power facrors for discharge lamps

[t103]

I'm considering setting up 10 600w hps lamps amd I'm just wondering if anyone knows if I need to take power factor corrrection into account or do all grow lights come with PF correction capacitors inside them?

[jackel]

if i understand that correctly, you are referring to the startup amps? the start up amps are what is labeled on the ballast. once the lights are on, i do believe they run slightly under that. if you are running that ammount of light you are wanting to run that on 220 if u arent planning to already.

[Gärtner]

Let me explain what id powerfactor and how it is used to maintain the electricity bill,

Power Factor is a measure of how efficiently electrical power is consumed. This induction is caused by equipment such as lightly loaded electric motors, luminaire transformers and fluorescent lighting ballasts and welding sets, etc.
What does it do to my electricity bill?
In a 3 phase supply, kW consumed is (VOLTS x AMPS x 1.73 x Power Factor) / 1000. The Electricity Company supply you VOLTS x AMPS and they have to supply extra to make up for the loss caused by poor Power Factor. When the power factor falls below a set figure, the electricity supply companies charge a premium on the kW being consumed, or, charge for the whole supply as kVA.
What causes Power Factor to change?
Inductive loads cause the AMPS to lag behind the VOLTS. The wave forms of VOLTS and AMPS are then "out of phase" with each other. The more out of phase they become then the lower the Power Factor. Power Factor is usually expressed as Cos Phi. (Ø)

Hope you got it...