Halide Q & A

[TylerHaworth]

Thanks for the input Stanc!

 

[undeadmoto]

I am going to be running 2 250w MH with 4 54w T5's. These will be over a 75g tank and I am wondering what kind of acclimation i will need to do with the corals to get the used to the MH's?

 

[JakeK]

DIY Radium Set Up

DIY Radium Set Up

I just posted a question on what size ATI Sunpower to look at for my tank that I am receiving for free, and I am also considering a DIY Radium set up.

The tank dimensions are 36 x 30 x 20 or thereabouts. I don't actually have the tank in my possession yet. It's a 93 gallon tank that is definitely 36" long.

I have a budget of $800 and that is already a stretch for me.

Here are my questions. Could I run a 250W radium using a Lumen Bright Mini Pendant reflector over the center point of the tank, or would I need 2?

Secondly, I don't really see MH ballasts for sale much anymore, certainly not the M80 HQI that is supposed to be the most ideal at driving the Radium. Could I use an e-ballast and if so, where can I buy one that will work with the Radium and get it as close the color I could get with the M80?

Thank you for the help!

 

[Scubareefman]

I just posted a question on what size ATI Sunpower to look at for my tank that I am receiving for free, and I am also considering a DIY Radium set up.

The tank dimensions are 36 x 30 x 20 or thereabouts. I don't actually have the tank in my possession yet. It's a 93 gallon tank that is definitely 36" long.

I have a budget of $800 and that is already a stretch for me.

Here are my questions. Could I run a 250W radium using a Lumen Bright Mini Pendant reflector over the center point of the tank, or would I need 2?

Secondly, I don't really see MH ballasts for sale much anymore, certainly not the M80 HQI that is supposed to be the most ideal at driving the Radium. Could I use an e-ballast and if so, where can I buy one that will work with the Radium and get it as close the color I could get with the M80?

Thank you for the help!

two would be perfect 1 would be good with a bit of t5. Depending on the reflector 1 might be great. The reflector/ballest combos come up on the used equipment forum a lot and tend to not be very pricy. I got my 250 pendent and ballest for 100 bucks plus shipping. I have seen a few that were great deals for two lights.

I run a 250w radium with a kessiel 150 for sunrise sunset on my DT that's 36 inches deep and it does wonderfully.
But I'm not a great expert, I bet someone else might have more info.
Tom

 

[JakeK]

two would be perfect 1 would be good with a bit of t5. Depending on the reflector 1 might be great. The reflector/ballest combos come up on the used equipment forum a lot and tend to not be very pricy. I got my 250 pendent and ballest for 100 bucks plus shipping. I have seen a few that were great deals for two lights.

I run a 250w radium with a kessiel 150 for sunrise sunset on my DT that's 36 inches deep and it does wonderfully.
But I'm not a great expert, I bet someone else might have more info.
Tom

Thank you very much!

 

[aeddins89]

my set up

my set up

I'm just starting out I was given a 55g tank that I have now had set up for about a month now its cycling and starting to come along. Now I'm just wondering if the lights will be enough for the reef I want to create. I bought a maristar 4ft light with 2 54w t5s one pure actinic the other actinic as well as 2 250de mh 12k and two custom LEDS for moon lighting. My tank is 21 in deep. Is it enough light?

 

[sirreal63]

I'm just starting out I was given a 55g tank that I have now had set up for about a month now its cycling and starting to come along. Now I'm just wondering if the lights will be enough for the reef I want to create. I bought a maristar 4ft light with 2 54w t5s one pure actinic the other actinic as well as 2 250de mh 12k and two custom LEDS for moon lighting. My tank is 21 in deep. Is it enough light?

It is more than enough light. It would be enough for a 4' 120 gallon tank.

 

[GroktheCube]

I could use some help troubleshooting a strange issue I'm having.

I'm in the middle of setting up a new tank (48"x30"x15") in a new apartment. I moved over the 48" 2x250 radium/4x54w t5 Hamilton Cebu sun from my 120. The first time I started it over the tank, the breaker tripped after about half an hour of running. The light was drawing ~7 amps, with maybe another 2 from other equipment, well under the 15 the circuit is rated for.

I haven't had the problem recur since then, but the fixture is only drawing ~6.2 amps now instead of the 7 it has been since I first got it. What the heck could be causing that? I'm stumped.

 

[Spar]

I currently have 4 of the 250W Radium bulbs on a HQI/magnetic ballast. My tank is 96x36x30". I got great growth when my SPS was mid-to-high in the tank, but never did test it much where SPS was on the base. I am reconfiguring my rock layout to have my rock much lower in the water (SPS between 6-15" at base, instead of 15-20" before).

I wish I had measured the PAR before I drained my tank, but I am wondering if anyone thinks I will have even better PAR if I upgraded to 400W Radiums or other bulbs that give off a cooler kelvin.

Thoughts? Are there any good resources on bulb comparisons at different depths? Sanjay's seems to be offline these days.

 

[sirreal63]

Cliff, it should be fine as is. The little extra par is not worth the extra heat and electrical usage unless you greatly over drive the bulbs, then you will get a lot more par but at the expense of bulb life. As long as the reflectors are decent you should have no issues.

 

[E Rosewater]

Just a quick question regarding ballasts. I ordered a Cebu Sun 2 x 250w running the M81 ballasts. Can I put the ballasts in my stand or will heat generation be an issue? There would be nothing else creating heat with them in the stand.

 

[sirreal63]

M81 is for 150 watt, M80 is for 250. I keep mine in the stand.

 

[jdraider75]

I just picked up a dual 250 watt Bluewave 7 ballast. I currently run 2 galaxy select a watt ballasts. My concern is I control these with my apex. Am I gonna have any trouble running a dual ballast on one plug? Anyone know the amps these pull at startup?

 

[Jeremy B.]

The original BW7's had two plugs, and then the later years they started coming in with a single plug. Is yours definitely the one with a single plug first off? Second - different lamps will have the ballast spike at a different amperage during startup. Assuming you're running Radiums (since that the most popular MH these days) figure spiking around 3.5A per ballast, so a total of about 7A during startup.

 

[jdraider75]

Yes just the single cord. And running radiums in a giesemann spectra. Thanks.

 

[jdraider75]

I looked on eb8 and if I use plugs 4 or 8 they are rated for 10 amps so I should be good. Thanks for info jeremy.

 

[Jeremy B.]

You're welcome, good luck with it! :thumbsup:

 

[jdraider75]

Thanks gonna hook it up Saturday morning.

 

[smogl00]

Hi there. I am new to halides (from t5 only), and am building a 57 gal illuminata setup. 36" wide and 21" deep top to bottom.

I plan on a mixed reef, but a good amount of sps. I was looking at the hamilton cebu 250 watt-

Is 250 watt too much for 21 inches deep? Would like to mount with legs right over the water? The t5's would likely be a mixture of purple and blue+. Also- should I definitely go with the 36 inch model since that is the width of the tank?

Thanks!

-Steve

 

[b7fig]

The cebu sun fixture will do you good, thats what i had. 250 watt is not too much. Yes 36" fixture, same as the tank.