Another 'Back to Halides' thread...

I may try the Halo mount, it's fairly secure... if the reflector seems too heavy, I'll bend a bit of conduit. Either way, should be fine.

BRS sent me a satisfaction questionnaire after they answered my weight question with '10 lbs'... and they caught me in a bad mood. I'm afraid I kinda let 'em have it ;)

I'll be ordering the new light after the 1st. I'll post a pic :)
 
Greybeard said:
I may try the Halo mount, it's fairly secure... if the reflector seems too heavy, I'll bend a bit of conduit. Either way, should be fine.

BRS sent me a satisfaction questionnaire after they answered my weight question with '10 lbs'... and they caught me in a bad mood. I'm afraid I kinda let 'em have it ;)

I'll be ordering the new light after the 1st. I'll post a pic :)
Click to expand...

Before you order from bulk reef supply Why not give dave at Hamilton technology a call since it's his product. Dave is a rock star when it comes to customer service. Also you should be upset when someone gives you an incorrect answer about a product they sell. I would be annoyed big time. I would rather hear "I don't know" than a nonsense answer just to get rid of me
 
Ok, if anyone is interested, without bulb, and trying to keep the weight of the cord off of the scale, Hamilton's Bimini pendant weighs 2.8lbs on my scale.

And, with a bit if ingenuity, it hangs from the mount intended for the Aquaticlife Halo very well :) Mount constructed of a bit of aluminum flat bar, a couple bits of aluminum tubing for standoffs, and a few M4 stainless cap screws, washers, and nuts. Total cost, about $3. I did alter the reflector slightly, by drilling 2 small holes in the top to attach the mount. Natural aluminum now, I may spray it flat black, eventually.

Man, that's a lot of light:lolspin:

NewLight.jpg
 
greybeard said:
ok, if anyone is interested, without bulb, and trying to keep the weight of the cord off of the scale, hamilton's bimini pendant weighs 2.8lbs on my scale.

And, with a bit if ingenuity, it hangs from the mount intended for the aquaticlife halo very well :) mount constructed of a bit of aluminum flat bar, a couple bits of aluminum tubing for standoffs, and a few m4 stainless cap screws, washers, and nuts. Total cost, about $3. I did alter the reflector slightly, by drilling 2 small holes in the top to attach the mount. Natural aluminum now, i may spray it flat black, eventually.

Man, that's a lot of light:lolspin:

newlight.jpg
Click to expand...

wowie
 
Zacktosterone said:
Oh come on lol it's not a swim suit comp. When you get it under control let us know
Click to expand...

As an old greybearded fatman, and father of 4 daughters, swim suit competitions are far, far from my frame of reference ;) I believe I stuck my dirty mitts in there after working in my gun room without washing. Whatever it is, it's killed nearly all of my corals in just over a week, and that's with 2x 10% and 1x 30% water changes. Makes my stomach upset to talk about it right now.

GQuinn said:
How do you like the color of the Hamilton 14k on your tank?
Click to expand...

Love it. A bit whiter than I had my Halo adjusted, but crisp and bright.

gus6464 said:
The Bimini is DE or does it come in a Mogul version too?
Click to expand...

Nope. DE only. Honestly I much prefer DE bulbs. You _know_ that the light source is in the center of the bulb, and it's _always_ the same size, so you're much less likely to have problems centering the light source in the reflector. Also, with the ceramic ends, it's easy to replace bulbs without getting finger oils all over them, and the reflectors are typically more compact. I had 3x 400w Mogul base halides at one point, and I've always preferred the DE package.
 
BOBBY said:
Greybeard, are you using the/a magnetic ballast or electronic? I'm trying to figure out what Hamilton recommends for that particular bulb.
Click to expand...

250w Hamilton adjustable electronic.

If you price this unit at Hamilton, you've got your choice of this ballast, or their HQI magnetic M80. I don't have the room, and don't want to deal with the heat (or humm) of a magnetic ballast, and since Hamilton offers this ballast with this reflector and bulb as a package on their website, I figured it'd be OK.

Yes, I know, you're _supposed_ to use an M80 HQI ballast for this bulb. Longer bulb life, faster startups, a bit more power to the bulb... yeah, that's all true. At the same time, in a marine aquaria environment, we're going to be replacing the bulb long before any shortened life from the wrong ballast is going to affect it, simply from color fade.

Anybody that's been around this hobby for a while is going to agree... with the price of bulbs these days, replacing one is much less of a problem. I can remember spending over $100 each for the Ushio 10K 400w bulbs I used at one time.:eek2:
 
Greybeard said:
250w Hamilton adjustable electronic.

If you price this unit at Hamilton, you've got your choice of this ballast, or their HQI magnetic M80. I don't have the room, and don't want to deal with the heat (or humm) of a magnetic ballast, and since Hamilton offers this ballast with this reflector and bulb as a package on their website, I figured it'd be OK.

Yes, I know, you're _supposed_ to use an M80 HQI ballast for this bulb. Longer bulb life, faster startups, a bit more power to the bulb... yeah, that's all true. At the same time, in a marine aquaria environment, we're going to be replacing the bulb long before any shortened life from the wrong ballast is going to affect it, simply from color fade.

Anybody that's been around this hobby for a while is going to agree... with the price of bulbs these days, replacing one is much less of a problem. I can remember spending over $100 each for the Ushio 10K 400w bulbs I used at one time.:eek2:
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply! I've read a ton on the M80 ballasts, and that they are typically the most ideal for the majority of bulbs, but like you, I think an electronic ballast would best for me.

I know we're in the middle of winter right now, so it's probably not a huge factor, but any concerns about heat?
 
BOBBY said:
...any concerns about heat?
Click to expand...

Concerns? Sure. Last system I had running halides, I had to buy a chiller.

That system was in-wall, fully enclosed (excepting the front and back glass), and was running 3x 400w halides.

This is a single 250w, hanging over an open top tank, in an open room, with a high ceiling, in a home that is _always_ climate controlled... I expect that this is going to add some heat. How much? Don't know yet. Right now, the cabinet where the sump and pumps are is sealed. The pump keeps it fairly warm down there. My first move, and I'm expecting I'll need it, is going to be to add an exhaust fan to the cabinet. After that, if it's still a problem, I'll put a fan on the tank itself, likely one of those Aquawind things that blows right over the surface.

The fans wouldn't be a big deal. Since I rely on Kalkwasser, a fairly high evaporation rate isn't necessarily a bad thing.

And if neither of those are good enough? Well, the Iceprobe, or a small chiller in the crawlspace under the house, which would severely suck to install. I sincerely hope it doesn't get to that point. Ask me again in a few days :)
 
Just a quick update on the heat issue, halide running noon to nine. Temp at noon, 80f. Temp at 9pm, 80f. With the open design, lots of airflow, light doesn't appear to be affecting water temperature at all.

Yeah!

Oh, and yes, it's cold outside, very dry in the house, and my furnace is set at 70f. Might it be more of an issue when it's hot and humid? Sure, but I'm at least confident that a fan will take care of it now.
 
Yeah that's what I thought. Even though it said on the warnings to fan cool It it's meant to be air cooled. I talked to dave about it. Nice light, good price, lots of light, very effective
 
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