HELP HPS 250 watt ballast

Hi, im new to growing, im past the germination stage

Im using the light above, but the ballast is very very hot, its only been on for 6 hours, is it normal for it to be this hot? and will it cause me any danger?


Thanks

it should be so hot that you cant hold your hand on it for more than a few seconds.. its totally normal. if you can, get the ballast outside of your growroom so your temps dont go way upppp

cool thanks

yep i cant keep my hand on for longer then a few seconds.


is there any chance it could blow or cause a fire?

Make sure that ballast is on a fire-proof surface. If possible get a cinder block and let it sit on it. And those ballasts are made for that type of thing so no it should'nt blow or cause a fire unless you help it to do so :).

cheap ballasts do get hot, but it shouldnt get too hot to touch.
your in the uk, so make sure your ballast has a " CE " mark in the documentation, or on the equipment lable, it should only get about as warm as a high power hi-fi amplifier.
if it has a heat sink attached ( like fins or paddles for despersing the heat) its normal for that part to get pretty hot...just make sure theres good air circulation so the heat can be dispersed.

some ballast get mega hot its normal but if its so hot you can smell it id see whats up with it

sorry, i didnt see your other post, if you cant keep your hand on it for more than a few seconds, then its either faulty, or a very bad design....

either way, you should ditch it and buy a reliable one.

thanks for the replies

it is too hot to keep my hand on for more than 5 seconds,

its got the CE mark on the ballast, ill post a pic of it

http://img107.imageshack.us/img107/7282/p1010024pb6.jpg


its the same as this, although i got it on ebay

http://www.hydroponics-hydroponics.com/pd_250w.cfm



just read this which sort of gives me more satisfacton:

Pro-V-T System Thermostat Inside - Incase of overheating the built-in thermostat fuse which automatically turns off the devise.)

in that case, like orangeman said, ( but only if your confident ), sit it on a small stone slab/brick/slate and make sure its not going to heat up anything thats close to it.

it does sound rather hot for my liking though...

also, somthing worth noting, is that a hot ballast is a waste of electricity, a few more pounds spent on a good ballast will save your elecrtic bill a few quid per quarter, and help the environment.

shit, i sound like a fucking hippy

u might also get a small fan blowing on it so it doesnt get as hot if u can't afford a better ballast.

thanks for the help.


How much should i be looking to spend on getting a light/ballast?

any reccomendations?

also do i have to look out for anything inparticualr?