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AllXJ96's DIY All Alluminum 250w Metal Halide Build


AllXJ96

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I tried posting this in the lighting forum, but i got no response, I want to see if anyone really has any comments or suggestions that could make this project better

 

Several Months Back I decided I wanted to upgrade to MH from the stock lighting in my 29g BioCube, so i decided to try a 70w, I ordered a $20 ebay bulb and a ballast, then i gutted my hood and slapped this sucker in there, it did not take me long to realize that this light had no where near enough power to keep much of anything in it... So I got 2 thinking, about a different lighting setup, I looked into the DIY LED setups, started pricing it out and it got too expensive to quick... and since I've been wanting to do alot of acro's, i knew that I was going to need more than 150w on my tank. One of my LFS who is one of the few that has a highly succesful acro tank that i believe is maybe a 190g bow front, they had 3x 400w mh on their tank and basically convinced me to go with a 250w for what i was looking into doing.

 

So, here is the parts list

250w XM 15k mogul bulb $65.00

250w IceCap Elec Ballast $130.00

Mogul Socket $8.00

2x 70mm pcu fans $16.00

12v 1.2amp adapter $12.00

4xBlue LED w mounts $10.00

Misc Hardware $35.00

36watt coralife actinic, $0.00 From Stock Hood

mount, and power supply

LED Driver $0.00 From Stock Hood

40"of 2"x1/2" allum channel $0.00 Freebie

40" of 3" allum louver $0.00 Freebie

20" 3.5"od allum pipe $0.00 Freebie

9' 5/8" solid allum rod $0.00 Freebie

20"x8.75" 1/8" allum sheet $0.00 Left Over From Other Projects

Glass ??????? Still need it cut

Powder Coat ??????? Not Ready Yet

 

Total Thus Far: $246.00

 

Picture Time

This is the top of the reflector to show how it was built

IMG_2136.jpg

 

This is the inside of the reflector, i put almost 3.5hrs into polishing it to mirror finnish

IMG_2138.jpg

 

Here is the material that I cut for the housing, its just waiting for work the following day so i can weld it together

IMG_2133.jpg

 

And at the end of the "following day, I ground down the welds and made everything smooth, then mounted the reflector inside to test fit.

IMG_2162.jpg

 

The top of the Housing after it was cleaned up

IMG_2163.jpg

 

Light Housing On Tank Test

IMG_2165.jpg

 

This shows the mount for one of the 2 light poles

IMG_2199.jpg

 

The 2 Light poles and Yes they are height adjustable (and my girlie in the background working on wedding favors)

IMG_2200.jpg

 

Yes, The light is hung

IMG_2202.jpg

 

Another Angle

IMG_2203.jpg

 

One from this morning with the light on

IMG_2208.jpg

 

And a little Coral Shot

IMG_2210.jpg

 

 

Things that at this point still need to be done,

Mount and wire LED moonlights

Mount Switch for LEDs

Wire Actinic (Dawn and Dusk Light Only)

Mount and wire Both Fans

Drill Holes for power supply wires

Get Glass for bottom cut and drilled

Take it all apart and get it powder coated flat black

I might Decided to lower the hoops closer to the housing, what do you guys think?

 

SO ANY THOUGHTS AND OR SUGGESTIONS

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Ive got a chiller on the tank which keeps the temp at 78.5deg, ive got the 2 fans on the unit which when the glass is installed on the unit there should be very little heat transfer.

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That is freaking sick dude I love it!

 

Did you use aluminum for the housing?

 

I was thinking of getting a 150 watt MH/ actinic setup for my redsea max.

 

Once you powder coat that thing black it will look professional and you could sell them lol.

 

I want dibs on one of those if you decide to custom make and sell them haha.

 

One thing I was thinking too is maybe putting some air slots on top of the unit to make it run cooler.

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at first when saw title it was gonna be some pos wood build......Its nice work and well done.I would go bit higher though i think with light.Maybe change the hanging loops to a steal wire or something to look nicer.

 

 

nice work and cant wait to see more.

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There is no need for slots in the top because the housing is pretty much gonna be sealed, so the one fan is gonna pull air in and the other will pull air out, i got the highest CFM fans that i could find so they move plenty of air to even keep just the reflector cool to the touch.

 

The overall height of the unit can be raised and lowered over the water, but if you pay attention in pic #9 i think the rods are too high above the light, so i shortened that distance and i should be getting it powder coated this week, so i will post more pictures of that and i will release the order forms, jk...

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...
I tried posting this in the lighting forum, but i got no response, I want to see if anyone really has any comments or suggestions that could make this project better

 

Several Months Back I decided I wanted to upgrade to MH from the stock lighting in my 29g BioCube, so i decided to try a 70w, I ordered a $20 ebay bulb and a ballast, then i gutted my hood and slapped this sucker in there, it did not take me long to realize that this light had no where near enough power to keep much of anything in it... So I got 2 thinking, about a different lighting setup, I looked into the DIY LED setups, started pricing it out and it got too expensive to quick... and since I've been wanting to do alot of acro's, i knew that I was going to need more than 150w on my tank. One of my LFS who is one of the few that has a highly succesful acro tank that i believe is maybe a 190g bow front, they had 3x 400w mh on their tank and basically convinced me to go with a 250w for what i was looking into doing.

 

So, here is the parts list

250w XM 15k mogul bulb $65.00

250w IceCap Elec Ballast $130.00

Mogul Socket $8.00

2x 70mm pcu fans $16.00

12v 1.2amp adapter $12.00

4xBlue LED w mounts $10.00

Misc Hardware $35.00

36watt coralife actinic, $0.00 From Stock Hood

mount, and power supply

LED Driver $0.00 From Stock Hood

40"of 2"x1/2" allum channel $0.00 Freebie

40" of 3" allum louver $0.00 Freebie

20" 3.5"od allum pipe $0.00 Freebie

9' 5/8" solid allum rod $0.00 Freebie

20"x8.75" 1/8" allum sheet $0.00 Left Over From Other Projects

Glass ??????? Still need it cut

Powder Coat ??????? Not Ready Yet

 

Total Thus Far: $246.00

 

Picture Time

This is the top of the reflector to show how it was built

IMG_2136.jpg

 

This is the inside of the reflector, i put almost 3.5hrs into polishing it to mirror finnish

IMG_2138.jpg

 

Here is the material that I cut for the housing, its just waiting for work the following day so i can weld it together

IMG_2133.jpg

 

And at the end of the "following day, I ground down the welds and made everything smooth, then mounted the reflector inside to test fit.

IMG_2162.jpg

 

The top of the Housing after it was cleaned up

IMG_2163.jpg

 

Light Housing On Tank Test

IMG_2165.jpg

 

This shows the mount for one of the 2 light poles

IMG_2199.jpg

 

The 2 Light poles and Yes they are height adjustable (and my girlie in the background working on wedding favors)

IMG_2200.jpg

 

Yes, The light is hung

IMG_2202.jpg

 

Another Angle

IMG_2203.jpg

 

One from this morning with the light on

IMG_2208.jpg

 

And a little Coral Shot

IMG_2210.jpg

 

 

Things that at this point still need to be done,

Mount and wire LED moonlights

Mount Switch for LEDs

Wire Actinic (Dawn and Dusk Light Only)

Mount and wire Both Fans

Drill Holes for power supply wires

Get Glass for bottom cut and drilled

Take it all apart and get it powder coated flat black

I might Decided to lower the hoops closer to the housing, what do you guys think?

 

SO ANY THOUGHTS AND OR SUGGESTIONS

 

 

I tried posting this in the lighting forum, but i got no response, I want to see if anyone really has any comments or suggestions that could make this project better

 

Several Months Back I decided I wanted to upgrade to MH from the stock lighting in my 29g BioCube, so i decided to try a 70w, I ordered a $20 ebay bulb and a ballast, then i gutted my hood and slapped this sucker in there, it did not take me long to realize that this light had no where near enough power to keep much of anything in it... So I got 2 thinking, about a different lighting setup, I looked into the DIY LED setups, started pricing it out and it got too expensive to quick... and since I've been wanting to do alot of acro's, i knew that I was going to need more than 150w on my tank. One of my LFS who is one of the few that has a highly succesful acro tank that i believe is maybe a 190g bow front, they had 3x 400w mh on their tank and basically convinced me to go with a 250w for what i was looking into doing.

 

So, here is the parts list

250w XM 15k mogul bulb $65.00

250w IceCap Elec Ballast $130.00

Mogul Socket $8.00

2x 70mm pcu fans $16.00

12v 1.2amp adapter $12.00

4xBlue LED w mounts $10.00

Misc Hardware $35.00

36watt coralife actinic, $0.00 From Stock Hood

mount, and power supply

LED Driver $0.00 From Stock Hood

40"of 2"x1/2" allum channel $0.00 Freebie

40" of 3" allum louver $0.00 Freebie

20" 3.5"od allum pipe $0.00 Freebie

9' 5/8" solid allum rod $0.00 Freebie

20"x8.75" 1/8" allum sheet $0.00 Left Over From Other Projects

Glass ??????? Still need it cut

Powder Coat ??????? Not Ready Yet

 

Total Thus Far: $246.00

 

Picture Time

This is the top of the reflector to show how it was built

IMG_2136.jpg

 

This is the inside of the reflector, i put almost 3.5hrs into polishing it to mirror finnish

IMG_2138.jpg

 

Here is the material that I cut for the housing, its just waiting for work the following day so i can weld it together

IMG_2133.jpg

 

And at the end of the "following day, I ground down the welds and made everything smooth, then mounted the reflector inside to test fit.

IMG_2162.jpg

 

The top of the Housing after it was cleaned up

IMG_2163.jpg

 

Light Housing On Tank Test

IMG_2165.jpg

 

This shows the mount for one of the 2 light poles

IMG_2199.jpg

 

The 2 Light poles and Yes they are height adjustable (and my girlie in the background working on wedding favors)

IMG_2200.jpg

 

Yes, The light is hung

IMG_2202.jpg

 

Another Angle

IMG_2203.jpg

 

One from this morning with the light on

IMG_2208.jpg

 

And a little Coral Shot

IMG_2210.jpg

 

 

Things that at this point still need to be done,

Mount and wire LED moonlights

Mount Switch for LEDs

Wire Actinic (Dawn and Dusk Light Only)

Mount and wire Both Fans

Drill Holes for power supply wires

Get Glass for bottom cut and drilled

Take it all apart and get it powder coated flat black

I might Decided to lower the hoops closer to the housing, what do you guys think?

 

SO ANY THOUGHTS AND OR SUGGESTIONS

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