Ipower ballasts dangerous???

[DoubleTripleOG]

Just to play devil's advocate......I purchased 4, 1000 watt ipower set-up's almost 3 years ago. In that time only one ballast has shit the bed on me. Still using the original bulbs that came with them when I bought them(I know, I'm a cheap bastard and I should have already replaced them twice) .

I run my grow on circuits dedicated to the grow, nothing else on them. I only run them at 80% capacity(rule for running continuous power for more than 6 hours, I think)

 

[MJINC]

Just to play devil's advocate......I purchased 4, 1000 watt ipower set-up's almost 3 years ago. In that time only one ballast has shit the bed on me. Still using the original bulbs that came with them when I bought them(I know, I'm a cheap bastard and I should have already replaced them twice) .

I run my grow on circuits dedicated to the grow, nothing else on them. I only run them at 80% capacity(rule for running continuous power for more than 6 hours, I think)

Is the 80% what they draw when they've been running for a little while or does that include the initial inrush you get when the ballasts first switch on?

 

[Floridian]

The 80% of load is based on the continuous load not startup draw

 

[sunnyside]

Don't use 1000 watt electronic ballasts on 120 circuits...bottom line, timer or not.

THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) is an issue with all electronic ballasts on the market including everyones favorites...gavita, nanolux, epap, etc... and it's always worse when running on 120v. Often times THD is higher in bargain ballasts.

THD coupled with a $2 timer can put you in a spot you don't want to be in...

References...

http://www.aptsources.com/resources/pdf/total harmonic distortion.pdf

http://www.gavita.com/images/retail...ets/Gavita-Pro-1000e-DE-FLEX-specsheet-US.pdf

http://nanoluxtech.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/DE-Fixture-tech-sheet.pdf

 

[Muleskinner]

You get what you pay for!!! A friend of mine was recently all excited "I got a 4X8 tent and 600w light, all the cheapest shit from China, for only 200 bucks!" It was Ipower. The tent poles look as strong as a drinking straw. What total shit.

I was sorry to see Lumatek go out of business, IMO they made quality ballasts. It's the cheap-shit Walmart mentality that drove them out of business.

Now I only use lights from Philips and P.L. Light professional horticulture and I'm so much better off. btw remote ballasts ALL emit a shit-ton of EMF radiation, it will fill your house & go out into the neighborhood, many people think it's very dangerous. UL and FCC stickers are faked in China. None of the Chinese cannabis-market remote ballasts are FCC approved, and most likely not UL listed either.

also FYI a friend of mine melted down a "GE" brand "heavy duty" timer on a single 1000 MH light. Use Intermatic heavy-duty timers! They're the only safe consumer timer IMO. And they should be replaced every few years. Obviously professional horticulture timers & controllers are safe too.

I recommend Gavita HPS as well, I've tested them with a meter and they emit no EMF.

 

[Muleskinner]

interesting article on RFI:

http://www.pressherald.com/2017/02/...s-are-causing-static-for-ham-radio-operators/

http://www.eham.net/articles/38770

 

[Floridian]

Intermatic mechanical timers for 1K only!And for anything smaller if you're smart."Little gray box" for 120V I think they are T-102.240V T-104 I believe be smart don't use other type timers no matter what they're supposedly rated at.I'm 57 and been an electrician since my mid-20's.I've seen many supposed heavy duty lighting timers fail.In a parking garage with many HPS loads all you will find is intermatic mechanical timers.People eventually catch on lol!

 

[KidNasty]

I got a 400w ipower, I haven't had any problems yet but I'm currently only running it at 50% power. Thanks for the heads up will keep an eye on it. I run it at night so hopefully the smoke detector it does its job and I can minimize any damage should the worst happen.

 

[KidNasty]

Now I. Kinda glad I don't let it run while I'm at work

 

[hvac guy]

Don't use 1000 watt electronic ballasts on 120 circuits...bottom line, timer or not.

THD (Total Harmonic Distortion) is an issue with all electronic ballasts on the market including everyones favorites...gavita, nanolux, epap, etc... and it's always worse when running on 120v. Often times THD is higher in bargain ballasts.

THD coupled with a $2 timer can put you in a spot you don't want to be in...

References...

http://www.aptsources.com/resources/pdf/total harmonic distortion.pdf

http://www.gavita.com/images/retail...ets/Gavita-Pro-1000e-DE-FLEX-specsheet-US.pdf

http://nanoluxtech.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/DE-Fixture-tech-sheet.pdf

Wrong, THD does not matter if it's 120V, 208V, 240V, 480V, 600V etc, the harmonics are common in the hots on single and three-phase.

 

[sunnyside]

hvac guy...source?

 

[Floridian]

The conflict is so easily solved,as far as I know harmonics don't cause fires,but then again I could be mistaken I'm not an electrical engineer.I am an electrician though licensed in Fla for many years,and I know what I see on a daily basis and what works or fails in real life.Mechanical timers are real simple safe and effective,along with very longlasting.For higher wattage fixtures 400W and up,I wouldn't consider an electronic timer no matter what they say the specs are.So you cannot time your photoperiod to the exact minute big deal,since it's the dark hours that cause a plant to flower,you err on the darkside.Another 10 or 15 minutes dark in the 24 hours period that's just fine and dandy.You don't want more light time than dark time,thats the point.15 minutes or even a half hour more dark than light big deal,I know dumbasses that flower at 14 dark and 10 light to speed up the process a skosh,they may be sacrificing a bit in yield I don't know for a fact but I think so,point is the plants flower normally no herms or anything silly like that,It's just better to get it as close to 12/12 as you can having more dark minutes total than light minutes

 

[hvac guy]

Source = 4 years of school as an electrician, that's my source. I gave up electrical to get my ticket as an HVAC tech now, too many electricians these days.