I use digital timers, that come with a backup battery supply, so that everything isn't reset during a power surge, power outage, whatever. I've never had an issue with my timers. Can't remember the brand name, but I found it at Lowe's, or a similar store.

Is your ballast causing the shorts in the timers? You should not be going through timers like that. If you're using a bunch of equipment, and are running everything through one timer, that might be your problem. Separate the equipment into more outlets, if you can. This should help to prevent huge power spikes from frying any one outlet.
Mr. Clandestine Reviewed by Mr. Clandestine on . A night of light. Quick Qs Hey, Being a student, I'm out of the house all the time, and my 400w HPS keeps busting the balls out of any timer I plug it into after about 4 days. It's not cool. I have bought three so far, all rated up to 3200w. Anyway, this isn't a rant about timers, it's an honest question. As often as I can, the lights go on at 11pm and go off at 10am, 13hrs dark to kick flowering off. But, for many reasons, I'm often not in my house at those times. Just today, my light spent about 16hrs on, Rating: 5