Anyone Thinking of Dumping LEDS and going back to Halides

[meshwheel]

I have to agree here. If there's saltwater damage on the light its YOUR FAULT! And as a business owner, I would require you to pay for damages. Just as Illumina has explained to you.
You have to set things up so they do not get water on them. Plain and simple! Wow! Obviously, you have no GFI on or in the wall either. As the light would have shut down long ago when getting wet. I would recommend installing one right away, they can save a life and prevent fires as well..........

 

[ReefTankHunter]

Just thought i would answer the thread question.
No.My hydra's are doing just fine.

 

[grigsy]

I switched out a 250 watt metal halide for an AI Sol. After 6 months I switched back to my halides.

Wasn't even a comparison. My coral growth was so much better under the metal halides.

To each his own - personally, I prefer using Metal Halides or T5 HO to LEDs any day.

 

[Uncle Salty 05]

I am confused, how is salt water damage on a cord the manufacturers fault?

Maybe there is something I am not understanding here. How do you even get salt water to drip down a light cord? I had tanks for 30++ years and this has never happened to me. None of the parts should be in contact with water.

After finally actually speaking to someone the problem is in the plug where the fixture and drivers connect. This I understand and will know how to prevent when I get the light back.
On a 5' Illimuna there is a four pronged plug similar to what hangs from the back of a truck for a trailer. This plug has a cheesey rubber boot covering it that does not provide adequate protection in the environment under the stand of a reef tank with a skimmer running and the fan from the return pump moving the air around.
When I get the light back the connection will either be sealed with silicone or maybe just duct tape in order to keep it dry. The boot the manufacturer provides in completely inadequate.

 

[d2mini]

When I get the light back the connection will either be sealed with silicone or maybe just duct tape in order to keep it dry. The boot the manufacturer provides in completely inadequate.

Go with the silicone. DT doesn't hold up to humidity and will unravel.

 

[power boat jim]

After finally actually speaking to someone the problem is in the plug where the fixture and drivers connect. When I get the light back the connection will either be sealed with silicone or maybe just duct tape in order to keep it dry. The boot the manufacturer provides in completely inadequate.

My electrical connections in the basement never get wet but have shown alot of corrosion also. I have to replace the outlets around the sump from time to time. They get that way from the presence of salt and moisture in the air. The corrosion then could cause a change in the voltage being drawn through the system. Metal doesnt have to get wet to corrode.

 

[d2mini]

It's the humidity.
I have 150 gallons of open water in my garage. Until i got a dehumidifier, any tools that I left out on my workbench quickly rusted over. Doesn't take much.
A small closed environment like under a stand can definitely do it.

I agree that the manufacturer should have though about this when designing the connection.

 

[incapearl]

I have a 135 gal with 3 250W MH and 4 T5 54W supplement. Looks awesome and have no plan on switching to LEDs.

 

[Uncle Salty 05]

Go with the silicone. DT doesn't hold up to humidity and will unravel.

That is the way I was leaning for that reason.
I was thinking of putting Vaseline on the connectors as well.

 

[jda]

If you must, use electric grease.

 

[Uncle Salty 05]

My electrical connections in the basement never get wet but have shown alot of corrosion also. I have to replace the outlets around the sump from time to time. They get that way from the presence of salt and moisture in the air. The corrosion then could cause a change in the voltage being drawn through the system. Metal doesnt have to get wet to corrode.

That was exactly the problem. The light was misbehaving due to uneven power distribution.
None of my equipment ever gets wet, but under my stand is very humid. I suspect everyone's is.

 

[Uncle Salty 05]

If you must, use electric grease.

I believe I must.

I didn't know there was such a thing, but a quick search brought up lots of options. I would think the stuff in a tube would be easier to put where you want it than the aerosol.

 

[TropTrea]

I have a 135 gal with 3 250W MH and 4 T5 54W supplement. Looks awesome and have no plan on switching to LEDs.

You will when you cannot get replacement bulbs. As more and more people are switching away from MH's the demand is reducing. As the demand goes down the cost of production skyrockets as it is much more economical to make 10,000 of a bulb compared to making 500 of them. As price skyrockets more people will switch till it will be unfeasible to make them in the special runs they now make them for the aquarium industry.

Initialy you will see higher prices and less selection on the MH's then you will see various brand names slowly dropping them. It is the same as what happened to the 55 Watt compact tubes. A year after they were proven you could select from over 50 different manufacturers and wave lengths. Now there are only about a dozen choices and very few of those are reef applicable.

Even look at the HOT-5's today. 8 years ago GE alone offered over 30 different K temp bulbs in every wattage. Now they are down to less than a dozen dozen different K temps, because sales dropped off on so many of the other offerings.

 

[Uncle Salty 05]

I wouldn't worry too much about where your next MH bulb is coming from YET.
The demand is still there, this thread is evidence of that.
One day in the not too distant future that may not be the case though.

 

[TropTrea]

My electrical connections in the basement never get wet but have shown alot of corrosion also. I have to replace the outlets around the sump from time to time. They get that way from the presence of salt and moisture in the air. The corrosion then could cause a change in the voltage being drawn through the system. Metal doesn't have to get wet to corrode.

I have seen this happen more than once and have known of people with mufti tanks that got out of reef keeping simply for this reason. I personally still have about 400 gallons of reefs in my basement plus 200 gallons upstairs and had to replace my furnace 6 years ago because of the corrosion caused by the salt in the air. Presently I'm cutting back on my reef tanks only because I do not want to spend that kind of money every 8 years.

As far as the electrical outlets are concerned they are copper. Put a piece of copper into a salt water bowl for a few days and you will be surprised at the results. Yes there are several protective greases to help reduce this but if they also create there own sets of issues if your constantly moving plugs around.

Thgere are multiple factors involved here. Our is a newer house that is more air tight than some of the older houses. When we had experts look into the isue they recommended we switch from standard furnaces to special air exchanger units. These that the fresh air from outside heat or cool it then circulate it while at the same time pump the old air out of the house rather than recirculate it. cost quotes were 3 times that of a standard furnace plus the efficiency would be decreased considerably. Older houses not built as energy efficient may no have as much of an issue with this.

 

[alton]

TropTrea that would seem correct, but what we are seeing in my industry is Fluorescent lamps being made better so now we have 30,000 hours of lamp life guaranteed with certain ballast. Metal Halide is coming up to 20,000 hours with pulse start ballast. Lamp companies are not going away just getting more competitive with LEDS. Which is good for everyone

 

[jda]

What happens when Keanu Reeves and the aliens come to protect our planet and stop all electrical consumption and we have to get gerbils turning on wheels to provide power for our reefs? Wait... nevermind... this is about the time that MH and specialty fluorescent bulbs will stop being made if things continue like the have. Jeremy from PM, the aquamedic guys, Marine Depot and every vendor will tell you that MH demand has never been higher than 2013.

If LED ever do put other types of light out of business, then good. ...but they probably have a farther distance to go than where they have came from. I think that a 90/10 rule applies here, or maybe 80/20, but you get the idea.

I wish more people were selling the MH gear - I got a lot of good stuff for CHEAP 3-4 years ago. It is not happening anymore. Quality used MH gear is back up to where it was before. The cheap stuff is still terrible, though.

 

[jfuka78]

Powerboat Jim what is happening with your tank?

 

[AcroporAddict]

Powerboat Jim what is happening with your tank?

See post #2109.

 

[power boat jim]

See post #2109.

Thanks, The only other change in the last few days, I have noticed that my pink bagmani ( I know Its spelled incorrectly) has faded to a light pink. I dont know if its just changing color due to the MH or if its getting too much light now. It still has good polyp extension though.