Need MH Lighting?

[proraptor]

Im almost positive the halogen lights already come with a ballast...Is your setup still working?

[Perpetual98]

When I did a Regent retro a while ago, there was no ballast, at least in the 300W halogen model that I used. It was straight wires that you plugged into the wall 120V.

 

Eric

[ashburn]

get those higher rated watt ones

[yoshiod9]

until i see pictures of this actually working, i'm a total skeptic. i know that you can run mh bulbs off of hps ballasts(i've done it) but as far as i know, halogen never has used ballasts.

[Kogut]

Count me in w/ the rest of the skeptics. I'll stick to my MH fixture, thx. :

[mattgreene22]

dweakl01 - please post some pics/specs ...or a at least a response. Either we all want to do what you did...or we need to know our skepticism is appropriate since it didn't work out.

[dweakl01]

Alright skeptics, you wre right. The light fores, but nearly as bright as it should be. When plugged in to an M81 ballast it works fine. So, its still not a bad deal for a cheap pendant.

[ashburn]

but mh housing at that price, it's unbeatable

[tnguy86]

i dont' get it...so did you use a ballast or not??

[ashburn]

it didnt last

[oogie]

Originally posted by dweakl01

Alright skeptics, you wre right. The light fores, but nearly as bright as it should be.

 

I don't believe this either.

[Kogut]

Oogie, I'm w/ you. I think it would start an exponential downhill slide.... : 1 day isn't enough to declare that us skeptics are wrong.

[dweakl01]

Originally posted by Kogut

Oogie, I'm w/ you. I think it would start an exponential downhill slide.... : 1 day isn't enough to declare that us skeptics are wrong.

 

Kogut,

The skeptics were RIGHT, not wrong.

[mattgreene22]

hey...well at least you found a cheap pendant. maybe you should head back to home depot and check some of the HPS lights...I hear they come with ballasts that will fire MH. Someone correct me if I remember incorrectly.

 

Hmmmm...scavage a ballast an buy a $10 pendant...that could still be done cheaply.

[dweakl01]

mattgreene22,

Maybe I'll look into that. You have a link to a thread about it? But yes, the pendant is cheap and fast.

[oogie]

i would imagine if light fires at all, prolly like for split-sec when bulb is destroyed by raw electricity of household current. But then I don't even think this is so.

 

But, I think it WOULD make a cool pendent casing and still cheap!!!

[mattgreene22]

Regarding finding a ballast...I think there is some useful info here...though I haven't combed through it yet.

 

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...threadid=624185

[dweakl01]

Thanks mattgreene22. I had to bum a ballast from a guy here at work to try it out.

[MadHatter]

hmmm i think the article on AA is mixing up a few things. they talk about using lighting for horticulure.. thoughs lights are ment to be probably the same as the normal ones you would use on a reef. and well the prices are almost exactly the same.

100-300. now their talking of buy one from homedepot... homedepot doesn't sell GROW lights for HORTICULTURE. they sell flood lights... so there is a little problem with that article ..

[mattgreene22]

i haven't re-read it...but the main difference in MH for flood-lights, plants, and reefs...is the choice of bulbs. Other than that...there isn't much of difference and they can be used somewhat interchangeably across applications. That's why people often experiment with different fixtures built for other applications in order to find cheaper substitutes. You can take a MH flood light and use it over your reef...you'd just have to buy a more appropriate bulb and deal with the aesthetic and "wet-application" issues I think. Plenty of people have covnerted the Regent 70w MH flood lights for their nano tanks.

[oogie]

Originally posted by mattgreene22

i haven't re-read it...but the main difference in MH for flood-lights, plants, and reefs...is the choice of bulbs.  Other than that...there isn't much of difference and they can be used somewhat interchangeably across applications.  That's why people often experiment with different fixtures built for other applications in order to find cheaper substitutes.  You can take a MH flood light and use it over your reef...you'd just have to buy a more appropriate bulb and deal with the aesthetic and "wet-application" issues I think.  Plenty of people have covnerted the Regent 70w MH flood lights for their nano tanks.

 

Good point. But buying halogen light is where everything went wrong.

[LampDr.]

The halogen lights do not use ballast. They run of 120v.

A metal halide hqi lamp will not work in your wall socket.

It might fire but it is a big fire hazard. Plus it will probably be very dim. The ballast actually increases the electricity on the metal halide it does not decrease it...

[dweakl01]

I realize that. That's why it works with the ballast. Its not a halogen light anymore anyway. Only a halogen pendant. The socket and bulb have been changed, but thanks.

[LampDr.]

Well, in that case yes. People have been doing this for a while. Basically its the same as the regent set ups that people are doing.

Do you have any heat issues with the fixture getting to hot.

[dweakl01]

It does get very hot when its running, but I don't plan on holding it, so I should be safe. I'm planning on suspending it. Once I get a ballast of my own and hang it, I'll post some more pics.