Building A Better Ballast

Building A Better Ballast

Much is changing in greenhouse lighting. Driven by high energy costs and the promotion of energy savings, electronic greenhouse lighting systems are popping up across the United States.

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Greenhouse HID lighting systems require a ballast to strike or ignite and then regulate HID lamps. More traditional HID greenhouse lighting systems use electromagnetic ballasts consisting of a large, heavy transformer, an igniter and a capacitor. They are sturdy and functional, but in light of recent technological innovations, they carry many associated disadvantages.

The e-ballast’s digital circuitry overcomes electrical and physical disadvantages of electromagnetic systems. The heavy transformer, igniter and capacitor are replaced by solid-state digital circuits. There is also no incessant humming, and heat is significantly reduced.

There is more. The old electromagnetic system uses a high energy discharge (up to 4,000 volts) to ignite the HID lamp. E-ballasts use radio frequencies to ignite the lamp at a much lower level of energy. A softer ignition extends lamp life. The circuitry recognizes the type of lamp (MH or HPS) automatically.

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