For more information and where to buy Lumatek Digital Ballasts click Sun Light Supply or Hydrofarm. (The Lumatek Ballasts internal components are the same in both Sunlight and Hydrofarm, but the cord ends that plug into the reflectors are different.)

VIEW SUNLIGHT SUPPLY LUMATEK BALLASTS

VIEW HYDROFARM LUMATEK BALLASTS

Sunlight Supply (Sun System)

Hydrofarm

Reflectors that can be used with Sunlight's Lumatek.

Sun System Reflectors

CAP Reflectors (Custom Automated Products)
Reflectors that can be used with Hydrofarm's Lumatek.

Hydrofarm Reflectors
 LUMATEK BALLAST FAQ
QUESTION: Why is my Lumatek ballast 20% brighter than my old magnetic ballast, but my friends Lumatek is only 15% brighter than his old magnetic?

 ANSWER: This is because of the powerful effect voltage has on magnetic ballasts. A 240v magnetic ballast is designed to work with 240v. At 240v the lamp power (power provided to the lamp) for a 600w ballast is 600w. However, for example, in reality, the UK voltage range is anywhere from 215v to 258v in our experience. Because "Power = Current X voltage" in a device like a magnetic ballast (a linear device), when voltage changes, so does the power of the ballast and therefore the light it produces. When voltage drops a mere 20v from 240v to 220v a magnetic will typically dim by 20%, leaving the Lumatek 20% brighter. At 210v the Lumatek is 30% brighter. The Lumatek is a voltage regulator and will respond with the same light output over its entire voltage range. Always the same light output, every minute of the day. So the simple answer is: it depends where you are and what your voltage is.
QUESTION: My magnetic ballast is brighter at certain times of the day, why is that?

 ANSWER: This is because voltage varies throughout the day. It is not uncommon for voltage in a household to vary by 10% over a day. This is because voltage drops as more "load" (electricity consuming devices) is added to the household circuit, and the larger local electricity supply. As large industrial users turn on, local voltage drops, thereby dimming local lights. This effect occurs even as more HID lights are added to a circuit in a building. We have all noticed house lights suddenly dropping at certain times of the day.
QUESTION: I used to get 6 x 600w magnetic ballasts on my circuit before tripping the circuit breaker. I can now get 7 Lumatek 600w ballasts on that same circuit. How can that be possible?

 ANSWER: This is because of the high "power factor" of a Lumatek ballast. Without getting too technical, when a device has a low power factor, the electricity company has to supply additional power to the device to compensate. Because of the way electricity companies bill you, this extra power is not measured by a power meter but is "felt" by the circuit breaker. Therefore an additional almost 10% of power is supplied by the company causing it to "trip". Therefore where six ballasts would work before, now seven Lumateks will.
QUESTION: When I checked my magnetic ballast with a power meter it told me the ballast was drawing far more than 800w, for a 600w ballast that's not possible surely?

 ANSWER: I am afraid it is, using "Power = Current X voltage" we see that at voltages above 255v (quite common in parts of the UK) a 600w Ballast will in fact be more than an 800w ballast! If you have ten of those you can imagine the effect on power consumption.
QUESTION: If my magnetic ballast changes power, does that affect the PAR light my lamp produces?

 ANSWER: Obviously the amount of PAR light available has an effect on the growth of plants. PAR is the part (frequency) of light that plants use to grow. Lamp manufacturers design their lamps to produce a certain amount of PAR over the power range of the lamp. For a 600w lamp a range of 585w to 660w of lamp power produces normal PAR as designed. As the lamp power goes above or below that range then the frequency of light it produces changes: more to the blue spectrum when overpowering and more to the red when underpowering. This has an effect on the growth rate and development of plants. If you stay within the range (585w to 660w ) there is not much difference, but obviously overpowering your light does cost more energy. Though you strive to have the optimal light every time there are circimstances when you delibetrately may want to dim your light, such as too high temperatures. The light colour changes more to red, but that effect is less dramatic for the plants than the high temperature is. For those purposes we developed dual power (600/400 W and 400/250 W) dimmable ballasts.
 More LUMATEK Info...
More Lumen Output
Up to 30% more lumens output than some old style magnetic ballasts. More light equals more yield. We urge you to test this yourself with a good quality light meter. Be sure to also check how much power the ballast is using with an ammeter as many so called 600w magnetic ballasts now draw up to 750w as standard to try to keep up with Lumatek's lumen output.

More lumens generated per watt of electricity consumed.
 Lumatek ballast have increased efficacy over magnetic ballasts. They lose fewer watts from the power supply to the lamp. The high frequency output results in low power loss at the cathodes in addition to better overall power management.

Stable Light Output
 Excellent for Pharmaceutical-agriculture, laboratories and other uses where precise regularized output is essential.

Fast Start-up
 It reaches full brightness in under one minute; magnetic ballasts typically take about twenty minutes.

Completely Silent
 No noise or vibration of any kind.

Small Compact Design
 600watt 120v ballast weighs less than 4.5 kilos compared to almost 20 kilos for magnetic ballasts.

Produce Less Heat
 Less heat generated by the ballasts allows cooler running of the environment.

Cut-off Circuitry
 Cuts off when a short is detected. For ultimate safety.

Longer Bulb Life
 Lumen output loss over time, with the correct lamp, is dramatically less than with magnetic ballasts.

Fully Interchangeable
 Lumatek ballasts can light both HPS and MH bulbs (excluding the 750w which is HPS only).

Lamp Compatibility
 The Lumatek ballast is a high performance product that is designed to work with most high quality lamps. Cheap inferior lamps may cause problems and Lumatek recommends only high quality American or European lamps.

Lamp Replacement
 Be sure to disconnect the power source before changing lamps. Always use the specified wattage of lamp. (A 400W lamp should not be used in a 600W ballast). Lumatek recommends lamp replacement every 6-12 months.

Hot Re-strike
 It is VERY important that the lamp is given adequate time to cool down before it is reignited. You should allow a hot lamp to cool for 20-30 minutes before you try to re-strike it. Hot re-strikes cause premature lamp failure and lumen output degradation. Additionally, the lamp should never be turned off before the lamp reaches full intensity.

R.F. Emissions
 Lumatek ballasts are now internally RF shielded and can be used with standard System Cord sets as available in each country worldwide. Our ballasts produce the least amount of EMI (electro- magnetic interference) of any electronic ballast and conform to all international Electro-magnetic emission standards. This applies to all blue and purple models of the Lumatek.

Super-Lumen Switch
 Lumatek ballast include the industry first "super lumen switch". This feature will boost lumen output by 10% when the switch is activated. This allows unprecedented control of lumen output during ballast use. This feature is for HPS lamps only.

H.P.S/M.H
 Lumatek ballasts operate both metal halide and high pressure sodium lamps. They will not light MV mercury vapor lamps which are commonly sold in hardware and some hydroponic stores.
*Please note the 750 watt ballast is HPS only.

Sunlight Supply 1000w Lumatek Ballast • Sunlight Supply 750w Lumatek Ballast • Sunlight Supply 600w Lumatek Ballast • Sunlight Supply 400w Lumatek Ballast • Sunlight Supply 250w Lumatek Ballast

Hydrofarm 1000w Lumatek Ballast • Hydrofarm 750w Lumatek Ballast • Hydrofarm 600w Lumatek Ballast • Hydrofarm 400w Lumatek Ballast • Hydrofarm 250w Lumatek Ballast

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