MH bulb/ballast confusion

[jandree22]

Could someone please explain in simple terms about the issue of metal halide ballast/bulb compatibility? Obviously I understand the wattage compatability, but I know there are electronic and magnetic ballasts and I always here people saying Bulb X will or won’t ‘fire’ on Ballast Y. What the heck is that supposed to mean and how do I know which bulbs will be compatible with which ballasts? I can’t stay on fluorescents for ever so I need to learn this crap before I look to buy :wink:

 

[dodo99]

This may shed some umm.. light on the subject.

http://www.aquarium-lighting-guide.com/ ... alide-ansi

..DoDo

 

[Len]

Nice site, although some of the information on that website is wrong or misleading. For example, they list ballast for AB bulbs as "HQI type" when in fact they are really just double ended and bi-pin ballasts (as their ANSI numbers indicate).

There is a bewildering array of ballast types, I know The website Dodo provides gives you a good direction on what magnetic ballast will work with what bulb. A generalization is that the most common probe-start ballast (M5* series) will fire and burn just about any bulb, but some will not run at their peak efficiency. If the bulb is single ended and does not have a probe starter in it, get a pulse-rated ballast (M13* series). Double ended bulbs have their own line of ballasts (M8* series). There there types of ballasts will serve all your aquarium lighting needs.

Electronics are harder to define, but most modern electronic ballasts will fire and sustain all bulbs on the market with a few exceptions (like Sunburst 12,000K). Check with the electronic ballast manufacturer for a full list.