| I keep my horse at a barn which is lit by fluorescent lights. They have
no effect on the horses. What you do need to get are "Cold Start"
fluorescent lights otherwise they may not turn on in the coldest New
England weather (if that's where you are). Another point is to properly
install them and keep the lighting fixtures clean. What I notice
happening with the lights at this barn is that they, along with most
other things in the barn, get covered with dust from the indoor ring.
Now in wet weather, the humidity makes the dust around the lamp
starters (and everywhere else) a bit damp and prevents the lights
from starting properly.
For the technically inclined, fluorescent lights work through a
high voltage electric discharge through the gas enclosed in the
tube which "strikes" at mains frequency (60 cycles/second in the
US). There is a starter/transformer in the fluorescent light fixture
to generate this voltage. When the tube gets old, the gas inside
it leaks out or air leaks in, I am not sure which, and the discharge
doesn't happen on every mains cycle so the lights flicker. Lower
temperatures reuire a higher strike voltage I think and humidity
allows the high voltage to "leak" away into the air or elsewhere
before the discharge can take place. You really wanted to know that
didn't you?
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| There are several types of flourescent lights which are used in
home and industrial areas. Lights with starters work on low voltage
sources. Without getting into the gory details, the starter excites
the gas which then ionizes and carries a current through the tube
discharging electrons like crazy, which subsequently strike the
inside coating of the tube (a special flourescing compound) creating
light. Industrial versions work from high voltage created by an
oil filled transformer inside the light fixture. It is usually
called a ballast. Lights used in cold weather applications are
specified as high output or cold ballast lights. They use a special
lamp (tube) and ballast. The `blinking effect' is a result of the
operation which is really a series of flashes with the spaces filled
in by the flourescing compound and persistance of vision. The last
item is why it bothers some people more than others, because everyone
has a little different persistance of vision.
We have been using H.O. lights for about ten years and how found
no ill effects from them by humans or horses. My lights have operated
at -30 F without too much trouble. The output initially is dimmer
than normal but it warms up quickly. We use dual 40W fixtures (8
foot tubes) we an operating expense about 25% of what it costs for
equivilant light of incandescent fixtures.
Regards,
Bob
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