MH bulb / ballast combination suggestions

[nunofs]

My question is simple: if you were doing it all over again, what combination of MH bulbs and ballasts would you buy today, and why?

A little background on the question: I'm probably going to need a chiller for my tank (75g running around 428W of T5 lights at the moment), and since the reason I wanted to avoid MH in the beginning was exactly to not having to buy a chiller I'm thinking "why not go for broke and get it all, chiller and MH?"

FWIW I'm really happy with the T5s, I'm getting very good growth on all corals and clams, and great coloration on most corals... I say "most" because a few specific corals don't color up as nicely under my lights as under MH...

If I get the MH I was thinking of keeping 2 (or maybe 4) of the T5 for actinics, and then going with 2x 250W DE bulbs, in 2 Sunlight Supply Reef Optix 3 pendants... but I'm confused about the ballasts, I understand you have a tradeoff of energy usage, heat and noise versus increased output with the magnetic ballasts... I'm leaning towards electronics.

I'm also very undecided about which bulbs to use... I like a more pure white / bluish look, not sure if I'd be able to get that with 10000K and the T5 actinics, or if I should go with something around 12-14000K instead.

All comments, suggestions, opinions, etc are most welcome.

Thanks,
Nuno

 

[Armando]

Giesemann 230 - 2X250HQI + 2xT5's. it's the best. Special discount at Skiptons this week.

 

[nunofs]

And since we're at it, do you think 2 fixtures over a 75g tank (4 ft long) is enough? The tank is braced in the middle (it's a standard AGA tank), should I replace the brace with a clear acrylic one to avoid a shadow?

My other issue is the canopy I currently have is very shallow (the T5 bulbs inside the canopy are just 4" off the water)... my plan for the MH would be to cut two openings on the top of the canopy, just slightly smaller than the base of the pendants, and lay the pendants on top of those openings... this way the pendants would be completely outside the canopy, which should help with heat issues, but I'm concerned if there is enough height to give good, uniform light coverage. Opinions?

Nuno

 

[nunofs]

Forgot to mention: for a number of reasons (aesthetic, but mostly because I don't want my kids looking into the lights), I will need to keep a canopy on the tank, I can't leave it open and hang a fixture over the tank. I could build a "skirt" around the tank (ie, open top canopy) and go with a hanging fixture, but I'm not handy with wood and I'm sure it would look terrible. I was also trying to reuse the T5 I already have, to keep the investment as small as possible (I know, ah ah ah...)

Nuno

 

[wrassefan]

Nuno, I would try the fans in the sump and blowing at the T5s first before going to a chiller. When I had my T5 retros with fans going, it was usually fine. I have halides now with 4fans and another in the sump...so far it is fine. I do have central air but have not turned them on yet. I went with 250 XM SE with Ice Cap Eballasts...love the combo. I also run IceCap 660 with T5 blue plus supplemental. I used JBNY's bulb test results in choosing the bulb combo but I do love Ice Cap ballasts.

 

[newreefer03]

Electronic ballasts will let you use whatever type bulb you decided to use. Besides running cooler it uses less electricity and is supposed to be less wear and tear on the bulbs (lasts longer slightly). The only drawback is that you actually get less PAR than the HQI magnetics because you are using less electricity according to Sanjay. Icecaps are great and their service is exceptional. I recently fried a 250 w ballast and I sent it back to them for repair/replacement and they shipped one back the same day they received it. Now that is customer service!

 

[nunofs]

I noticed that the new fan that I installed last night is already helping with the temperature, I'm going to install one more (they're 3" computer case fans) and see if that's enough or if I really must go the chiller route.

Still, I want to keep researching the MH alternatives, in case I do go with the chiller...

Andy: I'd like to stick with DE because otherwise it'll have to be some kind of retrofit that would force me to get a different canopy (this one is definitely not tall enough for a SE retrofit kit).

Dennis: that's my main issue with the electronic ballasts, the feeling that I wouldn't be using all the power in the bulb... but if I go with an electronic ballast, it'll be an IceCap, no doubt.

Nuno

 

[nunofs]

After some more reading, I've got a short list for the ballasts: either the PFO HQI if I go with a magnetic, or the IceCap if I go with an electronic.

Anyone running the PFO HQI ballast care to comment about their experience? Is it noisy? How hot does it get?

Nuno

 

[MikeG]

I noticed that the new fan that I installed last night is already helping with the temperature, I'm going to install one more (they're 3" computer case fans) and see if that's enough or if I really must go the chiller route.

Still, I want to keep researching the MH alternatives, in case I do go with the chiller...

Nuno

I have seen quite a bit of research stating that watt for watt, MH are not hotter than VHO's or PC's. With MH the heat is focused in one spot which actually allows it to be cooled more effectively with fans where VHO's and PC's spread out the heat over the entire bulb and make it harder to cool. My system runs cooler with the MH than it did with all PC bulbs, although I am only running 2 175's at the moment. I went from 8 55W PC to 2 175W MH + 2 96W PC.

 

[Groove]

I have IceCap ballasts running AB250s. It gives a pure white light. If you suppliment with T5 Actinics it should looks great. No noise and very little heat from the ballasts.

 

[nunofs]

For people who are using DE bulbs/pendants (come on, please chime in) how far from the surface of the water are your bulbs?

I'm concerned that by setting the pendants on top of my shallow canopy, they will be too close to the water to give a good light spread... I have some corals along the back wall of the tank, very close to the surface and those need a lot of light.

Nuno

 

[nunofs]

Based on the feedback above, talking to some people this weekend, and reading some more, I ended up ordering 2 SLS ReefOptix III pendants, 2 IceCap ballasts and 2 250W DE Pheonix 14000k bulbs... this will be supplemented with 2 (or hopefully 4, if they all fit) Blue+ overdriven T5...

Nuno