Soda machine sees the light

I finally did it. I got the light working on my soda machine. I have a location that is outside at an apartment complex. I thought that it needed the lights working, but since I buy used machines, I got one without the lights working. I tried more than a year ago to replace the bulbs. That didn't work. So I knew that it was the ballast.

I was overwhelmed with the idea of replacing the ballast. It did not have any connectors that just unplugged. I had to actually cut the ballast wires and rewire a new one. Now that I completed the project, I don't know why it was so daunting. All I had to do was unplug the ballast from the main power, unscrew one screw, cut the wires at both ends of the ballast, remove the ballast, go to the home improvement store and find a replacement, strip the wires back 1/4 inch, match black to black, white to white, red to red, and blue to blue, and reconnect the wires. It was so easy. I want to go over there one evening and see what it looks like lit up. It was too bright outside today to see much difference.

I am hoping that having the machine lit up at night will encourage more people to buy soda after dark. I will have to just wait and see if my guess is correct. Now I have three more machines that need the lights replaced. I think the difficult part is going to be finding the bulbs.