To those that think dimmable ballasts save money do me a favor.. Go buy couple 100 ohm resistors, hook up a light bulb off your panel and throw the resistors in the circuit to dim that bulb. Then tell me if your wattage changed. If u dont feel like doing all that misc dumbshit, i can tell u a 60w bulb is pulling 60w no matter how much current its pulling. higher current brighter and lower current duller obviously. Solis teks use the highest quality components. Im switching to them unless eye hortilux decides to drop they price alot by then. A 1000w light need 1000w to run, u can alter current but not wattage. Maybe if they make some special light that allows wattage changes as opposed to current draw then it will save. Dont believe me throw a 1k in a 600w ballast, get some real nice dimm action lol.. <dont try that at home.

those solis-tek ballasts look badass :)

it actually does work. I used an ammeter n tested right at the panel. as i decresed/dimmed the ballast the reading dropped as well. math doesn't lie and the mathematical formula for determining power output (watts) it is on one side of the equation and amp is on the other side. its only logical that if the amps are dropping on one side of the equation that the watts are dropping on the other side. sorry bro but they do work and that link i posted, was done to try and dispell the rumors that are false. to see for yourself go buy an ammeter and try it out.

edit: i got my solis teks off ebay for a killer deal. less than what the local store was tryin to sell me two generic pos. guy was super solid and hooked up a killer deal. not sure if u interested in the ebay route but pm if ya want the guys link. got 2 for jus over 6 hundo, taxes, brokerage fee and shipping included.

Comes with a remote controll!! now i can sit on my ass and dimm the ballast! lmao :D

TylerDurden119 said:

it actually does work. I used an ammeter n tested right at the panel. as i decresed/dimmed the ballast the reading dropped as well. math doesn't lie and the mathematical formula for determining power output (watts) it is on one side of the equation and amp is on the other side. its only logical that if the amps are dropping on one side of the equation that the watts are dropping on the other side. sorry bro but they do work and that link i posted, was done to try and dispell the rumors that are false. to see for yourself go buy an ammeter and try it out.

edit: i got my solis teks off ebay for a killer deal. less than what the local store was tryin to sell me two generic pos. guy was super solid and hooked up a killer deal. not sure if u interested in the ebay route but pm if ya want the guys link. got 2 for jus over 6 hundo, taxes, brokerage fee and shipping included.

Click to expand...

I've talked to the guys at Lumatek and they confirmed this as well with theres.

The Jd ballast is new on the market with 5 year warranty

http://www.jd-lightings.com/resonanceIgnition.jsp#

http://www.jd-lightings.com/resonanceIgnition.jsp

http://www.jd-lightings.com/MainController?productInfo=1&action=edit

Actually it doesnt. And lumatek reps know hardly shit about their products let alone electricity. I should be a rep most of em are clueless. What do they do hire the guy with the least experiwnce? Im certqinly no english student so i will direct those attentions whom think they know about dimmer switches here http://www.askthebuilder.com/dimmer-switch/
And if that guy is to technical what he says is in so many words the draw isnt changed the "bulb" current is all that affected. But u can go ahead with your hopes n dreams. Of course lumatek gonna say it saves money thats they claim to fame on dimmers lol! Now also there is a way to change the lights frequency to make it appear dimer when In fact it is not and this is what they call super lumens lol. Higher frequency. U one of those guys that has your max lumen switch on trying to xonvince yourself yields went up as well as lumens too? Hope not.. Now for the love of god dont try that i mesuared amperage from panel bs i can say the same thing. Come with facts, ya i knkw ohms law and kirschoffs. U wanna gimme some equations? Honestly dont i don wanna waste more time, u either get it or u dont.

Anybody got a Kill A Watt and a 120 volt dimmable ballast. To do a quick test, set on watts.
If the current drops when you dim, we still dont know what is happening internally, the ballast could be playing voltage and resistance games when that happens, but a Kill A Watt set on watts should display the truth.

What ballast has the best RFI shielding?

^^now youre talking. Just as i say its pulling 1kw the dimming happens in ballast via potentiometer or rheostat and the extra power is dissapaited into heat.. Thats about as easy as i can put it. True test, use a dedicated 15-20 amp branch circuit for your lighting only run a 1kw light and take readings and do the math through ohms law or u can cut all power and run your 1kw on dim feature for 1 hr and check your electric meter for a reading. Im glad someone finally understands withot simply saying some ignant shit.

this is the last post i'm gona make on this issue. you can believe whatever you want. here's the facts. as i dimmed my ballast the amps dropped on my ammeter on the line into my panel. the mathematical equation for watts

KILOWATT (kW) = VOLTS x AMPERES x POWER FACTOR x 2
1000

so as you can see the watts value is on one side of the equation and amps on the other. sooo because both sides have to equal out in the equation. ITS ONLY MATHEMATICALLY CORRECT THAT IF THE AMPS ARE DROPPING ON THE AMMETER AS ITS DIMMED THE WATTS ALSO MUST DROP.

hypothetically lets use some fake numbers

220x7x.0.85/1000=1.309 kW

220x4x0.85/1000=0.748 kW

so if the amp reading is dropping at the line going into the panel you can see that the watts must drop as well.

last thing im gona post on this. im trying to put out this information to educate people and dispell the myths and rumors. if you choose to believe it or not is up to you. this is all factual and i encourage you to get your kill a watt and see for your own eyes.

TylerDurden119 said:

this is the last post i'm gona make on this issue. you can believe whatever you want. here's the facts. as i dimmed my ballast the amps dropped on my ammeter on the line into my panel. the mathematical equation for watts

KILOWATT (kW) = VOLTS x AMPERES x POWER FACTOR x 2
1000

so as you can see the watts value is on one side of the equation and amps on the other. sooo because both sides have to equal out in the equation. ITS ONLY MATHEMATICALLY CORRECT THAT IF THE AMPS ARE DROPPING ON THE AMMETER AS ITS DIMMED THE WATTS ALSO MUST DROP.

hypothetically lets use some fake numbers

220x7x.0.85/1000=1.309 kW

220x4x0.85/1000=0.748 kW

so if the amp reading is dropping at the line going into the panel you can see that the watts must drop as well.

last thing im gona post on this. im trying to put out this information to educate people and dispell the myths and rumors. if you choose to believe it or not is up to you. this is all factual and i encourage you to get your kill a watt and see for your own eyes.

Click to expand...

can't edit over 5 min now :S

i missed the multiplication factor of 2 on tha formula but it doesn't effect the outcome of what i was trying to prove.

n if ya wana find out for sure go put a 600 bulb in your dimmable 1k and watch it not blow up. cause theoretically if its still using the 1k of electricity it has to go somewhere(it just doesn't disappear into heat!) so it should go into the bulb or back into the circuit. so if its going into the bulb and the dimming thing is just a total myth and marketing hype the 600 bulb should blow up.

You can do a simple test by looking at your eletrical meter outside the house. Turn off all your breakers except your room, then look at the meters kilo watts. Go dim your ballast, then check to see if the kw drops.

Illmind said:

Actually it doesnt. And lumatek reps know hardly shit about their products let alone electricity. I should be a rep most of em are clueless. What do they do hire the guy with the least experiwnce? Im certqinly no english student so i will direct those attentions whom think they know about dimmer switches here http://www.askthebuilder.com/dimmer-switch/
And if that guy is to technical what he says is in so many words the draw isnt changed the "bulb" current is all that affected. But u can go ahead with your hopes n dreams. Of course lumatek gonna say it saves money thats they claim to fame on dimmers lol! Now also there is a way to change the lights frequency to make it appear dimer when In fact it is not and this is what they call super lumens lol. Higher frequency. U one of those guys that has your max lumen switch on trying to xonvince yourself yields went up as well as lumens too? Hope not.. Now for the love of god dont try that i mesuared amperage from panel bs i can say the same thing. Come with facts, ya i knkw ohms law and kirschoffs. U wanna gimme some equations? Honestly dont i don wanna waste more time, u either get it or u dont.

Click to expand...

Hey illmind, I'm not sure why your so sure that they don't save electricity when dimmed. Have you actually tested this yourself? I can tell you from my own experience and a kill-a-watt meter that they do save electricity and this is even the older lumateks w/ the % instead of the wattages. I didn't get this info from the rep, I tested it myself on my friends ballasts as well as my own. Almost all dimmable ballasts out there save electricity otherwise it's would only be 1/2 as useful. This has been something I wondered since before I purchased a dimmable ballast but found out shortly afterwards through e-mails and later through kill-a-watt that they do indeed use less electricity(amps/watts) like you would expect, my new ballasts list the wattage on the different options.

I would be upset if it did not save electricity, when in dim mode. But i think you do not get full spectrum when you dim a 1000w bulb to 600w VS dimming to 600w with a 600w bulb. If your only doing it once in a while like early bloom to let them adjust or on Hot summer day to fight the heat all should be good.

me 2 lol, I just wanted to clear up this misconception. As I've seen it a few times before when I first bought my ballasts and researching, really didn't expect to see it in 2012 still.

smokie said:

I would be upset if it did not save electricity, when in dim mode. But i think you do not get full spectrum when you dim a 1000w bulb to 600w VS dimming to 600w with a 600w bulb. If your only doing it once in a while like early bloom to let them adjust or on Hot summer day to fight the heat all should be good.

Click to expand...

the spectrum stays the same.

A.) ive installed more dimmer switches then i care to count
B.) my buddy is the head engineer at a fortune 500 and we speak about stuff like this
C.) only people who dont underetand what im saying are ignorant people that "want" to think they got what they paid for
Like thr input wattage doesnt change, y would it? A resistor simplys dissipates current from the circuit it doesnt send a signal to your sub panel and say 'ok were going with 500w today' its simply a rheostat with varying resistances and resistors come in certain numbers so it makes sense most dim from 3/4 1/2 1/4. In order to change the voltage or wattage draw straight from the outlet u would need a huge adapter plug that was installed at the very begining of the plug. If its just a plug then obviously amperage change is inside the ballast. Like a cell phone charger, the components must be at the plug to affect the input. Only way to achieve that period. Theres no smart plug that carry messages or contain transformers in em. Like why doesnt smart phones just tell the plug to only pull this much at this voltage because its not possible. I dont see how nobody ubderstands it its the easiest thing to grasp. But when your blinded by "wants" i guess its hard to c. I want em to save mo ey too, ubfortubately as the man said dropping xurrent and what not to a light thats meant to run on flc is like driving a car with parking brake on. Honestly if u woulda said my ballast gets a lot less hot running at 1/4 thab at 100% id entertain the idea a lite but a i get is bs and google equations that dont apply. Im gonr from here tho i dun wanna off track the thread an turn it into a fake debate cuz this isnt a debate. Show me a video of u proving this or stfu. Cuz i know u clueless and going off what u believe to be true but people believe what they wanna. So go ahead and crank the supdr lumen button and rock out with your cock out. Cuz that super lumen button does nothing super and nothing lumens lol. 50% of the eballasts claims are horse shit. Low frequency ballasts still cause line noise but at reasonable frequencies that wont raise a flag. Line noise theres another thing that u cant see or know about. Lemme guess u know all about it lol. Honestly the dimm switch is dumb and useless imo and i care zero about it but i do like to laugh at these ballast claims. Bulbs last longer!! Until they found out it blows bulbs lol. Man i dont even wanna think back to all the bullshit that rose to the surface on the eballast tip would be here all day. Long story short fuck a dimmer switch unless un have it on recessed lighting and your about to bang a fat chick then get ya dim on. U want the most light possiblr for plants, t5s for veg n clone are best so y need dimmer?

O and if your plig does have something on it its simply to achieve 220 from a 120 outlet and that is it.

I think your mistaken illmind, maybe the digital ballasts aren't using the technology your thinking or solely using them. 120v and 240v is the same plug on a digital, kinda like most good PC's you no longer need to select voltage, it's auto switching. I'm positive I'm not ignorant for knowing I got what I paid for which is a dimming ballast. I told you I didn't get my info from talking to any said expert. I tested and saw w/ my own eyes that input and output wattage changed. I have a kill-a-watt meter and the watts and amps both lowered to the said wattage when dimmed to it. I don't think that they are making a light the same way you would make a dimmable ballast. I think your referring to dimming bulbs w/o ballasts(60w bulb)? I'm really not trying to get into an argument, I've tested it myself and would not be telling others if I was not sure of it. Have you tested it yourself? If so, what ballast? maybe yours was the exception?

My research says that the spectrum does shift upwards but not by a lot, so if your running a 2k kelvin temp it might go as far as 2100-2300 kelvin temps. I can't find the study atm.

theherbalizor said:

They do remote versions of the pro el 400 v range and coming with the new air cooled will be a single ended 1000 allowing for virticle positioning if one wishes.

Click to expand...

where can i find more information regarding this?