Do Led Lights Have A Ballast

Led lamps on the other hand operate differently from fluorescent lamps and do not utilize a ballast but do utilize electronic components that make up the led driver.

Do led lights have a ballast.

However many are not aware that these innovative light sources require specialized devices called led drivers to operate. Led light bulbs are great because they have a life of 50 000 hours. Incandescent and halogen lamps do not require a ballast. One major issue about the use of ballast is the need to always replace ballasts when they all go bad which sooner or later will happen to every ballast.

The difference is the mechanism they use to transform the incoming voltage. A ballast compatible led light has several disadvantages such as maintenance schedules that tend to be extremely inefficient. First large amounts of current aren t needed in led bulbs. Leds don t need a ballast because of a number of reasons.

Led drivers also known as led power supplies are similar to ballasts for fluorescent lamps or transformers for low. A ballast for light emitting diode led lights is not required instead a driver is required. This is why when retrofitting to led corn light bulbs you need to direct wire the socket. If you installed direct fit led lights and kept the ballast intact what you are seeing is in fact a bad ballast not a bad bulb.

Also the leds typically use direct current dc and thus need an ac to dc converter. This wastes time and money in the long term. If you see bulbs out after months or even a few years it s likely to be a ballast issue not a bulb issue. A ballast bypass is a common procedure to remove the ballast from the existing fixture.

Led technology does not require a ballast to regulate the amount of energy flowing to the lights. You will find ballast compatible or plug and play leds that are designed to replace linear fluorescents compact fluorescents or hids. In the future they also will need replacing at some point. Ballasts have a average lifespan of two years so often especially with led lights it is the ballast that needs replacing more often than the actual lamp.

Source t5 t8 and t12 fluorescent lamps operate slightly differently and therefore have different fluorescent ballast types. There are two types of ballasts we deal with for existing fluorescent lights magnetic and electronic. Led s require less energy and can be sensitive to excess energy. Furthermore single power supply lamps are the safest option.

No led bulbs require a ballast although some are engineered to work with an existing ballast.