Lumatek Dimmable Ballast !!! any good??

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thunderfudge

thunderfudge

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dimmable dual 400/600s for life!add lumens or knock Em down to 4's to take that heat away.not as much penetration as a 1k,but the most efficient and versatile.
 
ttystikk

ttystikk

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All those who get the Gavita double ended units, please let me know how they work out for you. I've got a grip of magnetic ballasts now, just for simplicity and longevity, but I plan to kick things up a notch with these soon. I would love it even more if Gavita would come out with a sealed and vented version- with a remote ballast would be perfect! I'd run those bad boys on a flip in a heartbeat.
 
Kyle mccall

Kyle mccall

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Not even switched mine on mate got two months before I flick that switch haha.
 
nangonug

nangonug

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All those who get the Gavita double ended units, please let me know how they work out for you. I've got a grip of magnetic ballasts now, just for simplicity and longevity, but I plan to kick things up a notch with these soon. I would love it even more if Gavita would come out with a sealed and vented version- with a remote ballast would be perfect! I'd run those bad boys on a flip in a heartbeat.

Gavita does not recomend air cooling there 400 volt lamps. Says coolong the lamp decreases light output and efficency. I am currently running 8 air cooled lamps. I hope to be able to drop down to 6 of the Gavita's but I doubt my current ac will handle them. They do have remote hoods and ballasts but they are not ait cooled. I feel ya on the awaled hoods but they seam to loose a lot by air cooling and putting them under glass. I hate having covered lamps anyway. The results of bare lamps vs air cooled glass lamps is evident by the finishes product. Guess its time to step up to a split ac unit !
 
Kyle mccall

Kyle mccall

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Haha ye defo but it ll be worth it on a run 10 bb silver cheese 10 autoflowers from sweet seeds and 9 killing fields from sannie seeds :)
 
R

recreationaluse

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Agreed on the dimming feature; between killing your PAR per watt efficiency and accelerating the bulb's lumen depreciation, it's just not worth it. For HPS it's not so bad; for MH it's a deal killer.

Question for ya; when you were having striking problems, were the bulbs new? How long was the cord between ballast and bulb? Older bulbs often have problems striking, and shorter cords are always better. I've heard that a lil dab of dielectric grease on the tip of the bulb before you screw it into the socket helps with striking issues resulting from long cord runs.

If I ever switch to digital ballasts across my whole setup (I do have an old silver lumatek, and a purple one in my veg zone, no trouble with them so far), I will be going with the digital Gavita ballasts that run the new 400V Philips Green Power 1000w double ended bulbs. These are a long step up in performance from the current mogul socket 1k HPS in terms of PAR, efficiency, and longevity- they're rated at 95% of initial output at 8000 hours, and >90% at 10,000 hours! That's TWO years or more of flowering out of the bulb before it needs replacement!
they were brand new bulbs, brand new ballasts(began having problems about 4 weeks in. no dieelectric grease needed as it was brand new and no corrosion whatsoever on terminals. ever since i put the quantums in (with same bulb, reflector and 15ft cord) problems went away. MY OVERALL RECOMMENDATION IS STICK WITH MAGNETIC. I STILL RUN BOTH SIDE BY SIDE AND THERE IS NO COMPARATIVE DIFFERENCE AT ALL.
 
ttystikk

ttystikk

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they were brand new bulbs, brand new ballasts(began having problems about 4 weeks in. no dieelectric grease needed as it was brand new and no corrosion whatsoever on terminals. ever since i put the quantums in (with same bulb, reflector and 15ft cord) problems went away. MY OVERALL RECOMMENDATION IS STICK WITH MAGNETIC. I STILL RUN BOTH SIDE BY SIDE AND THERE IS NO COMPARATIVE DIFFERENCE AT ALL.

In other words, Lumatek ballsts are cheap shit. We knew this by now, didn't we? ;) I'm stickin' with my mag n coil gear until I step up to Gavita's Proline 1000w DE setup. The step up in efficiency is what will make the difference, but you'll notice it took 400v circuitry and a brand new bulb design to do it. Hindsight being what it is, I guess I feel a wee bit suckered by the hype because after all, they WERE the same old bulbs at the same old voltage, right?
 
ttystikk

ttystikk

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Gavita does not recomend air cooling there 400 volt lamps. Says coolong the lamp decreases light output and efficency. I am currently running 8 air cooled lamps. I hope to be able to drop down to 6 of the Gavita's but I doubt my current ac will handle them. They do have remote hoods and ballasts but they are not ait cooled. I feel ya on the awaled hoods but they seam to loose a lot by air cooling and putting them under glass. I hate having covered lamps anyway. The results of bare lamps vs air cooled glass lamps is evident by the finishes product. Guess its time to step up to a split ac unit !

Yes, just got the same word from Whazzap, all but verbatim for what you're telling me. You and I share the same cooling plant problems re. stepping up to non- sealed and vented hoods. That's no reason to stick yourself with a minisplit unless there really is no other choice. I am so happy with my ChillKing driven water cooling system that I will insist on merely sizing up the cooling plant and sticking with the water cooled gear. The reasons? No playing with freon (it never leaves the box), water cooling is much more efficient in terms of BTu/watt than AC, AC doesn't work worth a damn up where it's high altitude and dusty dry, I want one unit to cool all my systems and no AC will do that, minisplit or not, and of course I already have my waterlines and such plumbed in so there's no reason not to keep using them!

nangonug, unless you live in a low altitude high humidity area (and even if you do), you should seriously look into chiller technology, too- the bigger the cooling requirements, the more water chilling your operation makes sense- especially from a cost of operation standpoint. There's a reason they're almost universally used in office buildings and other large installations.
 
nangonug

nangonug

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Yes, just got the same word from Whazzap, all but verbatim for what you're telling me. You and I share the same cooling plant problems re. stepping up to non- sealed and vented hoods. That's no reason to stick yourself with a minisplit unless there really is no other choice. I am so happy with my ChillKing driven water cooling system that I will insist on merely sizing up the cooling plant and sticking with the water cooled gear. The reasons? No playing with freon (it never leaves the box), water cooling is much more efficient in terms of BTu/watt than AC, AC doesn't work worth a damn up where it's high altitude and dusty dry, I want one unit to cool all my systems and no AC will do that, minisplit or not, and of course I already have my waterlines and such plumbed in so there's no reason not to keep using them!

nangonug, unless you live in a low altitude high humidity area (and even if you do), you should seriously look into chiller technology, too- the bigger the cooling requirements, the more water chilling your operation makes sense- especially from a cost of operation standpoint. There's a reason they're almost universally used in office buildings and other large installations.

You hit the head of the nail, low altitude high humidity area. Around here the heat pump is king. It does double duty and at times runs over 100 percent efficnt due to the latent energy contained in the moist air. Not to many chillers in use. Maybe the new hospital but don't know. I don't do energy audits any more. I may play with a chiller some time and have thought of it but the cost compaired to comperable heat pump tec is about double. Maybe even a bit more if you shop. Yes the refrigerent is the hastle but not to bad. Do the install then call a local lisenced to come preasure test and then fill. Might add a couple hundred to the cost. If I buy smart and do install by self I can do a 4 ton system for under 2000. Thats not a split thats a regular heat pump with indoor air handler electorstatic filter and maybe even a uv light for that cost. Also I get the added benifit of adding a heat strip or gas heat to cover the few days or weeks a year that the heat pump would need heat. Last time i looked it would be about double that or a bit more to go water and still not have heat or filtered uv purified ait. Would not work for you cause of the dry air. Bummer but then you can probibly get lower night time temps there so helps keep coolong load down. Peace
 
ttystikk

ttystikk

6,892
313
Interesting info re. the heat pump in humid climes. Makes total sense though. That's a similar trick to using swamp coolers up here in the high and dry!
 
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