What are metal halide bulbs used for?

What are metal halide bulbs used for?

Metal-halide lamps are used for general lighting purposes both indoors and outdoors, such as commercial, industrial, and public spaces, parking lots, sports arenas, factories, and retail stores, as well as residential security lighting; automotive and specialty applications are further fields of usage.

Can you replace metal halide bulbs with LED?

LED Offers Long Life, Lower Energy Costs, Instant On and Control Options. ... A 400 watt metal halide bulb can be replaced with a 200 watt LED. A 100 watt metal halide can be replaced with a 50 watt LED. Implementing an LED replacement program should result in a 50% reduction in annual energy use (kWh) costs.

Are metal halide bulbs energy efficient?

An industrial metal halide high bay, one that is rated at 400 Watts, produces around 36,000 lumens. After 6 months we would expect the fixture effective lumen efficiency to be: 36,000 lumens – 20% (initial lumen loss) = 28,800 lumens....

Are metal halide bulbs being phased out?

Compliance: A review of metal halide ballasts suggests that probe-start metal halide magnetic ballasts will be virtually eliminated from new lighting fixtures after Janu.

How long do metal halide bulbs last?

6,000 hours to 15,000 hours

How can you tell if a metal halide bulb is bad?

Usually the lamps will gain a pinkish hue when compared to other lamps in the same system. This is caused when metal vapors in the lamp are expired from heat or burning, and the lack of a particular mixture in the arc tube renders a different color.

How often should you change metal halide bulbs?

every 8 months

Do metal halide bulbs require ballast?

Metal halide (MH) ballasts are required to start the lamp, regulate the lamp starting and lamp operating currents, and provide appropriate sustaining supply voltage. ... MH lamp voltage typically increases over time, and the ballast must continue to provide sufficient voltage to the lamp as it ages.

What's better HPS or Metal Halide?

HPS is about twice as electrically efficient as metal halide. Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) is what really matters to plant growth, and delivery of usable PAR is better with HPS than metal halide. ... Metal halides deliver, on average, about 000 lumens per standard 1,000-watt bulb.

Are all metal halide bulbs pulse start?

MH bulbs, like all HID bulbs, require a ballast to operate and are designed to use a compatible ballast which works with one of these two start methods. Traditional MH bulbs are designed to operate on ballasts using probe start technology, while newer lamps use more efficient pulse start technology.

What's a ballast do?

In a fluorescent lighting system, the ballast regulates the current to the lamps and provides sufficient voltage to start the lamps. Without a ballast to limit its current, a fluorescent lamp connected directly to a high voltage power source would rapidly and uncontrollably increase its current draw.

Is it safe to bypass a ballast?

Additionally, because ballasts eventually fail over time, removing and bypassing the ballast when installing your new lights guarantees a longer lifespan, since direct-wiring LEDs is significantly more energy-efficient. For more reasons why we recommend bypassing the ballast ono your T8 tubes, look here.

Is ballast and choke same?

An electrical ballast (sometimes called control gear) is a device intended to limit the amount of current flowing in an electric circuit. A choke is an inductor designed to have a high reactance to a particular frequency when used in a signal-carrying circuit. ... Ballasts vary greatly in complexity.

Can fluorescent tubes be replaced with LEDs?

Yes, you can replace fluorescent tubes with LED tubes or LED integrated fixtures. ... As long as the bulb is compatible with the existing fluorescent ballast in the fixture, you simply remove the fluorescent and replace it with the LED tube light.

Can you put LED bulbs in shop lights?

Many LED tubes are "plug and play", meaning you can just install them like you would a fluorescent bulb. For this to be true, look for bulbs that are "ballast-compatible" meaning that they can use the ballast already installed in your fluorescent fixture to power the LEDs.

Are LED tubes brighter than fluorescent?

Save Electricity - LED tube lights are on average 30% more efficient than fluorescent. ... Brighter, Better-Quality Light - Not only are LED tube lights noticeably brighter than fluorescent tubes, they also lack the flicker that many fluorescent tubes have.

Do I need to remove ballast for LED lights?

LED technology does not require a ballast to regulate the amount of energy flowing to the lights. LED's require less energy and can be sensitive to excess energy. ... Additionally, removing the ballast will reduce energy usage and result in even great cost-savings as ballasts continue to draw more power than necessary.

Can you bypass ballast for LED lights?

Since LED lights work on low DC voltage, they need a driver. Most T8 LED tubes do not need a ballast. So, if you are going to install a T8 LED tube light, it will require a ballast bypass unless you choose a ballast compatible T8 LED tube.

Can you replace 4 foot fluorescent bulb with LED?

There is a wide variety of methods for converting to LED tubes. The simplest is to completely replace old fluorescent fixtures with brand-new LED fixtures. However, LED fixtures to replace four-bulb (8-foot-long) fluorescent fixtures (common in farm buildings) can set you back $100 or more per unit.

How do I convert fluorescent bulbs to LED?

Three ways you can convert your existing fluorescent tubes to LED tubes

1. Retrofit the fluorescent tube. You can easily retrofit a fluorescent tube using plug and play or hybrid LED tubes. ...
2. Retrofit the tube and ballast. Direct-wire tubes can be used to retrofit the tube and bypass the ballast. ...
3. Replace the whole fixture.

Do they make 8 foot LED lights?

Buy 8-Foot LED Lights Lighting tubes that are 8 feet in length are often found in store displays, hospitals, warehouses, hospitality businesses, labs, utility rooms and offices. Today's businesses are moving away from the harsh, wasteful fluorescent tubes in favor of 8-foot LED lights.

What are the yellow wires on a ballast?

The two yellow wires complete the circuit through the fluorescent tube back into the ballast. The red and blue wires energize the pins the fluorescent tube is attached to, the yellow wires connect to the pins on the opposite ends of the fluorescent light tubes completing the circuit.

What does ballast bypass mean?

A ballast bypass is when the ballast is removed and the lamp receives its energy source directly from the sockets. This is option may also be called line voltage or direct wire linear LED.

How many lumens does a 8 foot fluorescent bulb produce?

5,500 lumens