These use a magnetic output transformer, an emi filter, a rectifier and integrated circuitry to manage the flow of current very precisely. There are two lamp families that work with a ballast. Simple control circuits for electronic ballast design. E ballasts, digital ballasts, doubleended electronic ballasts what does it all mean. Sep 15, 2012 i replaced t12 magnetic ballast with t12 electronic ballast. Feb 09, 2014 my magnetic 1,000w ballast puts out a lot more light then my digital 1,000w ballast. The ballast in my bathroom burned out brand new bulb wont light up. Compared with electromagnetic ballasts, electronic ballasts have a much shorter. Magnetic ballast magnetic ballasts electronic ballast.
An electronic ballast is usually quieter than a magnetic. Can you replace a magnetic ballast with an electronic ballast. Ledvance is the global leader in lamp and ballast lighting systems we offer innovative and costeffective, evergy saving, electronic fluorescent systems in instant start, programmed start and controllable ballasts in a variety of ballast factors. Magnetic vs electronic ballast, pros and cons please. Magnetic ballasts are just about bullet proof, being made mostly of copper windings. Advance electronic and magnetic hid ballasts are available to operate the wide variety of metal halide, high pressure sodium and low pressure sodium lamps available in todays marketplace. May 18, 20 magnetic ballast, when they go bad, can be fixed or rebuilt pretty quickly at a relatively low cost. There are two types of ballasts utilized in lighting fixtures, the electronic and the magnetic ballast. To guarantee troublefree operation and a long service life of the various. Romanian balast electronic philips hfs 2x18w uout 380v warm start. How to install a t8 electronic fluorescent ballast in an old magnetic t12 ballast fixture duration.
Magnetic vs electronic ballast, pros and cons please page 2. Also, if you want to replace your magnetic ballast with an electronic ballast, this is cheap and relatively easy to do. Conventional ballast is magnetic,a magnetic ballast uses coiled wire and creates magnetic fields to transform voltage. It is suitable for applications with frequent onoff cycles. Grainger carries magnetic and electronic cfl ballasts that help provide the startup power for energysaving compact fluorescent lamps cfls. Energyefficient electronic ballasts can eliminate flickering and humming sometimes associated with cfls. For the fluorescent family, both t12 linear fluorescents and twopin cfls use magnetic ballasts. Looking for advance ballast checker, for use with turns green if electronic ballast and orange if magnetic ballast 2lmw4. Pdf files of specifier reports and several searchable databases. What is the difference between an electronic and a magnetic. Your onestop for legacy highbay, parking, and roadway fixture ballasts. An electrical ballast is a device placed in series with a load to limit the amount of current in an electrical circuit a familiar and widely used example is the inductive ballast used in fluorescent lamps to limit the current through the tube, which would otherwise rise to a destructive level due to the negative differential resistance of the tubes voltagecurrent characteristic.
The image below shows a t12 fluorescent lamp with the telltale bands generated by a magnetic ballast. And there are two types of ballasts in each family. Light output measurements on t5 and t8 fluorescent lamps. For this reason they feed less power into the lamp than a magnetic ballast does. Connect the power and neutral wires to the corresponding ballast wires. Magnetic ballast and electronic ballast on the same circuit. Comparison of dimmable electromagnetic and electronic ballast. By designing our t12 electronic ballasts with the very same mounting and wiring configurations as your current t12 magnetic models, philips advance makes converting to an electronic fixture effortless. Magnetic ballasts are coreandcoil electromagnetic ballasts. Jan 03, 2011 i replaced magnetic ballasts with electronic ballasts in a pair of parallelwired two bulb f96t12 fixtures in my brothers shop. A modern, electronic ballast drives the lamp at a much higher frequency, and a picture of these lamps will be clearly different, without such bands. It does this through the principle of electrical gas discharge. A magnetic ballast does not change the frequency of the power to the lamp,it remains the same as the input power, in the united states 60 hz.
Universal c2642unvme compact fluorescent ballast, 2 lamp, 26w cfl, 120277v. How can i tell whether i have a magnetic ballast or an. I wired them using the pattern of the magnetic ballasts i took out, 2 ballast blue to blue and ballast red to red on one end, ballast black to black and power and ballast white to white and common white on the other end not the diagram on the ballasts ballast blue. When replacing a magnetic ballast with an electronic ballast the black and white power wires are connected the same as before, and the ground as well. The circuit includes figure 6 the control for both the boost pfc and the halfbridge resonant stages. Electronic ballasts use circuits to control the flow of current. Some basic facts and some advanced information on ballasts. Difference between electronic ballast and inductive ballast. As the new wave of energy saving appliances gripped the world, technology made the fluorescent lamps shrink in thickness as well as reduced. An electronic ballast will convert power frequency. An electronic ballast will convert power frequency to a very high frequency to initialize the gas discharge process in fluorescent lamps. Electronic ballasts are often designed around their magnetic ballast predecessors.
Magnetic ballasts usually have greater power losses than electronic ballasts. This is a product label and images for an advance ballast, model vs 2s601tp, rapid start electronic ballast, 277 volts, 60 hertz. Ee 5741 design of electronic ballasts eric persson exec. It also changes the frequency of the power from 60 hz to 20,000 hz, or higher, depending on the ballast.
Electronic ballasts lighting research center rensselaer. Replacing a ballast on a t12 fluorescent light fixture how to convert to a new electronic ballast duration. Optimal selection and operation of ballasts for fluorescent lamps. Plus electronic ballasts are cheaper to manufacture, so few magnetic ballasts. Bf is the relative light output of a lamp on the ballast and the input power in watts is the ballast energy consumption. A magnetic ballast does not change the frequency of the power to the lamp it remains the same as the input power, in the united states 60 hz. May 04, 20 how to install a t8 electronic fluorescent ballast in an old magnetic t12 ballast fixture duration. Magnetic ballasts are the older ballast technology.
That one looks fairly small and lightweight, so im guessing its electronic. An electronic ballast is usually quieter than a magnetic one, which produces. Mar 15, 2020 an electronic ballast or electrical ballast is a device which controls the starting voltage and the operating currents of lighting devices. Both types of ballast stabilize the raw electricity into a consistent lighting source, they just go about it in a different way. A lampballast system consisting of a magnetic ballast and two 32w t8 lamps. However, electronic ballasts are several times more expensive than the plain passive magnetic models and much more susceptible to certain disturbances and are likely to become themselves a source of disturbances. Pdf comparative study of electromagnetic and electronic ballasts. Future ballast is electronic,an electronic ballast uses solid state components to transform voltage. Jan 29, 2014 page 2 of 3 magnetic vs electronic ballast, pros and cons please posted in lighting and ventilation. Every half line cycle, they reignite the lamp and limit the lamp current. Pdf there is a common misconception that energy saving is always equivalent to. Schematic of the central dimming system for magneticballastdriven lighting system.
Included in our product portfolio are controllable metal halide and induction lamp and ballast. T12 electronic ballast are ideal for a broad range of retrofit applications that use either energy saving or standard lamps. Because the electronic ballast doesnt use coils and electromagnetic fields, it can function more efficiently and cooler than magnetic. The complete guide to ballasts for fluorescent lights. Apr 26, 2017 a magnetic ballast uses coiled wire and creates magnetic fields to transform voltage. Magnetic ballasts are operated in 5060hz line frequency. Looking online, it seems that there are two different types of ballasts. Some basic facts and some advanced information on ballasts for. After july 1, 1979, magnetic ballasts manufactured without pcbs in their capacitors or potting material required the statement no pcbs. Plus electronic ballasts are cheaper to manufacture, so few magnetic ballasts are sold new these days. Electronic ballast vs conventional ballast james lamp socket.
If you have the money for an extra ballast or two i say go digital. Ballast efficacy factor bef is the ratio of the ballast factor1 bf to the input power to the ballast, of any lamp ballast system. Ballast compatible, plug and play, or direct dropin led tubes make upgrading to costsaving, longlife led technology easy. Electronic ballasts are made of circuit boards, relays, capacitors and transistors. Magnetic ballasts are made of wire coiled so as to create a magnetic field while electronic ballasts use. What is the ballast wiring set up when converting from a t12. Fluorescent light ballast types choose the right transformer. Jan 14, 2016 comparatively, is an inductive ballast or ballast today fluorescent lamps more and more designed with electronic ballast, light and compact, and even can be integrated with electronic ballast and lamp, at the same time, the electronic ballast can have both the functions of the rev. The boost pfc circuit is controlled by the vs and pfc pins of the ic. Replacing a light fixture magnetic ballast with an electronic ballast. Easy online ordering for the ones who get it done along with 247 customer service, free. An electronic ballast or electrical ballast is a device which controls the starting voltage and the operating currents of lighting devices. Magnetic vs electronic balast wiring for t8 fluorescent.
Magnetic ballasts for fluorescent lighting and the old eu directive 200055eu. The wiring to the lamp sockets must be converted as shown on the wiring diagram on the new electronic ballast. This is why fluorescent lamps using electronic ballasts do not flicker or emit any buzzing sounds. These ballasts are smaller and lighter than magnetic versions. From the reading i have done there still can be slight rf interference even with the sheilding. I replaced magnetic ballasts with electronic ballasts in a. Depending on your lighting layout, this may reduce the costs of an upgrade, since you may not have to do a oneforone replacement of your old ballasts. Hi stoners, please forgive the newbie question, but am about to buy a light and would like to ask if someone can explain the pros and cons of digital vs magnetic ballasts please. An electrical ballast is a device placed in series with a load to limit the amount of current in an. Magnetic and electronic ballasts comparison ecospecifier.
Electronic ballasts should be clearly marked as electronic. The inductor ballast represent the conventional ballasting approaches, and is known as magnetic ballasts. I assume that is because the new ballast is electronic and the old one was magnetic. They contain a magnetic core of several laminated steel plates wrapped with copper windings. Another advantage is that electronic ballasts can be used in lamps that are in parallel and series mode. However, direct dropin led tubes are compatible only with fixtures that have electronic ballasts. I recently replaced my kitchen ballast, and the new one was much lighter than the old one. An electronic ballast uses solid state electronic circuitry to provide the proper starting and operating electrical conditions to power discharge lamps. They can take all kinds of abuse both physical and electrical without failing. Manufactured by advance transformer company, incorporated, 2950 north, western avenue, chicago, illinois in 1987. Check the ballast label against the labels on the lamps to make sure that. Ballast checker, for use with turns green if electronic.
However, replacing magnetic ballasts with electronic ballasts is not without its complications. Electronic ballast vs magnetic ballast in terms of electrical. While magnetic ballasts are simple and easy in their design and operating principle, the more sophisticated electronic ballast just has too many advantages. Mar 15, 2012 a single electronic ballast can operate up to four lamps, where magnetic ballasts can only support two. So many boxes, so many colors, wattages and brands on the market. If one of the lamps goes out, this will not affect the other lamps even though all the lamps are using the same ballast. Robertson 3p20158 isl296t12mv fluorescent electronic ballast for 2 f96t12 linear lamps, instant start, 120277vac, 5060hz, normal ballast factor, hpf 4. Pdf in this paper, several high power lighting networks based on high. People have grown up with the sights and sounds of fluorescent lamps buzzing to life after a few attempts. Even if the ballasts in your sample are magnetic ballasts labeled no pcbs, a lighting retrofit is recommended because of the. Speaking in these terms, an incandescent lamp could merely be compared to an. A quick way to tell which ballast electronic or magnetic.
Screw the electronic ballast into the fixture, in the same place where the magnetic one was. This nondimming magnetic ballast is suitable for use in various types of fluorescent lamps, including preheat and rapidstart lamps. The only reason i like the digital is it uses mh or hps. Bef is the only objective method to compare the performance between different ballasts.
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