DIY lighting VS new light hood

[fishin]

I am wondering if I DIY my lighting using a couple different options. 1st using the Light of America outdoor lights 65w and something else for 2 actinic bulbs. 2nd to get a ballist and set up some kind of PC retrofit or using the bulbs the 65w bulbs that come with the LOA light as a retrofit. 3rd is to get a JEBO odyessa light kit which comes with 4x65w PC bulbs 2x12K daylight, bulbs 2xactinic 03's, 2 moon lights, 2 fans, and legs. What would be the best route to go with?

The aquarium thing is kinda new to me any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Chancy

[greenmaji]

PC electronic ballasts..
http://www.prolighting.com/woba.html
the caps are there too it all depends on what type of bulbs you want to use..

[mykpoz]

Originally Posted by greenmagi

PC electronic ballasts..
http://www.prolighting.com/woba.html
the caps are there too it all depends on what type of bulbs you want to use..

What would you suggest for a 55gal tank? I don't want to be TOO limited on the anems that i put in there.

i was looking at a 29gal with a Coralife aqualight setup... but was told it would only let me do a few of the lower light anems
TIA

[greenmaji]

If you want advise on how much light and wich bulbs you need to grow something you might want to post that question in the appropriate area.. if its for reef stuff that area.. if its for FW plants that area.. or at least give us an idea what you want to do with the lights..

If you need help picking a ballast for the type of CF bulbs and wattages and such I could help you with that if you just post how many and what you want to build..

[greenmaji]

Did you find out what kind and size bulbs you needed for what you want to keep?
I dont know what the lighting requirements are for the high light needing anems.. Im guessing you asked in the SW area? If you did then did they give you a watts per gallon and color temps you would need?.. I hope no-one would have scared you off by cost because I would be trying to find the cheapest solution to your problem in here..
Happy to Help..

[mykpoz]

well, i found out a few days ago, that I will be inheriting a tank. It is in need of some TLC and has a ballast with two fairly new lights... they havent been used much due to the fan on the canopy being broken, which is one thing i will quickly fix.

Once i have everything in order here, i will look at what i have and what i will need. I appreciate the offer for help when it comes to the lighting and I will be sure to take you up on it, as soon as i know what i am working with

Thanks, again

[greenmaji]

Ill try to keep an eye out on this thread..

[StrongBad]

I have been searching the DIY forum for a really good DIY project for a Lighting hood for my new 30 gallon FOWLR. It is in the middle of a fishless cycle right now so I have a bit of time. It is 12" by 24" (oh and 18" high). I would like to do metal halide so that I can have a couple of coral and some anemone's too but they are so expensive retail. I guess my question comes down to........Can I buy a regular flourescent hood and retrofit that with appropriate lighting? If so, what are the necessary parts?

[greenmaji]

I dont know if MH is nessisary... how many watts/gal of what K lighting do you need to grow the corals you want to keep? what im saying is MH has a lumenosity of about 6500.. 4X ODNO 48"'s of it has a lumenosity of 6000.. if you put more ODNO then 48" over it you would have more lumenosity then MH and just as much punch.. and alot less heat.. the amps it would pull would be killer though.. its about 2 amps per 48"..

[StrongBad]

I'm really not sure what kind of coral I want, in fact I didnt know that different coral needed different kinds of light (which is what I assume the K rating is for) I guess I would like whatever lighting penetrates 18" deep and will cover the aquarium floor at 12" by 24" and support the widest array of coral possible. I will then buy coral from within that set of species.
I liked the idea of MH because I read that it gives a nice shimmer to the water. As an aside what is ODNO? something, something, normal output?
If MH is not really necessary, what would be a good alternative, VHO, PC? And would either of those be easy to make my own lighting hood?
Thanks for the help

[greenmaji]

ODNO.. over drivin NO ... and if you want the shimmer some users of ODNO have gotten it off of 4 little 18" bulbs.. but I would think that MH would be alot easier to do this with.. anyway... no matter what you want to build your going to need ballasts of one kind or another.. so here is a link..
http://www.prolighting.com/ballasts.html

[StrongBad]

So if I get this ballast kit, do I only need a bulb and just attatch it to a shop light or do I also need a cord?
http://www.prolighting.com/20mehapustba.html

[JProx]

it looks like it comes with something that could be a cord, it could just be a wire that you have to attach a electrical plug too, and if thats the case its really easy to do, and takes all but 2mins.

i don't think it would be wise to attach that to a regular shoplight fixture because MH bulbs and fixtures get very hot while in use. but this is a great deal for a MH unit i just might buy myself a pair.

[greenmaji]

The ballast is just that, a ballast.. you will need to get a power cord for it.. and wire it to it.. and to the bulbs socket.. and mount it in a fixture of some kind with a reflector of some kind... but its alot cheaper then buying one pre-maid.. :P
do you know what a M136 Metal Halide Lamp (Pulse Start) is? If you know what kind of bulb it is and what kind of socket to get youll be set!

[StrongBad]

Unfortunately I dont....If I had a schematic to work from it would help a little. For now I am still trying to put together a list of ALL parts I neet for a working MH setup on a 30 gallon tank. An ideal list would include the wall plug to the bulb and everything in between. After that I can figure out how to affix it to a wooden tank hood and cool it.
So are the metal halide lights single bulb units completely unlike flourescent tube setups? Also, alot of setups I have seen recently have both PC and MH. Is there an advantage to this like more of the light spectrum?

[JProx]

the basic idea is the MH provides full-spec lighting to live rock at the deepest part of the aquarium, and the PC bulbs are actintic and provide the neccessary light to corals. the reason you use PC bulbs for the actintic portion is because the wavelength of the color (generated by the bulb) can penerate the deepest parts of the aquarium easily.

[greenmaji]

JProx.. if you can explain the setup to him that might help.. I would have to do reaserh to find out what kind of socket and bulb they would need to use with this ballast.... Im guessing you might already know.. Im kinda intrested myself.. ATS anyone! :P

[JProx]

all MH fixtures are pretty much the same, there are only 2 big differences.
1) how the bulb is ignited, there are only 2 systems - probe start, and pulse start. these are not interchangable. if you have a pulse start ballast you cant use a probe start bulb. if you do, the bulb may or may not ignite and it can either go through color shifts, loss of light output, and will have a shorter life.

2) the type of bulb to use, again there are only 2 types, screw base (light a regular bulb) and a double sided fixture. the double sided fixture requires a special mounting base and a specilized ballast to work properly. the link above is for a regular MH ballast, so all you need is a mogul base. it looks similar to a regular incandescent fixture just bigger, go to home depot or lowes and ask an employee to show you the mogul sockets, and they should run only a few bucks.

the wiring is pretty simple, and you should be able to do all the wiring in less than 20mins, just the mounting might take longer. i would suggest keeping the ballast away from the actual MH bulb, to reduce an heat as much as possible. some people mount the ballast in their stand, (away from the sump) and run the wires from the ballast to the bulb.

so all you need is something to mount the fixture and ballast too.
1) a mogul socket
2) 3 wire / cord to supply power to the unit (Hot, netural and ground)
3) if the cord doesn't come with an electrical socket you will need one of those too (a 3 prong plug)

and thats all you should need, sorry about my last post, after looking at the link and hte pic thats listed, i thought the ballast came with the socket, and the name 'ballast kit' led me to believe the mogul socket was included. but after re - examining the pic i now believe its just a charging capacitor and not the actual socket. sorry about that.

[StrongBad]

I have found some info about the pulse start. This link also has some other good FAQ type info.
http://members.fortunecity.com/paulerik/id53.htm
Also, here is a schematic that seems to have everything necessary from the plug to the bulb.
http://members.fortunecity.com/paulerik/id51.htm
Next, are these ballasts useable. They seem pretty cheap compared to other sites.
Ok thats it for now.

[StrongBad]

Thank you so much, this is the exact type of info I was looking for. I may get back to you with some more questions as I go.