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Current carrying capacity of the wires inside a fluorescent batten with regard to LED tubes

psychicwarrior
Hello all - good afternoon !


As in the subject, can someone verify please what the current carrying capacity of the [thin] wires in a flourescent batten is ?


It is with regard to fitting an LED tube replacement where the [electronic] ballast has to be taken out of circuit; the wires from it to one of the tube mount ('tombstones' ?)  have to be cut and wired from the tube mount directly back to the 240V supply, according to most instructions.


I was curious about the wires with regard to doing this - it must be ok as this is the general instruction, but I was interested to know what they can carry.
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  • 0
    Are you concerned at the current carrying capacity, or the voltage rating ? I see no cause for concern regarding voltage rating or current.


    The wire commonly used has a cross section of at least 0.5mm and sometimes more. Common sense, previous experience, and comparison with other wires suggests a current carrying capacity of at least 6amps. The current used by the replacement LED tube will be a fraction of an amp and almost certainly less than the current used by the originally fitted fluorescent lamp.


    As regards voltage rating, IIRC this wire is rated at 600 volts. And whilst I can not substantiate this, common sense and experience again come to the rescue. The wire must be considered safe for at least full mains voltage since most of the internal wiring is potentially subjected to at least full mains voltage when used with originally intended fluorescent lamp. A switchstart ballast can produce pulses of a thousand volts or more, and an electronic ballast can produce up to a few hundred volts.


    In short, fitting a LED replacement lamp, wont increase either the voltage or the current beyond that originally intended.
Reply
  • 0
    Are you concerned at the current carrying capacity, or the voltage rating ? I see no cause for concern regarding voltage rating or current.


    The wire commonly used has a cross section of at least 0.5mm and sometimes more. Common sense, previous experience, and comparison with other wires suggests a current carrying capacity of at least 6amps. The current used by the replacement LED tube will be a fraction of an amp and almost certainly less than the current used by the originally fitted fluorescent lamp.


    As regards voltage rating, IIRC this wire is rated at 600 volts. And whilst I can not substantiate this, common sense and experience again come to the rescue. The wire must be considered safe for at least full mains voltage since most of the internal wiring is potentially subjected to at least full mains voltage when used with originally intended fluorescent lamp. A switchstart ballast can produce pulses of a thousand volts or more, and an electronic ballast can produce up to a few hundred volts.


    In short, fitting a LED replacement lamp, wont increase either the voltage or the current beyond that originally intended.
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