Sponsor Our Community
Go Back   The Reef Tank > Equipment / Methodology related Forums > DIY Forum
Have a question? It's Free!

DIY Forum Share those Do-It-Yourself projects and money saving tips with us here.


Registered Members don't see these ads. Register now it's free!

Reply
 
Thread Tools
Old 09-28-2004, 11:51 AM   #1
nerdo
Plankton
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Fresno, California
Posts: 20

MH ballast setup questions?


A friend of mine found an electronic MH ballast for one 175w bulb made be sylvania for 62 bucks and I was wondering if there is any difference between something like that and the Icecaps? Can I use it? I hate to spend over 150 bucks for a stupid ballast. And where is the cheapest place to get a reflector and mogul setup for 1x175w? I heard somebody mention buying one of those garage flood lights and gutting it for the internal stuff...anybody done this before? I just can't see spending 100's of dollars to run one 175 watter for my 29gallon. Not trying to be ghetto but effecient! Thanks...Kevin
Registered Members don't see these ads. Register now it's free!
nerdo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2004, 11:57 AM   #2
AnnArborBuck
squid
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Toledo, OH
Posts: 7
The sylvania ballast can probably only fire specific bulbs, where as the icecap can fire just about anything (pulse or probe). I am not the expert on this so don't take my advice.


As far as cheap moguls and what not, if you are not affraid of used stuff you can try http://www.policeauctions.com or http://www.stealitback.com . The same type of equipment we use for our tanks are used for growing certain illegal plants that are confiscated during drug raids.
AnnArborBuck is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2004, 01:40 PM   #3
Geoff
Reefless Reefer
 
Geoff's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Durham, NC
Posts: 20,559
Images: 167
what AnnArborBuck said.

when one of my 400w electronic ballasts went out on my i happened on 400w ballast at HD for $29! this was obviously a tar ballast, but since it is in my crawlspace i did not care how warm it would get. this was a streetlight that was designed to be mounted on the side of a building. it included a cast metal case, lense, bulb, and ballasts. i only used the case and the ballast.

as long as you stick with american bulbs you will be fine. i have used iwasaki's (these fire on both types of ballasts, Coralvue's, and my favorite XM 10K's with this ballast. have not had any problems.

G~
__________________
Think Tanker
Friends Don't Let Friends Use Refugiums!
Reef Knowledge Impaired
"J" crowd member.
My Build Thread
Geoff is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2004, 02:22 PM   #4
nerdo
Plankton
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Fresno, California
Posts: 20
which brands of bulbs specifically should I look for?
nerdo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2004, 02:37 PM   #5
Geoff
Reefless Reefer
 
Geoff's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Durham, NC
Posts: 20,559
Images: 167
Quote:
Originally Posted by nerdo
which brands of bulbs specifically should I look for?
i listed 2 of the most common bulbs out there. Coralvues are fairly new, and i was not happy with their reliability. they are known for this.

G~
__________________
Think Tanker
Friends Don't Let Friends Use Refugiums!
Reef Knowledge Impaired
"J" crowd member.
My Build Thread
Geoff is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2004, 07:07 PM   #6
nerdo
Plankton
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Fresno, California
Posts: 20
Thanks a lot for your help...Kevin
nerdo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-28-2004, 11:23 PM   #7
AnemicOak
Overthinks Everything
 
AnemicOak's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Crystal, MN
Posts: 867
Images: 11
Quote:
Originally Posted by nerdo
I hate to spend over 150 bucks for a stupid ballast.
A 175W IceCap ballast is right around $100, not as cheap as the alternative you found, but not as bad as $150.
__________________
~Brian
AnemicOak is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-29-2004, 04:33 AM   #8
wanareef
Pretty In Pink
 
wanareef's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: portland or
Posts: 3,262
Images: 29
Reviews: 6
If I were you, I'd spend the $$ up front to get an electronic ballast.

1. These use a little less electricity, electronic
2. Will fire any bulb
3. Eaiser to re-sell when you need too.
4. When changing bulbs - no need to change the ballast
5. Upgradeable - for that next bigger tank (talking about 250w ballast)

just my .002
wanareef is offline   Reply With Quote
Comparison Shopping
Maxi-Jet 1100 Utility Pump

As low as $34

at 14 sellers

Eheim Pro Filter External Canister Aquarium Filter 2229

As low as $250

at 10 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

pH and CO2 Controller with Select Set Point

As low as $117

at 3 sellers

Allen's (Neon) Damselfish

As low as $9

at 5 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

Danner Coarse/Carbon 2 PK for 190 Kit 02019

As low as $6

at 20 sellers

South Ocean Five 4 x 12 Filter Bag

As low as $2

at 9 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

TetraPond Desafin 8.4oz treats all diseases

As low as $7

at 16 sellers

Kent Marine AquaDose 1400 ml

As low as $20

at 9 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

Python Part - Pump

As low as $4

at 10 sellers

Taam Rio Polario Turbine 15ML Dual Action Programmable Aqua Pump Powerhead

As low as $190

at 8 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

Brightwell Aquatics Erase-CL Water Conditioner 250 ml

As low as $5

at 9 sellers

Eheim Filter Cartridge for 2007 2 pcs

As low as $7

at 3 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

Precision Marine Redline 125 Protein Skimmer

As low as $220

at 4 sellers

Aquarium Pharmaceuticals pH Test & Adjuster Kit

As low as $6

at 4 sellers

Members with more than 50 posts don't see this bar

Reply
 
Quick Reply
Reply:
Image Verification
Please enter the six letters or digits that appear in the image opposite.





Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may post new threads
You may post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On

Sitemap:1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196
Sponsor Our Community

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:02 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.0
Copyright ©2000 - 2009, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Our lawyer tells us that, by pressing the "New Thread" or "New Reply" button, you acknowledge that the opinions and information expressed in your article are yours alone and not those of thereeftank.com, dba The Reef Tank. Further, you agree to indemnify The Reef Tank, its moderators, administrators and agents from any and all liability which may arise as a result of your article. (C)opyright 2006 TheReefTank.com
 
close
Sign up for free and join one of the largest communities of saltwater aquarists!
Our members will be glad to help you with anything you need!

Join over 30,000 TRT members!

Email

Email Confirm Email
Username
Password Confirm Password

I agree to the website rules