[APD] Some Rules of Thumb re Fluorescent Overdriving

["S. Hieber" <shieber at yahoo_com>]

I got this info from Don Klipstein, who has a lot of info
and links on lighting on his own page 

http://members.misty.com/don/light.html

and at Sam Goldwasser's site, Sam's F-Lamp FAQ :

http://members.misty.com/don/f-lamp.html

It's a pretty good rundown on what to expect when
overdriving fluorescents on electronic ballasts.

If you use the bulb count that a ballast is rated for, then
the output per-bulb is equal to whatever the bulb is rated
for multiplied by the "ballast factor" (which is usually
somewhere around .9 to 1).

This changes with "2x overdrive", which probably multiplies
this output by 1.2 to 1.4, and "4x 
overdrive" probably multiplies this by anywhere between 1.4
and 1.75.

Why not double the output?  Fluorescent bulbs tend to be
less efficient when they are significantly overdriven, even
if optimum bulb temperature is maintained. So, 
you can expect less than double the "normal" light output
even on a good day even if you are using drawing double the
watts through the ballast.

Scott H.

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