T5 HO Ballasts

[sl-atl]

This may be a dumb question but here goes...

I'm planning a frag/grow-out tank and want to do it "inexpensively". Is there any downside to using a conventional T5 HO fixture with a name brand- but not aquarium brand ballast or other parts such as the connectors? I need to use the right aquarium lamps of course, but will their output be the same?

(I have a couple strip lights laying around that I could rewire with ballasts etc from Lowes.)

 

[1DeR9_3Hy]

(Im sure Jim will be here in a second....lol)

As long as the ballast are HO's, you will be fine. Uncleof6 knows which ballast are best for T5 HO's, so if you have questions direct them towards him.

 

[WharfRat]

You can use t5 sockets but they need to be shunted. You can use a ballast like the workhorse series from Fulham. There are other brands that are deemed better than the workhorse. Such as triad and I think the other is called universal but don't quote me. I have 2 workhorse ballasts running my t5's on my FW tank and am going to build a hood for my 90 using the same type ballasts and sockets. Money is a huge concern for us right now so I look for as many alternate ways as possible and still maintain a good tank. Oh and you'll be told that when using t5's you will have to use parabolic reflectors to get max par yield from your bulbs. I myself am going to use some mirrored acrylic in the hood to reflect some of the light and let the chips fall where they may.
Good luck with your frags.
Fred

 

[ksc]

Basically what you want to look for is a "programmed start", or sometimes called a soft start ballast, as opposed to an instant start ballast. I have a Universal Triad and Advance ballast. You might save a few bucks on a Workhorse but you will lose money in the long run with that ballast due to poor performance.

 

[WharfRat]

Advance was the other name I couldn't remember..thanks KSC.

 

[sl-atl]

Thanks a lot! Advance has a good tool that lets you ID the right ballast- http://advancetransformer.com/ecatalog/flb_lookup.asp

 

[cobbobby]

Ballastwise makes nice ballasts as well. THey have some t5 ho ballasts available. You can generally find some on the used forum for 20bux. The triad's and advanced are generally on there.