Metal Halide Question

Hey guys, hopefully some one will be able to answer this for me. I just bought a new Lumatek 400W digital ballast, 8in glass cooltub hood and a phillips MH bulb. The first couple times I had it all running, but then the breaker tripped. When I reset everything the bulb wouldnt fire back up. I have gone through two bulbs now at $50 a piece and am wondering if this is common. I would hate to have to replace the bulb when the breaker goes. Right now i have put a HPS bulb in until i can get this figured out.

The bulb has to cool down before it can re-fire. Did you wait a while before re-plugging it back in?

couple hours

If youre running it on 110 and youre sure that your ballast is designed for that, then id say youre having a ballast issue. could be a short. You may have to get it swapped for a new one. Look into a product called MLCX4 by C.A.P.. Love mine, never an issue, even when power lines down the road were throwing sparks. The MLCX4 was popping on and off every 5 seconds but didnt affect the lights or balllast at all.

gotigers0420 said:

If youre running it on 110 and youre sure that your ballast is designed for that, then id say youre having a ballast issue. could be a short. You may have to get it swapped for a new one. Look into a product called MLCX4 by C.A.P.. Love mine, never an issue, even when power lines down the road were throwing sparks. The MLCX4 was popping on and off every 5 seconds but didnt affect the lights or balllast at all.

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so the power outage fucks up the digital ballasts? that's crazy. shit i never knew that.

do you think just a cheap power bar/surge protector should be good enough? I got all my gear wired through surge protectors

Thedillestpickle said:

do you think just a cheap power bar/surge protector should be good enough? I got all my gear wired through surge protectors

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Hmm, i've heard of some problems using certain bulbs with digital ballasts. If you waited a few hours that should have been plenty of time for it to cool so you may be looking at a compatability issue or a short issue. ORR a less likely bulb issue eg: crack/scratch in bulb, water on bulb etc.. If you know the bulb and ballast are compatible i'd look into getting a new ballast from the manufacturer as mentioned above. Check the bulbs throuroughly as well, if you can show them multiple bulbs that blew it could be a defective batch and they could return your money maybe or get you a new bulb.

abrownmn said:

Hmm, i've heard of some problems using certain bulbs with digital ballasts. If you waited a few hours that should have been plenty of time for it to cool so you may be looking at a compatability issue or a short issue. ORR a less likely bulb issue eg: crack/scratch in bulb, water on bulb etc.. If you know the bulb and ballast are compatible i'd look into getting a new ballast from the manufacturer as mentioned above. Check the bulbs throuroughly as well, if you can show them multiple bulbs that blew it could be a defective batch and they could return your money maybe or get you a new bulb.

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sorry about the confusion there Im not the OP, it is weird that hes blowing bulbs like that. 3 possibilities really, human error on is part and hes got his ballast hooked up to 240watts but set to 120, or hes got something set wrong like set to HPS and running MH. or it could be from a power surge frying his ballast, This is where my question about surge protectors comes in. and then its possible that there was simply a manufactering error in either his ballast or bulbs.

so it works for the hps bulb but not the mh? weird yes

Lumatek electronic ballasts feature a full 3 year exchange warranty.

* Fast start-up ...It reaches full brightness in under one minute; magnetic ballasts typically take about twenty minutes
* Cut-off circuitry ...Automatic cut off when a short is detected. For ultimate safety.
* Longer bulb life...Lumen output loss over time is dramatically less than with magnetic ballasts
* Fully interchangeable ...Lumatek ballasts can light both HPS and MH bulbs
* More lumen output...20%-30% more lumens output.
* There are no fans to break down or make noise; fan cooled ballast's have a very high failure rate. Lumatek ballasts are very, very reliable. Which is why we offer the excellent warranty.
* Lumatek products - fast start up
* The ballast can be mounted in areas of high heat. Up to 140° Farenheit.
* Every Lumatek ballast is burned for 12 hours at the factory
* Excellent three year, full exchange warranty
* Lumatek ballasts are 8% brighter than ROM and future ballasts
* No fans to break down after 1 or 2 years
* Safer - The Lumatek ballast is completely sealed from the inside

Please note Lumatek Ballasts do not come with a lamp cord- please see Lumatek section for lamp cords.

*Lumatek Ballasts now operate on either 120 or 240V, can run either MH or HPS bulbs, and are dimmable.

http://search.yahoo.com/r/_ylt=A0oGdStCRwFPbmMAqD5XNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTE1MDdxazZwBHNlYwNzcgRwb3MDNARjb2xvA3NrMQR2dGlkA01TWTAxNV8xNjM-/SIG=12up3d6gp/EXP=1325512642/**http%3a//hidhut.com/catalog/lumatek-400w-120v240v-digital-ballast-p-132.html

well Im fucking sold! I still cant beleive I bought a magnetic ballast errrr

is that extra lumen output for real? is that even possible? Do the digital ballasts make absolutely no sound?

20-30% more lumen output? gotta go buy some weilding goggles

I have an old lumatek ballast I found on the curb one day 600W ballast! just cant plug it into anythign cause the cords are different. Its an older model, 120V only and no dimming

Thedillestpickle said:

well Im fucking sold! I still cant beleive I bought a magnetic ballast errrr

is that extra lumen output for real? is that even possible? Do the digital ballasts make absolutely no sound?

20-30% more lumen output? gotta go buy some weilding goggles

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did you check out the link? all the details are there .

The Lumatek electronic ballast produces up to 30% more lumens than a standard core and coil (magnetic) ballast whilst drawing less electricity. The Lumatek ballast is completely silent (no more buzzing) and produces less heat than a standard ballast Because of lumatek's soft start technology the lamps last up to three times as long. Test data has shown that a Lumatek 600 watt ballast produces within 5% of the usable light of a 1000watt core and coil ballast! Digital ballasts also do not degrade like standard ballasts do. Over time magnetic ballasts become louder, produce less light, emit more heat and use more electricity. Electronic ballasts maintain their efficiency throughout their life span.

* Completely silent ...you have to put your ear up to the ballast before you can detect the slightest sound

Thedillestpickle said:

I have an old lumatek ballast I found on the curb one day 600W ballast! just cant plug it into anythign cause the cords are different. Its an older model, 120V only and no dimming

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they have the proper cords for that one there too in link i posted

15ft lamp cord - 16gauge
Fits all NGW, Sunlight Suppy, Lumatek, C.A.P., Nextgen and Galaxy Ballasts that HID Hut carries.
Includes "dog ear" flaps to secure cord to ballast. < &#8226; Does not include socket or junction box.




then wire it to the normal 120v plug in

i have a phantom, digital 1000 watt ran a few times.... and i just hooked my 2x600 watt digital greenhouse ballasts and hoods tonigt.. m phantom is silent, my digi greenhouses are not... BUT MY DIGI GREENHOUSE run waaaay cooler!!! than my phantom.. i like that the phantom is dimmable, and my DGH'S arent, but whatever, now i need 2 new 600 veg bulbs,

lime73 said:

they have the proper cords for that one there too in link i posted

15ft lamp cord - 16gauge
Fits all NGW, Sunlight Suppy, Lumatek, C.A.P., Nextgen and Galaxy Ballasts that HID Hut carries.
Includes "dog ear" flaps to secure cord to ballast. < &#8226; Does not include socket or junction box.

then wire it to the normal 120v plug in

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that cord looks just like the ones I have, I dont know much about ballast plugs but I can get those easy, its the different one I cant seem to get, they dont carry them at the hydro store near me. it doesnt look as weird as those prongs do, its more symetrical, all the prongs are the same shape.

Ok so Im totally down for buying a digital ballast next time around, I feel like an idiot for buying a magnetic one, I didnt know any better and the hydro guy was probably just tryna unload his old stock on me. I do have that ballast I found kicking around though, no idea if it works or not though, as I cant plug it in to a bulb.

So they have a 3 year warranty. what happends to them after 3 years? can they be fixed or do you gotta toss 30 pounds of mystery metal in the garbage every 3 years? Why the hell shouldnt it work forever?

My magnetic ballasts arent that loud right now, should I expect they will be REALLY loud in a year from now cause I can't have that...

sorry this isnt my thread, and im full of questions

is that extra lumen output for real? is that even possible? Do the digital ballasts make absolutely no sound? 20-30% more lumen output? gotta go buy some weilding goggles

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Yes its for real I can actually see the difference when i switch it through the stages. My 400W has 250 mode, 250 super lumens, 400W and 400 super lumens. The ballast is silent!

www.bulkhydro.com has the best prices I have ever seen on Lumatek ballasts and Hortilux bulbs with free shipping.

Lankster187 said:

Yes its for real I can actually see the difference when i switch it through the stages. My 400W has 250 mode, 250 super lumens, 400W and 400 super lumens. The ballast is silent!

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oh ok never heard of this super lumens switch before, Whats the downside? why run your light at normal 400w when you can go bump it up to super lumen mode? does it burn out the bulb faster?

Thedillestpickle said:

oh ok never heard of this super lumens switch before, Whats the downside? why run your light at normal 400w when you can go bump it up to super lumen mode? does it burn out the bulb faster?

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Its basically an extra 60 watts threw at the bulb, most bulbs should handle that fine with minimal loss of life.

If Anyone buys a lumatek digital ballast, make sure you get a digital ballast friendly bulb!! Its not bullshit it actually matters!