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Buy three of the 120w LED fuxtures off ebay and be done with it.

 

[M I N I O N]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/120-Watt-Aquarium-Coral-Reef-LED-Grow-Light-120W-/140630708641?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20be3e51a1#ht_3543wt_912

 

[M I N I O N]

Hellen, it's really quite simple. LED stands for light emitting diode. A diode is a one-way electrical valve only allowing current to flow in one direction meaning that polarity is important; therefore, LED bulbs run on DC voltage only. Your average 3w LED runs at about 3.5 volts. You could use just about any voltage DC transformer or battery above 3.5 volts depending on the configuration of your wiring as long as you match the voltage of the independent runs in series to the voltage of the transformer and add equal runs in parallel (maximum wattage dependent of course).

LED lights are efficient because they do not simply heat a filament (resistance in the circuit) to a point where it glows. This is wasteful because it generates a lot of heat in the process. LEDs work through electroluminescence. When an electron passes through the semiconductor, they drop into a lower energy level and release a photon of light. The wavelength (color) of light depends on the characteristics of the semiconductor medium and the voltage, amperage or duty cycle (in the case of control via pulse width modulation).

 

[M I N I O N]

That may work...three quick questions:

1. Can I put them on timers so the blues come on and go off separate from the whites?
2. Do I need new ballasts? I have two ballasts today for my 4 VHO bulbs, but may need three if I get three of them?
3. Can I hang these so they will sit within the canopy I have (tops of the canopy come off) to eliminate some of the glow?

They come with two plugs to independently control whites and blues on a timer. The transformers are built into these units so you need nothing from your old lights. The ballasts for fluorescent lights are totally different than the transformers for LED anyway as they use A/C rather than DC voltage to light the bulbs. Hanging these in the canopy is fine. LED bulbs have lenses to project the light only in the direction which you want rather than radiating it 360 degrees. I do not use a canopy with my lights and there is no light projected on the floor and very little on the wall behind the tank (the light is closer to the wall than it is the floor).

This is a 90 gallon tank local to me which is lit by two of those fixtures:

I use a Chinese fixture but it is a different one. I also built 15w PAR38 LED accent lights which you can find a link to the DIY for in my signature. The white and blue LEDs look really good but after a while I personally missed the purple light from the actinic bulbs.