Plant Gardens 101

Hydroponics uses several different types of lights for optimum plant growth. While using different grow lights, it is important to invest in a specialized digital ballast, which is a necessary component of any lighting circuit. Simply put, a ballast is an electronic component in a lighting system that controls the amount of current in a circuit. Without it, a grow light would fail to work.

Why Digital Ballasts
Earlier ballasts consisted of resistors, which is an inefficient way to control current, as it leads to loss of electricity. Modern digital ballasts limit current flow without wasting electricity. They also help to extend the lifespan of grow lights. Moreover, they help to reduce flickering, a common feature in older ballasts. Also, the performance of most conventional magnetic ballasts worsens after few years of operation, while digital ballasts provide a consistent lumen output and efficiency over its lifetime. As a bonus, digital ballasts offer noise-free operation and less startup time, or the time required to achieve full brightness. (more…)

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 within a glass lamp. 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 bulb unchecked, blowing up the bulb, so the ballast is vital to its proper operation. (more…)

If you would like to give hydroponic gardening a try, one of the hydroponic supplies that you will need is HID lights. HID, or High Intensity Discharge, lamps will provide the strong light that plants need to thrive in an indoor setting. In order for these lamps to work properly, they must function in conjunction with a ballast.

Grow lamps consist of a glass tube that contains tungsten electrodes, gas and metals. You see light emit from the tube when an electrical arc is struck across the electrodes. The gas helps the light to start, and once the metals are heated they function to produce the light. Hydroponic gardening reaps the benefits of using these lights because they provide light that most closely resembles sunlight, a definite plus when you are growing plants indoors without exposure to sunlight. They are also cost efficient, because they last longer than other light bulbs and are more energy efficient. (more…)

Before entering into a discussion as to why digital ballasts are superior to the old-fashioned magnetic core and coil types, it may be helpful to know exactly what a ballast system is in terms of grow lights and grow systems.

All standard grow lights used in hydroponic gardening – whether some type of metal vapor or fluorescent – employ a ballast system. This consists of a housing, within which is contained electronic components that in essence “prime the pump.” A fluorescent light has its own built-in ballast system; this builds up the energy required to activate the molecules inside the fluorescent tube, which in turn causes them to glow, emitting light. Metal Halide and HPS grow lights have “remote ballasts” which are housed inside a metal container. The components are what make up these lamps’ main power supply. Together, they function as a “pre-heater,” which allows electrical power to build up to the point that the lamp will run. (more…)

When it comes to grow lights and other electronic devices, a ballast is mechanism that acts as a type of resistor. Similar to the “power pack” used with electric trains, its purpose is to regulate the amount of electrical current flowing through a circuit.

If grow lights – such as metal halide, high pressure sodium grow lights or even fluorescent lights – were connected directly to a power outlet, they would continue to draw greater and greater amounts of electric current until they burned up, exploded, or destroyed the power source. This is why a ballast is necessary. The ballast provides positive resistance which limits the flow of electricity to the lamp. Today there are two options for a grow light ballast, either an electronic or a digital ballast. (more…)