Electronic Ballast
How to Maintain your Ballast and Help Lengthen Its Life
Smart individuals who practice hydroponic gardening understand the value of using HID lamps and HPS lights. Each of these types of lights that are used in the greenhouse or home require a ballast for their proper function. Correct maintenance of your hydroponics equipment will help ensure its long life, thereby saving you money.
High Intensity Discharge lights are favored by horticulturists and gardeners because they produce more light and a greater intensity of light than other types of lamps. These lights consist of a quartz or alumina inner tube built into the grow lamps. Inside this tube you will find tungsten electrodes, gas, and metals. When you turn the electricity on, an electrical arc flows over the electrodes. The gas inside the tube helps illuminate the lamp initially, and the metal produces a continuous light as long as the electricity stays on. A ballast is used to control the flow of the electrical current to the HID bulb. With no ballast, uncontrolled current would flow into the grow lights unchecked, blowing up the bulb, so the ballast is vital to its proper operation.
When you are using artificial light indoors to grow plants, what you are trying to do is imitate the light that would ordinarily come from natural sunlight. Plants use this light to produce food for the plant, to ensure its proper growth and reproductive functions. Light falls into two broad spectrums in relation to plant growth. The blue spectrum is used by plants when they are in the early stages of growing. The red and orange spectrums facilitate a plant’s ability to produce flowers, which occurs in later stages of growth. In terms of HID lamp use, none of this light would be possible without the use of a ballast.
Although magnetic ballasts were first used with HID lights, electronic and digital ballasts have gained in popularity. They offer a greater degree of control over the electrical current, with the electrical and digital units helping the light systems to function at a greater efficiency for a lower cost than is possible with a magnetic ballast. They are less bulky and have a lower weight than magnetic ballasts, and also run much quieter and start quicker than the magnetic units.
As is typical with many types of electronic circuitry, one aspect of maintenance of the ballast that is crucial is to run the ballast at the proper temperature level. To neglect this one simple fact is to greatly reduce the life of your ballast. You can lengthen the effective life of the electrical ballast by ensuring that the ambient temperature is cooler than the recommended fixture temperature. You can as much as double the life of your ballast easily by cooling the air around it.
About the Author
In this article, Susan Slobac discusses maintaining and caring for your ballast. Since discovering how easy it is to grow food all year round, indoor gardening has become a way of life for her. Susan features seasoned advice to help aid you in choosing the right hydroponic gardening equipment for your needs.
Fluorescent Lamp with Electronic Ballast
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Lumatek Electronic Ballast – 1000W – 120V $175.00 |
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NEW HATCH FR2600 ELECTRONIC FLUORESCENT LAMP BALLAST 22 AMPS 120VAC $22.99 |
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SYLVANIA ELECTRONIC BALLAST QTP2X32T8/277 ISN-D $15.00 |
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Universal Triad B4321277RH-A, Electronic Ballast, NOS $9.99 |
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Advance Standard VEL-4P32-SC Instant Start Electronic Ballast, NOS $14.99 |
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GE B232I120RH, 2 Lamp Instant Start Triad Electronic Ballast, Lot of 4, NOS $40.00 |
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GE Proline T8 Electronic Ballast GE232-MV-N $85.00 |
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K5600 Joker Bug 200 watt electronic ballast hmi $1,500.00 |
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2 NEW Philips Advance Centium ICN-3P32-N Electronic Lamp Ballast 120v – 277v $26.99 |
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Electronic Control Gear Ballast 35W for Car HID Xenon Light Bulbs $25.25 |
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Advance 120 volt REL-1P32-RH-TP Electronic Ballast for (1) F32T8 RS/IS $14.95 |
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Electronic Digital Grow Ballast 400w 600/1000w Dimmable $169.95 |
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Electronic Digital Grow Ballast 400w 600/1000w Dimmable $209.95 |
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600 W HPS MH ELECTRONIC DIMMABLE BALLAST 2PC BULBS $186.71 |
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electronic ballast QHE3X32T8 ISL-SC $50.00 |
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600W MH HPS DIMMABL ELECTRONIC BALLAST + FREE HPS BULB! $130.68 |
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NEW HATCH FR2600 ELECTRONIC FLUORESCENT LAMP BALLAST 22 AMPS 120VAC $34.99 |
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Electronic Control Gear Ballast 35W for Car HID Xenon Light Bulbs $25.77 |
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Universal 446-L-VLH-TC-P Electronic Ballast MM-321 $14.99 |
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NEW HATCH FR2600 ELECTRONIC FLUORESCENT LAMP BALLAST 22 AMPS 120VAC $29.99 |
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GE GE-232-MAX-H/ULTRA/3CB70 ELECTRONIC FLUORESCENT BALLAST 159948 $27.00 |
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Electronic Energy Saving Fluorescent Light Ballast 21W for 2D Tube Bulb $6.98 |
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AC 220V 0.16A 32W Ring Tube Fluorescent Lamp Electronic Ballast $7.36 |
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AC ELECTRONICS ESD-C32T8M – Electronic T8 Programmed Rapid Start Ballast!!!! $40.70 |
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AC ELECTRONICS ESS-396PBXSX2 – 347 Volt, 80 Watt T5 Electronic Ballast!!!! $77.70 |
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Mini 35W Electronic Control Gear HID Ballast for HID Xenon Light Bulbs $17.90 |
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AC 220V 0.17A 22W Ring Tube Fluorescent Lamp Electronic Ballast $7.34 |
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Electronic Energy Saving Fluorescent Light Ballast 38W for 2D Tube Bulb $8.85 |
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AC 220V Electronic 2×40W Fluorescent Lamp Light Ballast $11.15 |
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Electronic Ballast 1 or 2 Fluorescent Lamps 2×40W AC 220V $9.70 |
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Electronic Ballast 1 or 2 Fluorescent Lamps 2×40W AC 220V $11.16 |
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Electronic Ballast for one [1] F32T8 Lamp $4.99 |
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New Fulham Work Horse WH2-277-L Electronic Ballast $16.99 |
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New Fulham Work Horse WH5-277-L Electronic Ballast $25.95 |
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Lutron EC5T539JUNV1 39W Electronic Dimming Ballast New $100.00 |
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White Plastic Shell Electronic Ballast AC 220V 0.19A for 40W Ring Tube Lamp $7.02 |
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GE B432I277EL ELECTRONIC BALLAST 277V 60HZ 84609 $24.00 |
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35W Electronic Control Gear Ballast for HID Xenon Light Bulbs $29.43 |
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5 x NEW Compact Fluorescent Electronic Ballast Universal Triad C242UNVBE 120-277 $59.89 |
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40W Ring Tube Fluorescent Lamp Electronic Ballast AC 220V 0.19A $7.35 |
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600W DIMMABLE ELECTRONIC HYDROPONIC BALLAST+ MH HPS BULBS GROW LIGHT KIT MAXGROW $159.99 |
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