I am starting this thread so we can get the bugs out.I have a 600 that stopped working.the bulb lights and goes off over and over. any ideas? I am using a hortilux bulb and i have heard that these ballasts burn out some bulbs?

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this is very common when the bulb is failing, replace the bulb and continue on.

very very few lumatek ballasts fail, seriously !

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Go Medicate Yourself..... Then we will Talk

yeah, I also read that this can happen if the bulb isn't designed to burn in a vertical position. Do you have it vertical or horizontal?

A vacuum leak in the bulb will cause this oscillating behavior. Basically, the air that is leaking into the bulb is quenching the ionized gases. As mentioned above, getting a new bulb should clear this problem up.

A HPS bulb can operate in either a horizontal or verticle position. It's the metal halide bulbs where one needs to be aware of the orientation.

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Talk, without the empiricism to back up your statements, is dogmatic BS.

Thats the one prob with a 600W. Can't run down to HD and grab a bulb. The 600 is the most efficient, but also the hardest to find a bulb for.

(no, I'm not knocking them, or saying you can't find a bulb. Its just tougher to go down the block and grab one quick)

Everyone should have a spare bulb on hand.
(guilty of not myself)

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I had a 600w lumatek that I had to replace a couple months after I bought it. They come with a 3 year warranty, so you can return it if it is in fact the ballast and not the bulb.

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If god dropped acid, would he see people?

Ive had a flicker problem with lumatek 600w, but not sure if it was the bulb or ballast. Switching out the bulb should give u the indicator though.

I switched the bulb and all is well.Is there a bulb better suited for the lumetk?Or designed for electronic ballasts?

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What goes around comes around
!!!Don't steal crops!!!

I'm not sure about the Lumatek 600w, I run the Lumatek 400w. I use a HiLux light from Worm's Way. It's about $20 cheaper than the Hortilux. The people I talked to at Worm's Way said that they and their customers believed the HiLux outperformed the Hortilux bulbs in both brightness and length of life. They also said they and their customers feel that the HiLux is the best bulb for the electronic ballast. Hopefully this helps. You can check it out at.. www.wormsway.com

Good Luck!