Do Fluorescent Ballasts Need To Be "Burned In" ??

I just installed 2 Fluorescent lights in my backyard pool area. An electrical engineer neighbor told me that whenever you start up a new Fluorescent ballast and lamp for the first time, it's best to allow it to "burn in" for at least 5 to 10 hours after switching it on. This will assure the longest possible life for both the ballast and the lamp. He said switching Fluorescent lights on and off over short periods of time greatly reduce their life, and cause premature failures. Especially if they are new. Any truth to this?

No, new ballasts don't have starters to damage either.

I found this:

https://www.osram.com/media/resourc...laration--burning-in-of-fluorescent-lamps.pdf

"burning in" ballasts? No.
"burning in" lamps? No, unless you're running them on dimmable gear, which you didn't specify...
Short run time per start? Yes, generally this does reduce the life of fluorescent lamps.

I agree with Brickbat.