The 8 Best Ballasts For Grow Lights In 2023

Last Updated on December, 2023 by Rob Wilson

It’s impossible to have a complete grow setup without high-quality ballasts for grow lights. Your ballasts for grow lights ensure proper electric flow and give you the settings you need for the wattage levels you’re working with, which is essential no matter which stages of growth your plants have reached. The ballasts on the following list are all equipped with advanced technology and are highly powerful and energy-efficient.

If you’re a newcomer to the little electronic components that you’ll find on this list, you may not yet know that they’re essential if you’re working with a setup that is using HID grow lights. Your HID bulbs require external electrical components to help with power drawing and operate without causing any damage.

We have compiled a list of the 8 best grow light ballasts for you to get your hands on in 2023: the Hydrofarm SGO100C Convertible Ballast, the Quantum 1000W Digital Ballast, the Hydrofarm Xtrasun 1000W Digital Ballast, the 1000W B-Lite Electronic Dimmable Ballast, the Tophort 1000W Digital Dimmable Ballast, the Phantom PHB2010 1000W Digital Ballast, the GreenHouser 1000W Dimmable Digital Ballast, and the VIVOSUN Hydroponic 1000W Dimmable Digital Ballast.

We’ve carefully picked these ballasts, keeping everything in mind from use to efficiency, along with an emphasis to bring them into your budget. So, without further delay, let’s get to the products and their details.

The Best Ballasts For Grow Lights In 2023 – Review

1. Hydrofarm SGO100C Convertible Ballast, 1000W

Type:- Convertible Ballast
Watts operation:- 1000 Watts
Weight:- 32 Pounds
Warranty:- Manufacturer’s warranty

When it comes to ballasts for grow lights, it can be tough to find something that’s light on price and heavy on features. What’s more, these products are often unfortunately not built to last. For that reason, we decided to kick off this list of the best grow light ballasts with the Hydrofarm SGO100C Convertible Ballast, 1000W.

The Hydrofarm Grow Light Convertible Ballast is among the latest in the lineup of 1000-watt Hydrofarm grow lights, and it’s got everything a grower could ask for in 2023. This convertible ballast has its own patented and highly efficient design, thanks to its ability to allow for electrical after – and not before – a seal has been achieved through connection. The design’s also water-resistant which means it can stand up to humidity and mist that’s going to inevitably be present in your grow setup.

Among the first things we noticed when we gave this convertible ballast a spin was its super high quality; the Hydrofarm SGO100C Convertible Ballast, 1000W features a highly durable steel enclosure, which is powder-coated and vented to allow for maximum circulation. We also noticed that its design is pretty practical considering it can be either hung or placed on flat surfaces. This convertible ballast is a huge step up from previous Hydrofarm 600-watt ballasts, and we’d recommend it for growers of any experience level.

Before purchasing, we’d just like to remind buyers that while the 1000W Hydrofarm Grow Light Convertible Ballast is highly durable, it does also weigh around 32 pounds, so remember to handle it with care! Thankfully, you’ll have removable steel handles you can use to move this around. Plus, this product is CSA-certified, and buyers will be able to claim a manufacturer’s warranty through Hydrofarm’s excellent customer support. Note that this ballast also runs on 120/240V dual receptacles and is bundled with a 120V cord.

Pros

Efficient patented design
Waterproof design with ventilation and powder coating
CSA certified and high-quality build

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Cons

Only for single-ended bulbs

2. Quantum 1000W Digital Ballast, 120/240V Dimmable Ballast

Type:- Dimmable Ballast
Watts operation:- 1000 Watts
Weight:- 7.7 Pounds
Warranty:- Manufacturer’s warranty

If you’ve ever been in the market for digital ballasts, you’ll know that it can be difficult to find a product that balances its quality, efficiency, and intensity of illumination. Many digital ballasts reviews will often mention products that go all in on one of these aspects while compromising on others. This is not the case with the Quantum 1000W Digital Ballast, 120/240V Dimmable Ballast, quite the opposite — this one’s actually one of the best digital ballasts on the market.

This product is often cited in 600-watt digital ballast reviews since it does come in 400-watt, 600-watt, and 1000-watt variants. And while this product is definitely one of the best digital ballasts in 600w variants, we are, of course, covering the 1000-watt variant here. The Quantum 1000W Digital Ballast is absolutely ideal for larger-end grow setups, and it’s perfect for users who need multiple settings to dim their lights without compromising for a lower-wattage ballast. This digital ballast allows users to set it at 50%, 75%, and 100% settings for variable outputs.

Our experience was immediately improved by the fact that the Quantum 1000W Digital Ballast, 120/240V Dimmable Ballast let us completely avoid the fuss that comes with connection-related issues, thanks to the fact that it accepts both 120V and 240V. We also were happy to see an extremely high lumen out and a high-tech, resin-sealed circuit board, which protected it from our grow setup’s humidity levels. Finally, this product hardly makes any noise at all and runs way cooler than even some of the best digital ballasts on the market.

Buyers should be thrilled to know that the Quantum 1000W Digital Ballast is much lighter than our previously listed Hydrofarm product, coming in at just over 7 pounds. This digital ballast also comes with a manufacturer’s warranty, which is also listed on the manufacturer’s website for easy access.

Pros

Digital dimmable ballast with three dimmable settings
Available in various wattage variants
Resin sealed circuit board
Works with both MH and HPS bulbs
Low noise making and has a cooler operation

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Cons

Lacks quality control

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3. HYDROFARM Xtrasun 1000W Digital Ballast, 120-240V Dimmable

Type:- Digital dimmable ballast
Watts operation:- 1000 Watts
Weight:- 7.8 Pounds
Warranty:- Manufacturer’s warranty

Custom lighting setups require dimmable ballasts that are compact, energy-efficient, and can help eliminate power spikes and circuit overloads. As you may have guessed, it can be pretty tricky to find products that check all of these boxes; we’ve included the Hydrofarm Xtrasun 1000W Digital Ballast, 120-240V Dimmable on this list of the best ballasts for grow lights for a reason!

This Xtrasun grow light convertible ballast is definitely a unique-looking one, thanks to its sleek, chic-looking blue color with a nicely vented case design that’s great for cool operations (it’s also got dual fans to make its operation even more efficient). Even the clumsiest of grow spaces will look more pleasing after you’ve added the Xtrasun 1000W Digital Ballast to it, which many Xtrasun ballast reviews will be quick to point out.

One of our favorite things about the Hydrofarm Xtrasun 1000W Digital Ballast, 120-240V Dimmable is its incredibly thoughtful ignition delay of just a few seconds; this kind of delay allows means you don’t need to worry about experiencing any pesky power spikes or – even worse – circuit overloads.

Buyers thinking of getting their hands on the Xtrasun dimmable digital ballast should consider this if they’re particularly concerned with avoiding a high electricity bill, which is a big problem among users working with older power-guzzling ballasts. The Xtrasun 1000W Digital Ballast accepts 120 and 240V and comes with user safety diagnostics codes. It has a size dimension of 9.65 x 4.9 x 2.3 and weighs only 2.9 lbs. It also comes with a manufacturer’s warranty.

Pros

Digital dimmable ballast for custom lighting
Vented case design with dual fan for cool operation
Ignition delay to avoid power spikes and circuit overloads

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Cons

None

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4. 1000W B-Lite Electronic Dimmable Ballast MH/HPS (120/240V) Grow Light Ballast

Type:- Electronic Dimmable Ballast
Watts operation:- 1000 Watts
Weight:- Unavailable
Warranty:- Manufacturer’s warranty

Another big concern among buyers looking for the best 1000W ballasts available is whether they can work with multiple settings to dim their lights. Many ballasts that do offer these settings still tend to run pretty inefficiently, but that’s not the case with the 1000W B-Lite Electronic Dimmable Ballast MH/HPS (120/240V) Grow Light Ballast.

This product is a great choice if you’re searching for one of the best hps ballasts on the market that you can run efficiently with either MH or HPS bulbs, thanks to its 1000-watt ballast splitter. The 1000W B-Lite Electronic Ballast gives users the liberty to use either of these bulbs, and the product includes two functions to ensure safety regardless of whether you use MH or HPS bulbs.

Our favorite aspect of the 1000W B-Lite Electronic Dimmable Ballast was its soft-start technology and smart ignition. This ignition is one of the reasons you’ll see this product mentioned on most 1000-watt digital ballast reviews – it’s essential for protecting the lamp from circuitry overloads or sudden spikes in power. The soft-start features start the bulb slowly and softly for the safety and lifespan of the bulb. The body of the ballast is ventilated and has four-way heat dissipation.

Buyers can look forward to having a 90-day manufacturer’s warranty that they can obtain through B-lite’s customer service. You’ll also want to note that the 1000W B-Lite Electronic Dimmable Ballast MH/HPS (120/240V) comes equipped with cooling fans, and standard sockets, and can accept 120/240V. Finally, the operation for this product has a 99% power factor and is therefore highly reliable.

Pros

Sleek ventilated body with the cooling fan
Safety features like smart ignition and soft-start
Power factor at 99%

Cons

None

5. TOPHORT 1000W Digital Dimmable Electronic Ballast for HPS MH Grow Light Bulb Lamp Blue

Type:- Dimmable electronic ballast
Watts operation:-1000 Watts
Weight:- 7.5 Pounds
Warranty:- 3 years manufacturer’s warranty

When you’re poring through most grow light ballast reviews, you’ll often find a mish-mash of products that may be feature-rich but energy-inefficient; powerful yet aesthetically unpleasing; in the worst case, ballasts that are neither sleek nor powerful nor efficient. With the Tophort 1000W Digital Dimmable Electronic Ballast for HPS MH Grow Light Bulbs (Blue), you can rest easy knowing that you’re getting a product that checks all of these boxes.

Easily the best part of the Tophort 1000W Digital Dimmable Electronic Ballast is its highly efficient cooling system, which is guaranteed to put any worries you may have about your 1000-watt grow light electric bill at ease. This ballast has a built-in cooling fan and graduating fin design that can easily minimize the temperature of your ballast. What’s more, is that it also comes bundled with built-in protection against circuitry board-related issues and power surges, and it’s designed to prevent ignition failures and overheating.

We’re confident in saying that this product is definitely among the best ballasts for grow lights thanks to its main parameters that support three different wattages (600, 750, and 1000) and guarantee a 110% super lumen output. We were also highly pleased with the extremely low levels of noise that the Tophort 1000W Digital Dimmable Electronic Ballast for HPS MH Bulbs offers – the ballast is designed with a structure that cancels out noise, and the noise that this product does generate is a mere 69 decibels, so you won’t have to worry about it interfering with anything else you’re doing while it’s in operation.

For users interested in getting their hands on the Tophort 1000W Dimmable Electronic Ballast, they’ll be happy to know that they can expect numerous safety features. This product also has a replaceable outset fuse by input terminal for short circuit protection and even automatic power shut off for the same and lamp protection. It comes with an eight feet long 120V cable along with 3 years of manufacturer’s warranty.

Pros

Safe and convenient
Low noise and cool operation
Equipped with short circuit, power surge, ignition failure, and overheat protection

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Cons

Expensive

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6. Phantom PHB2010 II 1000W Digital Ballast, Black

Type:- Dimmable digital ballast
Watts operation:- 1000 Watts
Weight:- 12.04 Pounds
Warranty:- Manufacturer’s warranty

If you’ve ever worked with or previously purchased 1000-watt ballasts for grow lights, you’ll know that they can be pretty loud, interfering with your other activities. Plus, lots of 1000W grow light ballasts are bulky and not exactly easy to handle, but that’s not the case with the Phantom PHB2010 1000W Digital Ballast (Black).

The Phantom PHB2010 is a digital dimmable ballast for single-ended grow bulbs. If you’ve ever checked out any other Phantom 2 ballast reviews, you’ll have noticed that they talk about one of its new features not seen among its peers: its LED indicator lights. This handy feature will let you know which setting your digital ballast is running on. And, speaking of the loud noise we mentioned earlier, this product is pretty much completely silent and lightweight to boot, making handling it a walk in the park.

We loved the fact that the Phantom ballast came equipped with an integrated microprocessor that made operation as smooth as could be. The Phantom PHB2010 1000W Digital Ballast (Black) was also programmed with hot-restrike programming, which protected our bulbs in the event of unexpected shutdowns. We also want to note that when we used this ballast, we found it to be highly energy-efficient and ideal for our larger grow setup.

Before purchasing, we’d like to remind buyers that while the Phantom PHB2010 1000W is highly durable, it’s also pretty lightweight, so please remember to handle it with care. This product is CSA-certified, and buyers will be able to claim a manufacturer’s warranty through Phantom’s website.

Pros

Dimmable ballast with four settings and LED indicator
Hot-restrike programmed for lamp protection
Energy-efficient and silent in operation

Cons

Designed to operate only on single-ended bulbs

Check on Amazon

7. GreenHouser UL Listed 1000w Premium Dimmable Digital Ballast

Type:- Dimmable digital ballast
Watts operation:- 1000 watts
Weight:- Unavail
Warranty:- 14 pounds

Not all of the best ballasts for grow lights, even if they’re indeed high-quality, are ideal for variable grow setups. It can be irritating to read through digital ballast reviews and come up short on products that can work for specifically indoor hydroponic setups. When it comes to the GreenHouser UL Listed 1000W Premium Dimmable Digital Ballast for Indoor Hydroponics HPS/MH Grow Light Fixture, indoor hydroponic setups are its specialty.

The grow equipment experts at GreenHouser have come up with something truly special with the GreenHouser 1000W Digital Ballast, which provides 1000 watts of premium dimmable digital ballast power for indoor hydroponic setups. The ballast is dimmable with four settings for custom lighting in your grow area. The dimmable settings can be set up at 600 watts, 750 watts, 1000 watts, and also at 1150 watts.

We found the use of the GreenHouser UL Listed 1000W Premium Dimmable Digital Ballast ideal for use with HPS and MH grow bulbs, which is a huge advantage over many of its competitor products. The ballast is also equipped with several safety features to keep your grow environment, grow equipment, and grow bulbs protected. It has short and open circuit protection, ignition failure protection, and thermal protection.

Potential buyers of the GreenHouser 1000W Digital Ballast will want to note that this product is a little bit on the heavier side, weighing in at 14 pounds. It does have heatsinks on three of its sides to keep the operating temperature in check. The ballast accepts 120-240V and comes with a 120V power cord, and you can obtain a manufacturer’s warranty and get guaranteed discreet shipping to boot.

Pros

Dimmable ballast with four settings
Multiple safety features
The heatsink on three sides for controlled operating temperature

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Cons

Heavy

[/joomdev-wpc-cons][/joomdev-wpc-pros-cons] Check on Amazon

8. VIVOSUN 1000-watt Dimmable Digital Ballast for HPS MH Grow Light

VIVOSUN 1000 watt Dimmable Digital Ballast

Type:- Digital dimmable ballast
Watts:- 1000 Watts
Weight:- 8 Pounds
Warranty:- 3-year manufacturer’s warranty

Last but certainly not least on our list of the best ballasts for grow lights is the VIVOSUN Hydroponic 1000W Dimmable Digital Ballast for HPS MH Grow Light. As we’ve mentioned plenty of times by now, it can be difficult to find great ballasts that can guarantee a flourishing harvest that is also highly energy-efficient. We’ve included this ballast on our list of the best digital ballasts on the market because of how long its bulbs last and how much energy it can save.

The VIVOSUN 1000W Dimmable Digital Ballast is a feature-full ballast with 1000 watts of operation, and it comes bundled with HPS and MH bulbs for various growth requirements. The ballast is dimmable with four levels that are 650 watts, 750 watts, 1000 watts, and also super lumen with 110% output. The build of the ballast is sleek with heatsinks on three sides, and it is friendly to install.

We’re a big fan of the fact that the VIVOSUN 1000W Digital Ballast came with multiple safety features to keep our operations safe and our lamps protected. It included open and short circuit protection under input terminal/internal heat and radiofrequency. It also offered us a soft start to keep our lights working for an incredibly long time. Because of this, we got protection against overheating, short circuits, and ignition failures.

Buyers thinking about purchasing the VIVOSUN 1000W Dimmable Digital Ballast for HPS MH Grow Light will want to note that the product comes with eight feet long power cords of 120V and also accepts 240V and comes with four rubber feet for ground installation. Also, the unparalleled performance of this ballast is accompanied by a 3-year manufacturer’s warranty along with customer support.

Pros

Extended warranty and customer support
Efficient dimmable ballast with HPS and MH bulb compatibility
System of the ballast includes security against short circuit, overheating, ignition failure, and a lot more
Dimmable with four levels

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Cons

Heavy
Expensive

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) On the Best Ballasts for Grow Lights In 2024

1. What does a grow light ballast do?

A ballast controls the current that flows into a bulb. It acts as a mediator between high voltage current and bulb, which is prone to surge damage. The ballast also allows the bulbs to work on precise watts to control the output.

2. Do LED tubes need a ballast?

No, LED tubes need no ballast, and likewise, LED grow light also doesn’t require a ballast.

3. CAN YOU RUN A 1000-WATT BULB IN A 600-WATT BALLAST?

A 1000 watt bulb will be able to run with a 600 watts ballasts as the starting voltage requirement remains the same. However, the 600-watt ballast will not be able to power 1000 watts bulb to its capacity and will result in underperformance and also loss of color and temperature for the growth of your plants.

4. What is the best ballast for grow lights?

There are several ballasts available in the market for your growing requirements. And you can discover the best amongst them in our article above with detailed reviews of the same.

5. Can I put two lights on one ballast?

You can run lights by the capacity of the ballast. E.g., you can run one 1000 watts bulb on a 1000 watts ballast and cannot add more. You can opt for two ballast in one for multiple operations or buy separate ones for the length of your grow area. There are various ways listed to use single ballast for various bulbs with different wattage bulbs for using a splitter and more, but according to us, all these methods are ineffective, and you do not want to lose the health of your plants.

6. Can you run hid without grow light ballasts?

You can certainly run an HID bulb without a ballast; however, it won’t be advised if you are growing with those HIDs. Without the use of ballast the current flowing through the bulb will be uneven and the output, which will affect the growth of your plants. Also, you won’t have controls in your hands for various growing stages of your plants.

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The Final Word On the Best 2023 Grow Light Ballasts

So, this was the list of best modern ballast for the best lighting condition in your grow area. The list comprises of the best picks, and you will find one best suited for your needs. The list is varied and has ballast ideal for various requirements with the best performance and higher output. So, get one or more for your needs and sit back and relax as they will take care of your growth with optimum light settings.

Other Recommended:

Author

Rob Wilson

Rob Wilson is a maverick horticulturist and alchemist of the herbal world. With an uncanny green thumb and a passion for unlocking the secrets of cannabis cultivation and processing, he blends science and artistry to orchestrate nature's most intricate symphony. Rob's journey is an odyssey of coaxing delicate trichomes and potent terpenes into harmonious existence. When not lost in his garden, he's a devoted educator, guiding fellow enthusiasts through the verdant realms of cannabis cultivation.

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