( Bulb Flickering) Phoenix 14k vs Radium 20k 150w DE Halide

im having a problem with the radium bulb flickering. im reading different threads about some ballasts not working well with the radium bulb. and other threads say this happens during the 100 hour break in. so not sure if i need another ballast? or its just break in.
i have a sunpack m81 HID electronic ballast. it fires the bulb fine, but its flicking after it warms up. im hoping this flickering passes but im not reading good things about this combo. does anyone have this ballast/bulb combo working well? is the flickering related to the 100 hour burn in? when i bought the bulb i asked about if it was ok with my set up. i was told yes. uuuurrrggghhhh

i was looking at the e ballast and have heard they work well with the radium and you get the most out of the bulb, par wise with them Lumatek DIMMABLE 150W / 175W / 250W Metal Halide Electronic Ballast does anyone have this and have radium bulbs with it?

 

No I do not pink4miss, I have the pulse start ballast.

I would try re-seating the bulb first if you have not tried that.

Unfortunately I saw a couple recent threads on other forums regarding this issue and in both cases it was the ballast.

Lastly try replacing or putting in the old Phoenix bulb and see if it flickers, if not than it's most likely the ballast IMO.

Good Luck.

 

I don't quite follow. M81 is an HQI magnetic ballast ANSI specification. This is what the radium is spec'd to run on I believe. So, it should be fine. It looks like you can maybe upgrade the sunpak from an M81 to an electronic ballast, so, If your saying that it is an electronic upgrade, then that could be an issue. In that case, you'd be under-driving the bulb. That can be an issue in some instances, but not familiar with this combo though.

 

yes i read a couple threads with people that have the same ballast i do, having flickering, im reading my ballast and the radium are not a good combo one person switched to the e ballast and said it resolved the issue. after 3 weeks of flickering.
i dont want to end up with another ballast that doesnt work with the bulb. i like the look of the bulb. i also read the e ballast gives the bulb a better par, and allows it to burn the colors it should be sending out. who knows ??? its always something it seems. lol

 

the ballast on the back reads sunpark HID electronic, 150w ansi code m81/ m142

yes the light fixture said HQI but i dont see that on the ballast. it is the ballast that came with the current disco ball fixture... radiums i read are ok to be over driven. this is all new and confusing to me.

 

120-MH150 SUNPARK 1-LAMP 120V BALLAST FOR 150W METAL HALIDE this is the ballast i have, i believe

 

HQI is a confused term as people use it to refer to both a double-ended bulbs and it is also and ANSI specification for high output,pulse start magnetic ballasts. However, not all double-ended bulbs are designed to be run on "HQI pulse start" ballasts and not all HQI bulbs are double ended, some are single ended. So, it causes a lot of confusion.

What I can tell you is the Radium is designed to be run on an M81 HQI pulse start ballast. The HQI specification overdrives the bulb. It actually uses more electricity then 150W, but results in more output.
There are not many HQI ballasts available anymore, most people want to use less electricity and are unaware that there is a difference in output. So, the manufactures have been switching to electronic ballasts.

The new electronic specification appears to be "M81E" or "M81 Electronic". It looks like this is what you have. This isn't the same as an HQI pulse-start ballast though, although it is supposedly able to drive HQI bulbs and it uses less electricity. However, it will not drive a true HQI pulse start bulb, such as a radium to spec as it uses less electricity and is therefore underdriving it. So, there will be less output and possibly other quirks such as flickering.

 

did you see it says the input power wattage is 160w ? what does HID mean do you know?

i love the color its putting out...if it would stop flickering i will be doing the happy dance next to my disco ball. lol had to cover that ball with a shade.

 

Excellent explanation m2434, that made if very clear for me.

Thanks.

Following pink4miss to see how it turns out, for you.

 

the phoenix bulb is also a HQI bulb though