Ceramic Metal Halide (CMH)

[KMK0420]

CMH > MH.

END!

Dunno bout flowering with CMH...many people saying it causes too leafy of buds rather than the HPS..

 

[simba]

short version.
Vertical Lamps are only effeciant if at level with plants.. the parabolic reflectors out there are Crapola for pushing light down. with that said if going vert and just at plant height use a parb to keep some light down.
or plants are all around lamp..

KM thats cause those are INDICA Based Strains>INDICAs are Bushs..
the light is only making the plant reach its full potential..
take this with grain of salt.
if cmh creates fat leaves what would a eye horti blue do with more blue. vs red.. and more blue vs cmh.. (its to much blue for me. and way not enough red)

give a body builder just base nutes he will be OK>. HPS
give him full nutes Etc..hell stoke ups.. CMH
same concept.. under hps some those strains dont perform to there potential.. including fat leaves. But fat leaves mean more energy absorbed.. but again its Indica.. i like sativias.. (med im indica, fun im sativia)

 

[coxswain]

If silence is my main criterium can I still go with magnetic ballast?

I'm planing a room with 2'3" x 6'8" or 0.7m x 2m in size. From what informationa I gathered that would require two 400W lamps. I would really like to go with CMH lamps but it seems only magnetic ballasts will run them.

So ... are there high quality magnetic ballast that produce no sound at all?

Perhaps I could go with 3 x 250W for which magnetic ballasts are silent?

Is there a reliable electronic ballast that will drive 400W Philips CMH?

Edit:
I remembered there's a company called GElighting. Anyone tested their gear? Do their electronic ballasts run Philips CMH lamp? Anyone ordered their products to Europe?

 

[Che]

New magnetic ballasts are much quieter than old ones, the difference is night and day. Just grab a new one for each cmh and you'll have an almost silent grow (cant hear ballasts over the air flow)

 

[digital]

I have a Sunlight Supply Harvest Pro 400w HPS mag ballast, and when using it with the CMH bulb, it is effectively silent. Even if I turn off all my fans, I can barely hear the thing.

 

[Woall]

post removed

 

[simba]

cox,
mag ballasts are quiet. what makes the noise is the vibration from the Mag core amplifies in some of the cheaper Metal Cases. (until they get old then buzz but not loud by any means) 400 watters
Your in EU most ballasts from the shops are Brand name just stick with those..

GE ultramax @380ish..is only one and its BIG>>
and that requires 200 V wont operate on EU Power the HZ stops that real quick..

Woall,
that's a Kit. .so you would wire it up/mount to something..
Most of us make a Ballast rack type thing.. Either ballast mounted Concrete Backer on top of plywood.. or sheet metal or something else to keep it a few inches away from any thing that can catch fire.. (the best is place on cinder block and dont knock it off. )
id say They are industrial AKA Commercial but that's a good thing..

 

[coxswain]

Now that I have read through some of this thread I am thinking I made a mistake. Is this ballast designed for industrial settings, not small horticultural operations?

If it's designed for industrial settings so much better. ;-) It's designed for that light and that's its sole purpose. If it was me I would only want to know how quiet it is.

 

[Woall]

post removed

 

[coxswain]

cox,
mag ballasts are quiet. what makes the noise is the vibration from the Mag core amplifies in some of the cheaper Metal Cases. (until they get old then buzz but not loud by any means) 400 watters
Your in EU most ballasts from the shops are Brand name just stick with those..

Thanx for the anwser Simba!

Well ... a friend told me he has a nosy mag. ballast so I ask! As said my main goal is _ultra quiet_ grow room.
Someone mentioned magnetic ballasts are very quiet if resin sealed. I found Vossloh Schwabe mag. ballast that are PUR resin sealed.
Would you by any chance know if these are ok?
250/400 watters on page 26 look great. If anyone knows anything about this ballast do let me know please. Silence is my goal!
katalog http://www.vossloh-schwabe.de/kr/pro...ges238-274.pdf

Overgrow!

 

[simba]

If ya can get a VS 250 HPS ballast that would be Great.. they rock..
i wouldnt go potted version for parts replacement but VS Lasts LOng lOng time..

 

[coxswain]

If ya can get a VS 250 HPS ballast that would be Great.. they rock..
i wouldnt go potted version for parts replacement but VS Lasts LOng lOng time..

Are you suggesting 250 over 400 VS ballast? I need to fill up a 0.7m x 2m room.

3 times 250W better then 2 x 400W?

 

[nightcrawler]

Are you suggesting 250 over 400 VS ballast? I need to fill up a 0.7m x 2m room.

3 times 250W better then 2 x 400W?

i personaly think having 3 250's is better that 2 400's.... more even light over everything.

 

[MrBomDiggitty]

I have a 400w HPS and am anxiously awaiting my CMH due to arrive today.

Still haven't had a chance to try the CMH to see difference in heat from HPS.

I want to design a 2 foot wide by 2 foot deep and 5 foot tall cab.

Am I trying to cram too many watts into a 2x2x5 area?

Was hoping to let the cab run on passive intake/outtake.

 

[hoosierdaddy]

The DIY mag ballast driving my 400CMH is silent. I put mine in an old used NEMA12 enclosure.

Woal, the lights and ballasts are essentially the same for both industrial and horticultural applications. Biggest difference is that most industrial app lights are wired for 480 3 phase power, and you cannot (should not) use them at your house.

 

[Aerohead]

Thanx for the anwser Simba!

Well ... a friend told me he has a nosy mag. ballast so I ask! As said my main goal is _ultra quiet_ grow room.
Someone mentioned magnetic ballasts are very quiet if resin sealed. I found Vossloh Schwabe mag. ballast that are PUR resin sealed.
Overgrow!

I have three resin sealed mag ballasts (250w) I use on reef tanks and they are totally silent, have to put your ear directly on them to hear a faint buzzz.

i personaly think having 3 250's is better that 2 400's.... more even light over everything.

This is good advice for your size space, if it was a square space, I would use the 400. I used an ikea cab with a 400 CMH once and switched to 2 X 250's and the difference was amazing. I'm pretty sure that's because I had a rectangle grow space rather than a square. The loss in penetration was minimal compared to far better light distribution.

 

[Woall]

http://www.advancedtechlighting.com/so250-71c-211.htm

is this ballast kit wired for 480 3 phase power?

 

[nightcrawler]

im in canada and got my about 3.5 weeks later.... boarder custums held it for about 6 days.. so depending on where u are it might take abit longer...

 

[hoosierdaddy]

Whoal, the "quad tap" thing means that the ballast can be connected four different ways, and can satisfy wiring requirements of four different voltages.
The top line of the chart shows what voltages it can be wired for; 120, 208, 240, 277
In the US we (usually) only have 110 or 220 voltage in a home. It's a bit confusing, but the 120 is the hookup to use if you want to use a 110volt ac circuit (normal home plug in), and the 240 is for using a 220 volt ac circuit (like your dryer uses).

If it were a 3 phase 440 volt ac unit, the tag would have that voltage included at the top.

(give a fish or teach fishing?)

 

[Woall]

Is there any reason a Philips HPS-Retro White 250 Watt Horizontal ~ Ceramic Metal Halide bulb wouldn't work well with one of these complete lighting systems?

http://www.sunlightsupply.com/hort/products.aspx?request=SUN-SYSTEM-2-ENCLOSED-BALLAST&title=Complete%20Systems&type=product

It looks like this system has a magnetic ballast and reflective hood integrated into the same housing.