MH lighting question for the pros.

Froc3 · 03-20-2008, 05:54 PM

Why can't people use commercial MH lighting that they would use in a loading bay in a warehouse? They are around $100-$150 as opposed to the 300+ we pay for aquarium lighting. Is it the type of gas found in the lights or is it the kelvin rating difference of the bulb. In theory if you found a 14000K fixture for commercial use this should work for the aquarium right?

Thanks,
Evan.

aquaboy · 03-20-2008, 06:57 PM

i think commercial lighting fixtures are HPS or LPS (High and Low pressure sodium) I know that some are actually halides and all that is required is the proper ballast (M58 and so on...)
and it will work

kerry · 03-23-2008, 10:35 AM

Hi. I was wondering the same thing. I just got a new 75 gallon tank and don't want to spend a ton of money on lighting. Can you use a commercial metal halide fixture for an aquarium? As far as my inexperienced self can tell, the only difference is in the spectrum of the bulbs. So an aquarium bulb may cost more, but doesn't the fixture itself remain the same? Does anyone out there have any experience or insight on this?
I'm also curious about the do it yourself kits. I've seen a couple on the internet...they come with ballast and socket, and you do the wiring yourself. The total cost seems to be around $100. Do they work well? And could a novice with no experience or skills tackle such a project?
Thanks in advance!

aquaboy · 03-23-2008, 10:44 AM

Yes, as long as it uses same ballast, all you would need is a proper kelvin bulb.
Metal Halide Flood Fixtures
These would work, just need proper bulb. im not sure about heat, but in theory it would be fine.

reef_guru · 03-24-2008, 09:27 AM

the way mh bulbs fire is the same throughout. what matters is the bulb

wildreef · 03-29-2008, 01:08 PM

Well i have also looked into this my self' of course not "knowing spectrum values " of the metal halide bulbs or or not certain on kelvin rating' is it really worth the loss /agravation to your reef ?
But im always watching for the same in this question which i think these bulbs/ballests are really rediclouis in price

Crabby Jim · 03-29-2008, 01:46 PM

While the ballasts are the same for the most part the kelvin rating on a standard MH light bulb that would be used in a commercial space or for outdoor lighting is only 6000-6500K which is nowhere near the K rating you are looking for in a reef light. Also the core and coil ballast kits that are used in commercial/industrial lighting is not really the kind of thing you want to mess around with in your home they do catch fire and run very hot and make a lot of noise. The ballast kits that are used on most of the reef MH fixtures are cooler running electronic ballasts that are safely self contained in either the fixture or if remote they are in an aluminum case. I am an electrician and I really wanted to build a light out of commercial lighting parts to save the money . By the time I bought all the parts and built it and bought the proper reef MH lamps 10K-14k or whatever
it was not worth the time and effort. I bought a great combo MH PC moonlight fixture from aquatrader and I am pretty pleased with it so far.

kerry · 03-29-2008, 04:38 PM

funny you say it was not worth the time and effort of doing it yourself. story of my life. i have a tendency to have all these grand ideas to save money. i think i'm so clever, only to wind up spending more than i would have if i had just bought the right thing in the first place like a normal person. not to bash ingenuity, but sometimes it's good to admit that there are some things best left to the pros.

lunatik_69 · 03-29-2008, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

funny you say it was not worth the time and effort of doing it yourself. story of my life. i have a tendency to have all these grand ideas to save money. i think i'm so clever, only to wind up spending more than i would have if i had just bought the right thing in the first place like a normal person. not to bash ingenuity, but sometimes it's good to admit that there are some things best left to the pros.

Been there too my friend, but thats a good thing. At least you have a brain and its working and your trying to save some money by diy. Theres nothing wrong with that.

wildreef · 03-29-2008, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

funny you say it was not worth the time and effort of doing it yourself. story of my life. i have a tendency to have all these grand ideas to save money. i think i'm so clever, only to wind up spending more than i would have if i had just bought the right thing in the first place like a normal person. not to bash ingenuity, but sometimes it's good to admit that there are some things best left to the pros.

I personaly agree , i was looking into making a detronaitor and and thought well these "items" arint that exspensive i'll make my own' .
well after many hours of pondering' and looking at what was availible on the open market' i decided to "buy it" , LOL

simply at the time consumed by driving all over gods creation and then wasting the gas to get all the items in question would far exceed the money spent "just buying one" , but i like making stuff' and being able to beat some rediclouis price .