dumb noob question about setting up VHO's

PapaKlix

New member
as a supplement for my 2x250W MH on my 80 gal reef-to-be, i wanted to add 2 or 3 VHO's to my hood that i am building. i have an icecap 660 in transit to me, can someone confirm that all i need is a set of these (plus the acrylic mounts and bulbs of course) and some basic wiring (i.e. 16 ga wire through a switch)?



sorry for the noobishness, it's just been a long time since i built a lighting hood.
 
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The items depicted in your photo are not VHO, they are T5 endcaps. They may be fitted with T5HO lamps but a VHO bulb is much larger in diameter and will not fit into those endcaps. IMO T5s are preferable but I've seen some folks swear that VHO actinics provide more 'pop' to the colours of their corals.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14828113#post14828113 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Mike31154
The items depicted in your photo are not VHO, they are T5 endcaps. They may be fitted with T5HO lamps but a VHO bulb is much larger in diameter and will not fit into those endcaps. IMO T5s are preferable but I've seen some folks swear that VHO actinics provide more 'pop' to the colours of their corals.

just the kind of info i needed, i meant t5's.

thanks for the reply.
 
if your going to be running t-5's, the only thing I see missing from your list is individual reflectors. They make the reflectors that just clip onto the bulb itself. And with running the icecap 660, your t-5's will be "overdriven" making them t-5 VHO (variable high output) in other words a 4' 54 watt bulb will be running I belive 85 watts
 
Make sure the 660 includes the actual wiring harness for the 660. They are pricey if it didn't come with it, but you're not going to want to wire it yourself without the harness!

And if you haven't found it yet, here is IceCap's wiring guide:
http://www.icecapinc.com/01/document2.pdf

And +1 on the reflectors. Icecap makes some nice looking clip on t5s I was leaning towards on my new setup.
 
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