Whats a ballast?

Discussion in 'First Time Marijuana Growers' started by MagikWand, Sep 24, 2008.

  1. Im new and dont really know shit.haha I just bought a 150-watt HM and I dont know what else i need to buy to set it up in my grow room. please help.
     

  2. Search "how to grow marijuana" "lighting" "light spectrum" *click*
     
  3. a ballast is a box that controls the wattage your light bulb gets:hello:
     
  4. #4 motorheed, Sep 25, 2008
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 25, 2008
    from wiseGEEK

    A lighting ballast is a piece of equipment required to control the starting and operating voltages of electrical gas discharge lights. Examples of gas discharge light sources include fluorescent and neon lights and high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps. The term lighting ballast can refer to any component of the circuit intended to limit the flow of current through the light, from a single resistor to more complex devices.
    A lighting ballast is necessary to operate discharge lights because they have negative resistance, meaning they are unable to regulate the amount of current that passes through them. A lighting ballast must be used to control current flow; otherwise the light could fail. Small light sources can use passive components, which require no additional power to operate, as ballasts. An example would be a series resistor that limits the flow of current across its terminals. For high-powered lights, however, a resistor would waste a large amount of electricity, so a more complex lighting ballast is required.


    hope explains the purpose of a ballast:smoking:
     

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