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Re: light intensity



Tom wrote:

>  Ballast type? Well I never have really considered this as a "real" factor
> effecting color in red plants myself:). It may help a little more light
> but not enough to make a difference here IMO.

Cathy wrote:

I was thinking in terms of some ballasts being more efficient than
others - obviously an icecap ballast is going create more lumens
per bulb than a tar ballast, and that would have an effect on the
color of the plants (assuming there is SOME correlation between .
light intensity and plant color).

I reply:

Sorry to be picky but neither of these statements are really true. The
ballast factor of a particular ballast is a very important issue in the
amount of light that reaches the plants. It doesn't matter if the ballast is
magnetic or electronic. The most common B.F. factor is around .88 which can
be found for both magnetic and elctronic ballasts; the highest B.F. I know
of is 1.28 which is for an electronic ballast. Change ballasts and voila 45%
more light with the same lamps. However, just because a ballast is
electronic doesn't mean it has a high ballast factor. It does mean that it
will be more efficient than a magnetic ballast and save a lot on electricity
though.

Wayne