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Can i use this Shop Light
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Posted by chadg (My Page) on Wed, Jul 9, 08 at 17:03
| I have been doing lettuce under 6500K flourecent bulbs and i am ready to step up to a bigger light.
I noticed at work there are some lights not being used that use to be up in the warehouse ceiling. I think they are Metal Halide. You see them in gym's and large rooms like that.
They are Lithonia hi-teck lights with Sylvania 400W Metal Arc M59 R M400/U bulbs.
The electrical plug is strange looking. It looks like a one you plug in and twist.
The ballast section says:
Watts: 400
Lamp Type: M59
Hertz: 60
PRI Volts: 120
HPF: H
PRI AMPS: 4
I think i can put a standard 120 plug on it instead of the locking one.
What do people think? Can i use this light for hydroponics? Is it Metal Halide? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| according to this link, the bulb is a metal halide. I don't see why it won't work. |
Here is a link that might be useful: link
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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it should work for your plants, but here are a few things to consider:
your description of the cord sounds like a 220 line. you can not just wire in a 110 and expect it to work. you'll need to install a 220 receptacle.
you don't know how old the bulb is. you'll probably want to go ahead and replace it.(always better to start with something with a known history)
the ballast is probably attached to the lamp. this can make it more awkward to suspend.
you need to look at the hood on the lamp. can it be replaced? most overhead MH aren't designed to reflect light in a very specific manner, so a new hood may be in order.
Otherwise, for the price, you can't beat it. |
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| Thanks for the tips! Could the plug be a lock in type for safety or reliability? The ballast says 120V 4AMPs so i am thinking it is 120 just with a strange plug. I need to look up the light on Lithonia's web site to be sure. Maybe i could get to one of the plugs that it use to plug into so i could stick a volt meter in it. You are right about the hood. The bulb hangs straight down inside of the hood and it is white on the inside of the hood. Looks like there are screws to take the hood off. So i just need to get a new reflector and position the bulb/ballast assembly so it is horizontal. |
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| You can find the voltage rating of the lamp by looking at the plug. Look for something that says L5-20 or L6-20, or something like that. L5 is 120V, L6 is 240, the dash is the amp rating. It could be rated at something other than 20 amps, so don't worry if it is. Just note the number after the L. You can buy plugs and recepticles at any home improvement store so you can either change the plug, or change one of your outlets out so they match. |
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| If the ballast is 120v, the lamp is 120v. |
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| Something to keep in mind - there could be a step-down transformer somewhere to convert a 220v input to a 110v supply to the ballast. It's unlikely, just make sure before you start hacking plugs off. On the other hand, putting 110v into a ballast that wants 220v shouldn't hurt anything, the light just wouldn't come on I'd imagine. Take some pictures of it, maybe we can help that way. |
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| Sounds like the plug is a twist lock plug. It may be a good idea to chance the receptical to match it. The idea was probably to prevent the plug from eventualy working out of the receptical reducing the required surface area to keep heat below the danger level. I once had a standard plug that worked it's way out partialy and it grew hot enough to melt the receptical housing which was plastic, and intended for less than commercial grade use. chuck |
RE: Can i use this Shop Light
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| Chuck makes a good point there. I'm pretty comfortable rewiring things so I sometimes forget how dangerous it is if you don't know what you're doing. You want to be careful jury-rigging things if you're not familiar with how they work. Starting a fire is bad. Electrocuting yourself is much worse. Be safe. |
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