glass is damn hot though. My plants were fine. The gas in the bulb you would not want to suck out with a straw but I would not worry about it affecting your plants. Different bulbs use different gases. The reason the blow up and not just fall to the floor is because heat excites the particals and expands the gas creating pressure. Most bulbs have a slight vaccum to compensate for it and ad stability but it depends on the kind of bulb. The vaccum is very slight. if the bulb was to get minor cracks it would not implode.
Hope this helps

One love
c

one time a friend of mine dropped and eye drop on to a light bulb and it exploded

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Originally Posted by Pharmaecopia

one time a friend of mine dropped and eye drop on to a light bulb and it exploded

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That's because your friend is an idiot.