flowering under a 600 watt HPS bulb with ballast dimmed down to 400 watts

Mcoocoo said:
Also the ballast will still pull 600 watts from the wall regardless of it's dimmer setting.
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That is incorrect, and who ever told you that should quit their job and find a new profession. I've tested this myself with my own dimmable ballast and Kill A Watt (http://www.p3international.com/products/p4400.html) in the past, and the wattage draw from the wall does indeed increase and decrease as the ballast is dimmed. Really, this is basic physics. Energy doesn't magically disappear. Your ballast would have to release that extra energy in the form of heat somehow, which would make the ballast a 300watt heater when dimmed to 50%.

main_p4400.jpg
 
Mcoocoo said:
the magnetic ones do seem like they are built better, never had one, so I can't attest to which is better, but you are correct, they are tried and true. sometimes newer technology doesn't last as long as original equiptment
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Magnetic ballasts are less efficient and also noisy.
 
Mcoocoo said:
he was just trying to help me find a solution to a problem I had, he meant well
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i wasnt being sarcastic lol. was honestly wondering where that info came from,..as in online,...a book.....i just wanted to read about that theory. didnt mean to come off arrogant.
 
PJ Diaz said:
That is incorrect, and who ever told you that should quit their job and find a new profession. I've tested this myself with my own dimmable ballast and Kill A Watt (http://www.p3international.com/products/p4400.html) in the past, and the wattage draw from the wall does indeed increase and decrease as the ballast is dimmed. Really, this is basic physics. Energy doesn't magically disappear. Your ballast would have to release that extra energy in the form of heat somehow, which would make the ballast a 300watt heater when dimmed to 50%.

main_p4400.jpg
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this picture proves nothing, it is simply an image of a kill a watt meter
 
The magnetic ballasts simply have less parts to fail. All thats in them is a transformer, capacitor and if HPS an ignitor. The capacitor and ignitor are the most common part to fail and they can easily be replaced for cheap. Back in the day it's all we had was those magnetic ballasts. My first HPS was a 430 watt HPS with Philips Son Agro bulb. Actually had a 30 watt boost built in lol.

They do waste more energy as heat, they don't soft start your lamps, they can't be dimmed or boosted. But after an EMP they will still work lol
 
Mcoocoo said:
this picture proves nothing, it is simply an image of a kill a watt meter
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I wasn't attempting to prove anything. I was only showing you what a kill-a-watt meter was in case you were unfamiliar. I have proved this to myself when I tested my own dimable ballast, as I was curious exactly what wattage it put out at dimmed levels. You can test it yourself as well. Really this is basic physics and requires no testing at all.
 
PJ Diaz said:
I wasn't attempting to prove anything. I was only showing you what a kill-a-watt meter was in case you were unfamiliar. I have proved this to myself when I tested my own dimable ballast, as I was curious exactly what wattage it put out at dimmed levels. You can test it yourself as well. Really this is basic physics and requires no testing at all.
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I understand :peace:
 
Lord Bonkey said:
mag ballasts were great, but the digital ones are much safer and easier on your electric system.
with mag ballasts when you get close to max amperage on a circuit they would blow the breaker on start up.

also they dont get as hot,
but yes mag 1ks were/are beasts

a cmh and a 600 are not even close to equal in par.
cmh is a bs light
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I would have to say no I have seen digi set on fire over tic and shit themselves constant flicker also 4 in 3 years is not a good run like I said my mag is 15 years old had one compasetator replace but that's it
 
rob333 said:
I would have to say no I have seen digi set on fire over tic and shit themselves constant flicker also 4 in 3 years is not a good run like I said my mag is 15 years old had one compasetator replace but that's it
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just another, different opinion here.....I have been growing for a little over 5 years and my digital, 1000 watt ballast (its one of those cheap ones that come in a kit on amazon) that I bought for my first grow, is still running awesome. Its still really quiet, only gets warm, never hot.... and it has worked with every HID bulb I've used . i would imagine a name brand one would only be better and last longer. not sure if this post is relevant to the original question, but i want to put out an opposing opinion to the one above me for the readers
 
Hydrowannabe said:
just another, different opinion here.....I have been growing for a little over 5 years and my digital, 1000 watt ballast (its one of those cheap ones that come in a kit on amazon) that I bought for my first grow, is still running awesome. Its still really quiet, only gets warm, never hot.... and it has worked with every HID bulb I've used . i would imagine a name brand one would only be better and last longer. not sure if this post is relevant to the original question, but i want to put out an opposing opinion to the one above me for the readers
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Years ago I too had a cheap dimmable digi ballast which ran solid for years. I recently set it up again and it fired and lit the lamp no problem. A bit later I noticed that the ballast seemed especially hot. Under further inspection I realized that the cooling fan had stopped working (some have fans, some do not). I don't use that ballast anymore. Glad I noticed it before my shed burnt down. Now I use a fanless digi.
 
Mcoocoo said:
I got an email back from the manufacturer and they said that a 600w ballast set at it's 400w setting will power a 400w bulb , although the lifespan of the bulb will be diminished because the ballast will still draw 600 watts from the electrical panel no matter what the dimmer is set to. They said what happens when you use the dimmer is that it cools the bulb and lowers the lumen output. They didn't go into any detail as to how the ballast accomplishes this or where the extra 200 watts go. I am guessing that the extra current is turned into heat that is held inside of the ballast itself, making the ballast warmer and the bulb cooler. (that is my guess anyhow) They also said that I should use the correct wattage bulb with the correct ballast for maximum lumen output and efficiency. So, were they telling me that it is safe to use it that way? I don't know
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What brand of ballast is this?
 
tikifire420 said:
im sure it will affect yield and quality but not by much. can i ask how you dimmed the light?
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I only dim down to the 400 watt setting when lift the plant up onto wire racking with drip pan underneath to feed it, then I set it back to 600 watt setting once I put plant back down on floor
 
PJ Diaz said:
Years ago I too had a cheap dimmable digi ballast which ran solid for years. I recently set it up again and it fired and lit the lamp no problem. A bit later I noticed that the ballast seemed especially hot. Under further inspection I realized that the cooling fan had stopped working (some have fans, some do not). I don't use that ballast anymore. Glad I noticed it before my shed burnt down. Now I use a fanless digi.
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I have read up a bit on this particular model and yes, it is a good ballast for the money ( $95) but some reviews have mentioned that the cooling fans in them tend to go after a few grows, although it does have 2 year warranty, so I have faith in it. I have learned that ballasts without the cooling fans the heat is dispersed to and absorbed by the metal fins that are all around the outside body of the ballast itself, that is why some of them have larger fins. As far as the cooling fan quitting on you, I am guessing that you are better off not using it unless you get it fixed, It will probably give off a lot of heat.
 
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honestly just put another 130 into it so not bad but its just supplies to build the light but ill post up later doing 10 of the solskin cree flowering version got them on backorder and if I like them better than the hlgs ill sell the hlgs and build 2 more who knows
 
interesting, I'd like to see a pic. I'm curious how the Crees get rid of heat? do they have built in fan or is a heat sink?
 
Hydrowannabe said:
just another, different opinion here.....I have been growing for a little over 5 years and my digital, 1000 watt ballast (its one of those cheap ones that come in a kit on amazon) that I bought for my first grow, is still running awesome. Its still really quiet, only gets warm, never hot.... and it has worked with every HID bulb I've used . i would imagine a name brand one would only be better and last longer. not sure if this post is relevant to the original question, but i want to put out an opposing opinion to the one above me for the readers
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i think at the end of the day it comes down to brand and luck and i have not had much luck with them
 
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