MH lighting, all the same?

[Melonbob]

What I mean is, I work in a mining environment, and we have alot of MH fixtures at work. I'm not talking about those ugly huge jobs either, rather 175w and 250w retrofit kits, designed to replace lighting using the existing fixture. These are CSA approved, and the ballast is seperate from the fixture. Is there any reason why I couldn't use these the same as the retrofit kits you see advertised? I can get them for a smokin price.....free.....

[bobby]

No reason at all. If it is a metal halide ballast and not a mercury vapor or something like that.

I used a industrial ballast I ordered off of ebay to make mine.

[Melonbob]

Nope it is metal halide, although I have access to halogen quartz, sodium, mercury vapor, pretty much anyhting you could think of

[bobby]

Then it will fire a metal halide bulb no problem. The mercury vapor ballast will also fire one metal halide bulb, the iwasaki 6500K, however, that's the only MH bulb it will fire and you would have a very yellow look.