Club 315w lec

[SchmoeJoe]

Absolute bullshit. Obviously you've never tried it. Magnetic ballasts have capacitors inside so that when a flip box transfers power from one lamp to another, it will automatically strike. Digital ballasts with error sensing circuitry interpret the flip as a power fault and will stop operating.

Why is it that every time I turn around, you're full of shit?

I said digital ballasts that aren't smart ballasts, as in don't have the sensory circuits you're talking about. I'm actually quoting a distributors directions here. I also didn't say a thing about magnetic ballasts at all. In case you feel like calling bullshit on this too I figured I'd just show you.




Home / Controllers • Meters / Powerbox OG Flipbox

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The original Powerbox FLIPBOX is an individual light switching controller that allows an individual ballast to run two separate lights - one at a time - by switching back and forth between each light, at a user-specified interval, usually 12 hours for each light for flowering phases of plant growth.



$121.54
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Additional Information
Name Powerbox OG Flipbox
Brand Powerbox
SKU 702975
Warranty 5 Year
Voltage 120-240v
MSRP $167.00


There are no product questions yet.
Ask a Question
Details
The original Powerbox FLIPBOX is an individual light switching module that allows an individual ballast to run two separate lights - one at a time - by switching back and forth between each light, at a user-specified interval. Flipboxes have lots of possibilities and save lots of money, when compared to buying new digital ballasts. Use the Powerbox OG Flibox to double production without installing additional power circuits and save money on ballasts by using one ballast. Hand-built at their California factory, 5 year warranty.

The Powerbox OG Flibox voltage independent - works with 120 Volt and 240 Volt ballasts. Fits Sunlight Supply style ballasts.
Use one Flipbox per


Powerbox Flipbox Compatibility

Powerbox Flipboxes work with virtually any H.I.D. ballast, be it magnetic or digital/electronic. Some ballasts, however, may require additional steps to function properly. If you are using Lumatek, Nextgen, or Phantom digital ballasts, or if your ballasts are having trouble switching, you must observe the following instructions in BOLD lettering.

Some digital/electronic ballasts contain an 'error sensing' circuit that is meant to detect if there is a bulb failure. In the event of a bulb failure, the ballast will shut itself down and not restart until the user unplugs the ballast to reset it. When running with Flipboxes®, ballasts that contain this 'error sensing' circuitry often misinterpret a light switching cycle as a dead bulb, and they shut themselves off. This problem is easy to remedy by following a few simple steps:

1). With your lighting controller, or timer, program so that your ballast(s) turn OFF 5 minutes before you will be initiating the light switching (FLIP) cycle. (For Instance: If your light switching cycle occurs at 12:00PM, then program the ballast(s) to turn off at 11:55AM.)

2). Program the Flipbox® timer to initiate the changeover (FLIP) at 12:00PM.

3). Program your lighting controller, or timer, to turn the ballast(s) back ON at 12:05PM.

4). Repeat this procedure for the AM cycle (Ballasts OFF at 11:55PM, FLIP at 12:00AM, Ballasts ON at 12:05AM).

When using any of these electronic/digital ballasts with 'error sensing' circuitry, or if your ballast is having trouble igniting a lamp after switchover, you must observe the above instructions to ensure the trouble-free operation of your ballasts with the Flipbox®.


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Frequently bought together
Customers who bought this product also commonly purchased the following combination of items.

This Item: Powerbox OG Flipbox
Harvest-Master CO2 EASi Kool Kit -- Special Order $103.78
Sentinel Basic Lighting Controller 4 Outlet BLC-4 $111.11
Agrowtek Grow Control GC-Pro Climate & Hydro Controller $1,738.29
Raindrip Digital Single Station Water Timer $49.89
Total Price $2,124.61
Add All to Cart


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Constant Growth

Inc.5000 Honors:
#20 Top Retail
Fastest-growing in the nation
Retail Location & Directions
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© 2017 Growers House - Garden Supply & Hydroponics - Tucson, AZ. All Rights Reserved.
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[ttystikk]

Awesome thread.what dude said up.there about air cooled hoods is spot on but sometimes people have to have them to control excessive heat so I don't fault them.there like autos they both have there place.
Scott's OG 22 days since flip.twin 315w cmh in wing reflectors FTW....


View attachment 4028593


View attachment 4028594

View attachment 4028595

View attachment 4028596

Nice canopy management there!

 

[ttystikk]

I said digital ballasts that aren't smart ballasts, as in don't have the sensory circuits you're talking about. I'm actually quoting a distributors directions here. I also didn't say a thing about magnetic ballasts at all. In case you feel like calling bullshit on this too I figured I'd just show you.




Home / Controllers • Meters / Powerbox OG Flipbox

More Views

Email to a FriendBe the first to review this product
The original Powerbox FLIPBOX is an individual light switching controller that allows an individual ballast to run two separate lights - one at a time - by switching back and forth between each light, at a user-specified interval, usually 12 hours for each light for flowering phases of plant growth.



$121.54
1
Add to Cart
Add to Wishlist Add to Compare
Additional Information
Name Powerbox OG Flipbox
Brand Powerbox
SKU 702975
Warranty 5 Year
Voltage 120-240v
MSRP $167.00


There are no product questions yet.
Ask a Question
Details
The original Powerbox FLIPBOX is an individual light switching module that allows an individual ballast to run two separate lights - one at a time - by switching back and forth between each light, at a user-specified interval. Flipboxes have lots of possibilities and save lots of money, when compared to buying new digital ballasts. Use the Powerbox OG Flibox to double production without installing additional power circuits and save money on ballasts by using one ballast. Hand-built at their California factory, 5 year warranty.

The Powerbox OG Flibox voltage independent - works with 120 Volt and 240 Volt ballasts. Fits Sunlight Supply style ballasts.
Use one Flipbox per


Powerbox Flipbox Compatibility

Powerbox Flipboxes work with virtually any H.I.D. ballast, be it magnetic or digital/electronic. Some ballasts, however, may require additional steps to function properly. If you are using Lumatek, Nextgen, or Phantom digital ballasts, or if your ballasts are having trouble switching, you must observe the following instructions in BOLD lettering.

Some digital/electronic ballasts contain an 'error sensing' circuit that is meant to detect if there is a bulb failure. In the event of a bulb failure, the ballast will shut itself down and not restart until the user unplugs the ballast to reset it. When running with Flipboxes®, ballasts that contain this 'error sensing' circuitry often misinterpret a light switching cycle as a dead bulb, and they shut themselves off. This problem is easy to remedy by following a few simple steps:

1). With your lighting controller, or timer, program so that your ballast(s) turn OFF 5 minutes before you will be initiating the light switching (FLIP) cycle. (For Instance: If your light switching cycle occurs at 12:00PM, then program the ballast(s) to turn off at 11:55AM.)

2). Program the Flipbox® timer to initiate the changeover (FLIP) at 12:00PM.

3). Program your lighting controller, or timer, to turn the ballast(s) back ON at 12:05PM.

4). Repeat this procedure for the AM cycle (Ballasts OFF at 11:55PM, FLIP at 12:00AM, Ballasts ON at 12:05AM).

When using any of these electronic/digital ballasts with 'error sensing' circuitry, or if your ballast is having trouble igniting a lamp after switchover, you must observe the above instructions to ensure the trouble-free operation of your ballasts with the Flipbox®.


Write Your Own Review

Rating
Overall Rating
*Nickname

*Summary of Your Review

*Review

Submit Review
RELATED PRODUCTS

Powerbox DPC-4000 - 30 Amp Controller
$206.25
Add to Wishlist

Powerbox DPC-7500-120V
$288.61
Add to Wishlist

Powerbox DPC-7500-240V
$289.83
Add to Wishlist

Powerbox LSM-8 Flipbox
$399.32
Add to Wishlist

Powerbox LSM-12 Flipbox
$541.41
Add to Wishlist

Powerbox 6 Channel Timer
$331.64
Add to Wishlist
Frequently bought together
Customers who bought this product also commonly purchased the following combination of items.

This Item: Powerbox OG Flipbox
Harvest-Master CO2 EASi Kool Kit -- Special Order $103.78
Sentinel Basic Lighting Controller 4 Outlet BLC-4 $111.11
Agrowtek Grow Control GC-Pro Climate & Hydro Controller $1,738.29
Raindrip Digital Single Station Water Timer $49.89
Total Price $2,124.61
Add All to Cart


Enter your email address
Subscribe
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube
Info Center
Review & Testing Lab
Hydroponics Q & A
Hydroponics Glossary
Energy Rebates
Financing Options
Customer Center
My Account
My Orders
Return Policy
Privacy Policy
Growers House
About Us
Contact Us
Shipping Info
Affiliate Program
Constant Growth

Inc.5000 Honors:
#20 Top Retail
Fastest-growing in the nation
Retail Location & Directions
1501 E 21st ST
Tucson, AZ 85719

2016-09-12

© 2017 Growers House - Garden Supply & Hydroponics - Tucson, AZ. All Rights Reserved.
Search Terms Advanced Search Orders and Returns Contact Us Site Map

Your first post was misleading.

 

[Heisengrow]

I have not ran LEC/CMH and dont plan to. Though it might have a better spectrum than HPS, I have not seen the evidence of the results.

I also dont really care for grams per wattage, as that mostly depends on strain. Too many variables involved in that number (tent, tent temp, reflector (or light density), water temp, PH, EC, feeding cycle, flushing, etc).

I think LED has every product beat on efficiency and spectrum, as it can be tailored rather simply, whereas metal halides and sodium lamps are at the beck and call of the resonance wavelengths.

I personally use only LED's and HPS. I now converted my veg into using only LED from T5's and love the response.

Here's a pic of DQ under the lights a few years back that I just found on my comp. Not sure what the yield was per watt, but it was definitely quite successful.
View attachment 4027822

One thing I dislike about Metal Halides is that it makes the plants stringy and tall. I like cramming the nodes as close together as possible to get a condensed cola. HPS works great for that, and LED makes up for the spectrum deficiencies, at least that's how I look at it.

Oh and about the densest heaviest yields being in a greenhouse....have you ever seen the CO2 enhanced bud? I think that might have nature beat. Too much hassle for me though lol.

@SchmoeJoe I was talking about this dude posted someone elses grow.

 

[SchmoeJoe]

@SchmoeJoe I was talking about this dude posted someone elses grow.

Yeah, my apologies. I can't say that enough. I did edit my last post to include a question for you about the de cmh with some context. Again, sorry about that. I've just started getting used to getting called out and didn't take the time to really read between the lines on that one.

It's been frustrating. Some of my earliest memories are from being three or four years old in Las Vegas helping my dad compost and work his vegetable garden. I built my first grow rooms with him at 15 over twenty years ago and I've been doing it and studying the hell out of it ever since.

 

[pinner420]

As far as running digital ballasts on light flippers if they aren't smart ballasts that recognize the change they'll keep trying to power the new bulb without going through the striking phase. You have to run a timer on the ballast so that it shuts off a few minutes before the flip and comes back on a few minutes after. This will basically reset the ballast so that it will properly strike the next bulb.

So ballast shuts down for 15min then power to the flip gets cut 10 min after that and it should flip?

 

[SchmoeJoe]

So ballast shuts down for 15min then power to the flip gets cut 10 min after that and it should flip?

Plug the ballast into its own timer. The light flipper in its own timer. Set them so the power to the ballast is cut just before each flip and turned on just after. It doesn't have to be any specific amount of time but you can keep it closer to keep your flowering plants under more light.

Most mechanical timers run on 15 minute intervals. If you set it so the flip happens somewhere in the middle there you'd be fine. If you have a digital timer you might even be able to set it so the nallast is off for about 5 minutes with the flip somewhere in the middle of that.

Since it will all be on timers you don't have to worry about it stressing plants because the day/night will still be consistent. The 12/12 gives you more light but some growers , like DJ Short, even recommend running 11.5 on 12.5 off. Anything in between will work fine so you don't have to worry about how long the ballast is off between flips. Just be sure the flip is somewhere towards the middle of the time frame where the ballast is off.

 

[ttystikk]

So ballast shuts down for 15min then power to the flip gets cut 10 min after that and it should flip?

Having looked into this, I realized there's very little point to it. The savings find by not having as many ballasts as lights is spent on the flipbox. Worse, if either a flipbox OR a ballast quits, there's two dead spots in your garden instead of just one.

So twice the points of failure, twice the consequences, no real cost savings.

 

[pinner420]

Having looked into this, I realized there's very little point to it. The savings find by not having as many ballasts as lights is spent on the flipbox. Worse, if either a flipbox OR a ballast quits, there's two dead spots in your garden instead of just one.

So twice the points of failure, twice the consequences, no real cost savings.

Or even worse you order a dual 315 balast and one side is DOA. So its a 7 day temporary implementation. Had a 6year old flip sitting om the shelf that was bullet proof with the old school lumateks....

 

[ttystikk]

Or even worse you order a dual 315 balast and one side is DOA. So its a 7 day temporary implementation. Had a 6year old flip sitting om the shelf that was bullet proof with the old school lumateks....

If you've already got the box, use it. But I did a cost/benefit analysis and found little upside, outweighed by the downsides I listed above.

And that's exactly the reason I want one ballast per box, so I can swap them out and repair or replace the offending unit and carry a minimum of spares.

 

[SchmoeJoe]

Or even worse you order a dual 315 balast and one side is DOA. So its a 7 day temporary implementation. Had a 6year old flip sitting om the shelf that was bullet proof with the old school lumateks....

If you're running a lot of lights then it's worth while but if not there's no savings. It's an economy of scale thing.

 

[MichiganMedGrower]

Running 2 rooms on the same ballasts doubles your total output with the same amount of power.

If you have your power maxed out at 80% you can grow twice as much with the same circuit.

Also rooms can heat one another in cold climates and share air conditioning/ ventilation/ co2.

The cost benefit is huge. And the output for the power available is double. And the output for a given time period is doubled.

 

[pinner420]

A friend referred to it as a time machine. He always had a smile on his face if youd let him talk about it.

 

[ttystikk]

If you're running a lot of lights then it's worth while but if not there's no savings. It's an economy of scale thing.

No it isn't. Show us the math.

 

[SchmoeJoe]

Running 2 rooms on the same ballasts doubles your total output with the same amount of power.

If you have your power maxed out at 80% you can grow twice as much with the same circuit.

Also rooms can heat one another in cold climates and share air conditioning/ ventilation/ co2.

The cost benefit is huge. And the output for the power available is double. And the output for a given time period is doubled.

You'd still be running the same amount of power whether you're running two rooms on opposing schedules with two sets of ballasts or one set and a flip box. The only difference is how many ballasts you run and how you set up everything in the same circuit.

The only way you're saving money, since you use the same amount of power either way, is if the flip box costs less than the second set of ballasts. When I did the cost comparison I found that there wasn't much of a difference unless you're running a lot of lights.

 

[SchmoeJoe]

No it isn't. Show us the math.

Power Box OG 1x2 flip box MSRP 159

Growers Choice 630 CMH MSRP 200

At those prices you'll save 41 dollars which amounts to a 20% savings but the dollar amount is almost negligible and I'd rather spend the extra 41 dollars and have the extra ballast;

159÷200=.795=20% savings

Flip Box 12x24 MSRP 1,359$

Same 200$ ballast MSRP= 2,400$ for the extra set of ballasts.

1,359÷2,400=.56625. Essentially a savings of 50% over the cost of the ballasts the flip box replaces. That's a meaningful savings.

Like I said, economy of scale. I hope that wasn't too "misleading" for you to understand.

 

[ttystikk]

Power Box OG 1x2 flip box MSRP 159

Growers Choice 630 CMH MSRP 200

At those prices you'll save 41 dollars which amounts to a 20% savings but the dollar amount is almost negligible and I'd rather spend the extra 41 dollars and have the extra ballast;

159÷200=.795=20% savings

Flip Box 12x24 MSRP 1,359$

Same 200$ ballast MSRP= 2,400$ for the extra set of ballasts.

1,359÷2,400=.56625. Essentially a savings of 50% over the cost of the ballasts the flip box replaces. That's a meaningful savings.

Like I said, economy of scale. I hope that wasn't too "misleading" for you to understand.

As soon as you add in the fact that you now have to keep both spare ballasts AND flip boxes on hand, it suddenly stops being cost effective.

Furthermore, you're now stuck with two rooms that can't effectively be used for anything but flowering, so flexibility also suffers.

This is one of those technologies that I really wanted to like but the closer I looked at it, the less sense it made. Same deal with multiple ballasts in a single case.

 

[since1991]

I dont know much about flip boxes but from what i understand its just a way to save initial cash on startup for growers that want to run 2 rooms. Only one ballast purchase but still the bulbs and reflectors for both rooms. I heard about these a few years ago and they were popular with growers that also employed "lung rooms". If anyone is familiar with that method of dual growroom climate control.

 

[MichiganMedGrower]

You'd still be running the same amount of power whether you're running two rooms on opposing schedules with two sets of ballasts or one set and a flip box. The only difference is how many ballasts you run and how you set up everything in the same circuit.

The only way you're saving money, since you use the same amount of power either way, is if the flip box costs less than the second set of ballasts. When I did the cost comparison I found that there wasn't much of a difference unless you're running a lot of lights.

If you do what you are saying you are still flipping rooms. The cost of the second ballasts is the point. They can all be backups or just not needed.

I am saying that flipping rooms doubles output for the same time and power. 2 harvests instead of 1 per cycle.

The facility can grow day and night with no down time.

And in colder climates the heating savings using the other rooms heat could be real big.

I use my growroom exhausts to help heat my house.

 

[MichiganMedGrower]

I dont know much about flip boxes but from what i understand its just a way to save initial cash on startup for growers that want to run 2 rooms. Only one ballast purchase but still the bulbs and reflectors for both rooms. I heard about these a few years ago and they were popular with growers that also employed "lung rooms". If anyone is familiar with that method of dual growroom climate control.

I share summer air conditioning by using my veg room as a lung room. I air condition veg with an oversized window unit and have an intake fan sending the cool air through the wall into the flower room next door.

Heat will circulate the same way in winter. But I unplug the exhaust from my chimney and run it under the living room.

Saves 400 gallons of propane each winter on average.