Halo_003 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 My fans are quiet. But I'm selling mine locally, my mother shot down the idea of hanging it from the ceiling, can't retro it on the stand either and my tank is only a 20L so I can't mount it directly. Would have been nice if she had told me this before I dropped $110 on ATI bulbs for it. /rage Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 With this fixture I would do Luxeon K royal blue LEDs only for PAR and then use the T5 for color. I was thinking Luxeon M myself. The minnieWWW reflectors fit the current frame perfectly. http://smg.photobucket.com/user/misogi/media/20141122_012322_zpsxnme7qtn.jpg.html'> http://smg.photobucket.com/user/misogi/media/20141122_012341_zpsl5qt8j8y.jpg.html'> http://smg.photobucket.com/user/misogi/media/20141122_012354_zpsbk6cj0vt.jpg.html'> http://smg.photobucket.com/user/misogi/media/20141122_012748_zpshe8enfcq.jpg.html'> My fans are quiet. But I'm selling mine locally, my mother shot down the idea of hanging it from the ceiling, can't retro it on the stand either and my tank is only a 20L so I can't mount it directly. Would have been nice if she had told me this before I dropped $110 on ATI bulbs for it. /rage Can't setup some simple conduit hanger? Link to comment
gus6464 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I was thinking Luxeon M myself. The minnieWWW reflectors fit the current frame perfectly. Can't setup some simple conduit hanger? That's a perfect fit but reflectors are not as useful if you are only hanging 2ft high. Is that the 8x24 or 8x36? Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 8x24 Still don't know what I'm going to hang this over. I'm not worried about the usefulness if the reflectors so much as maintaining as much if a clean look as possible. Link to comment
DeeBee Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Anyone else's fans super loud? got mine in today. Might just replace them. I got my 4x36" a few days ago and agree that the fans are fairly loud. Louder than my wife would ever put up with in the living room. I'm thinking about replacing mine with the model that gus6464 suggested earlier in this thread: http://www.amazon.co...rds=noctua 60mm Link to comment
gus6464 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I got my 4x36" a few days ago and agree that the fans are fairly loud. Louder than my wife would ever put up with in the living room. I'm thinking about replacing mine with the model that gus6464 suggested earlier in this thread: http://www.amazon.co...rds=noctua 60mm I will open my light tomorrow and check to make sure that the fan is actually a 60mm and not a 40mm. Link to comment
markalot Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I hate to be a downer, but with that poor ventilation over the t5's what you saved on the fixture you'll pay for in bulbs as they lose PAR and quality quicker. It's not that hard to make a good T5 fixture, it's disappointing how many don't do it. Of course compared to the crazy price of the ATI hybrid I guess this is a steal. Link to comment
Arce Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I hate to be a downer, but with that poor ventilation over the t5's what you saved on the fixture you'll pay for in bulbs as they lose PAR and quality quicker. It's not that hard to make a good T5 fixture, it's disappointing how many don't do it. Of course compared to the crazy price of the ATI hybrid I guess this is a steal. Just gotta switch out the fans. Link to comment
Halo_003 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Can't setup some simple conduit hanger? Already tried but the stand is like pressboard and won't stay together with the weight on the back. I'm not terribly worried. Instead I'll just get a quad from Dave and call it a day. Link to comment
DeeBee Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I will open my light tomorrow and check to make sure that the fan is actually a 60mm and not a 40mm. Looks like it's a 40mm. Link to comment
xlzerolx Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Just gotta switch out the fans. I hate to be a downer, but with that poor ventilation over the t5's what you saved on the fixture you'll pay for in bulbs as they lose PAR and quality quicker. It's not that hard to make a good T5 fixture, it's disappointing how many don't do it. Of course compared to the crazy price of the ATI hybrid I guess this is a steal. I agree with Mark. was going to buy this too, but the bulbs aren't cooled at all by the fans. I asked about it earlier in this thread. Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 Based on simple physics the bulbs certainly are getting some cooling. Just because the fan isn't blowing directly on them doesn't mean they won't get the benefits of the cool air the fans are constantly blowing in. A far more realistic issue for the bulbs longevity is the workhorse ballasts are instant start ballasts. Link to comment
gus6464 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 ATI units barely cool the bulbs themselves. The fans are there for the ballasts. T5 has never needed active cooling and never will. Based on simple physics the bulbs certainly are getting some cooling. Just because the fan isn't blowing directly on them doesn't mean they won't get the benefits of the cool air the fans are constantly blowing in.A far more realistic issue for the bulbs longevity is the workhorse ballasts are instant start ballasts. I have some HEP programmed start ballasts. I will see if I can shove them in there to replace the workhorse ones. Since you can get a pair for $50 on ebay I would say it's a worthwhile upgrade. The pot for the LED also work with my manual PWM dimmer as well. I priced it out and ~$250 gets you tons of power from Luxeon K RB one channel with the stock pot dimming and fan upgrade. Use the same heatsink as well. Link to comment
Arce Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I've had my unit running for a couple hours, 4 bulbs on with the leds on. Its barely even warm, of course its giving off some heat but the fans are keeping it relatively cool. Only major issue with the fans is their a bit loud. Other than that I'm happy. Whats the problem with the ballasts? Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I have some HEP programmed start ballasts. I will see if I can shove them in there to replace the workhorse ones. Since you can get a pair for $50 on ebay I would say it's a worthwhile upgrade. The pot for the LED also work with my manual PWM dimmer as well. I priced it out and ~$250 gets you tons of power from Luxeon K RB one channel with the stock pot dimming and fan upgrade. Use the same heatsink as well. You shouldn't have any trouble fitting the heps in. Might even take up less space than the stock ones. I've had my unit running for a couple hours, 4 bulbs on with the leds on. Its barely even warm, of course its giving off some heat but the fans are keeping it relatively cool. Only major issue with the fans is their a bit loud. Other than that I'm happy. Whats the problem with the ballasts? http://gasserbush.com/storage/pdfs/Ballasts-Advance.pdf'>http://gasserbush.com/storage/pdfs/Ballasts-Advance.pdf here's a little reading material on ballasts. Basically the ballasts obliterate the cathodes of the lamps by causing emmisive sputtering which is what causes the blackening on the ends of the bulbs. Link to comment
cody6766 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 So, has anyone considered doing more surgery on one of these? I'm wondering if I could pull the LEDs and the inner 2 reflectors (and bulbs if I must) and dropping in 2 Kessil 350s. This would be in the 8x 60" light over a 120g. I'm guessing ballasts will be in the way and cutting metal would be required. The Kessils are 4" in diameter on the outside and the lens is 2" in diameter. I've been looking for a way to add some T5s for color supplement and this would fit the price point. Unfortnately, there isn't an 8 bulb 36" or 48" option. Link to comment
Arce Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 So how long would the bulbs of this fixture last with these ballasts? Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 So how long would the bulbs of this fixture last with these ballasts? A good six months or so. Not really much different than most other fixtures. Swapping the ballasts out for some programmed start ones can extend lamp longevity though mostreading material I've got my hands on regarding t5 lamps and reefing gives a similar timeline for replacement due to spectral shift anyways. Truth be told I'm more accustomed to leds than t5s though. I still don't know what bulb combos I'm going to put in this beast. Link to comment
Arce Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 A good six months or so. Not really much different than most other fixtures. Swapping the ballasts out for some programmed start ones can extend lamp longevity though mostreading material I've got my hands on regarding t5 lamps and reefing gives a similar timeline for replacement due to spectral shift anyways. Truth be told I'm more accustomed to leds than t5s though. I still don't know what bulb combos I'm going to put in this beast. So despite it being a different type of ballasts, the change time is still pretty much the same? Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Yes and no. Lamps run for less time daily would have a significantly longer lifespan on programmed start ballasts than instant start ones. Lamps run for long periods of time on the other hand would be about the same. say with the 6 lamp fixture you use 12-8-4 as your used hours for each channel. The instant start will do the same damage to the cathodes regardless of run time so the all get replaced around the same time. On a programmed start ballast the second and third channel can squeeze more lifetime use out of the lamps since the ballast will be gentler on the cathodes. That's the theory at least. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 T5 has never needed active cooling and never will. This is in NO way correct. The optimum temperature for a T5HO lamp is 35°C. Above or below this you sacrifice output and longevity, both of which are issues for lighting reef tanks. If the ballasts in these fixtures are Fulham Workhorse, do yourself a favor and THROW THEM AWAY. As stated above, instant start ballasts are not made to light T5HO lamps and reduce their lifespan. In addition, they have no end of life protection, which can cause the lamp to crack or explode. Link to comment
Arce Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 This is in NO way correct. The optimum temperature for a T5HO lamp is 35°C. Above or below this you sacrifice output and longevity, both of which are issues for lighting reef tanks. If the ballasts in these fixtures are Fulham Workhorse, do yourself a favor and THROW THEM AWAY. As stated above, instant start ballasts are not made to light T5HO lamps and reduce their lifespan. In addition, they have no end of life protection, which can cause the lamp to crack or explode. Well wish i knew of this before hand lol. Now im getting paranoid about it. What should they be switched out with? Link to comment
Horerczy Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 Hep ballasts. Gus has a link to some cheap ones somewhere in this thread i think. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 $25 shipped for 24w and 39w, two lamps: http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-HEP-Group-Electronic-Ballast-EVG-SI218-40-UNI-for-T8-Lamps-18-to-40-watt/201219787477?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D25216%26meid%3Dbcec20b20a2249d281b02367f7df9995%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D10628%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D361096504346 Link to comment
Arce Posted November 23, 2014 Share Posted November 23, 2014 $25 shipped for 24w and 39w, two lamps: http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-HEP-Group-Electronic-Ballast-EVG-SI218-40-UNI-for-T8-Lamps-18-to-40-watt/201219787477?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D25216%26meid%3Dbcec20b20a2249d281b02367f7df9995%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D10628%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D361096504346 Thanks for the link and info.. How hard is it to switch them out? Would those even fit? They look rather long. Link to comment
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