t5 lighting

[cyclops23]

has anyone ever heard of workhorse ballasts? my light supposedly has 3 of these. i was just wondering if they were good or if i needed to change out my ballasts. the other thing is that it doesn't have hard end caps for the bulbs, it has some wire sticking out with a plug on the end, so its flexible. i don't know if it means anything but i haven't seen any other fixture like it.

 

[drew22to375]

Horkn uses the workhorse ballasts on his t-5 setup with no problems with out the shortened bulb life that the t-5 naxi's calim will happen if you don't use a t-5 spec ballast. I'm sure he will chime in later.

Drew..

 

[cyclops23]

the workhorse isn't rated for t-5?

 

[cyclops23]

did some more reading and i think i will stick with the workhorse. my main problem is the single reflector, how much does it take away? is it hard to put in individual reflectors? cause there isn't much room between the bulbs.

 

[Ti]

he'll chime in real soon

 

[ChemE]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7119124#post7119124 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cyclops23
did some more reading and i think i will stick with the workhorse. my main problem is the single reflector, how much does it take away? is it hard to put in individual reflectors? cause there isn't much room between the bulbs.

Quite a bit. The WH ballasts are perfect (slightly lower power factor than the Triad's) but the bulbs and reflectors are where the west is won. You aren't really using T5's unless you use Tek, Aqualux, or IceCap reflectors (Tek being the worst and Aqualux being the best). Also, the best bulbs to run the the D&D Blue+, the D&D Aquablue, and the GE 6500K Starcoat. All the other bulbs have inferior PAR or color some more so than others.

 

[cyclops23]

how hard would it be to install the reflectors? like i said, there isn't much room

 

[horkn]

i am here guys. finally..


no issues with my workhorse 5 driven 3x39 t5 ho retrofit since christmas of 2004. near 16 months now...

the tek are 2.25 inches wide, the icecap are 2.5" and the aqualux are 3" wide. given you have enough room run any of these reflectors. they just snap in place over the bul.

heck, if you can run even 1 good reflector on one of the bulbs in that unit you would be doing yourself a favor.

its that much of a difference...

hey, I see you are in Wi. wherebout?

 

[cyclops23]

i don't have enough room for even 1 reflector without taking out the bulbs to either side of it. i was thinking i might rip the fixture apart and make my own hood, the wiring can't be that difficult, can it? is there anyplace that sells the reflectors for cheap?

i'm in Milton, just outside of Janesville. where u at in Milwaukee? i got some friends out that way

 

[horkn]

i am in thiensville... inside of mequon..

i know milton well enough


taking the unit apart and remaking the fixture so it can house the reflectors is a great idea.

http://www.aqualuxlighting.com/reflectors.html is where i got my aqualux CDR's. they are the lowest priced of the 3 good reflectors, and they have the best performance as well. plus, aqualux is in eagan MN, so, even ground shipping, they will get to you quickly

 

[horkn]

oh yeah, you can get all the parts you need to get your hoodright form aqualux as well( waterproof endcaps, standoffs, reflectors). I have yet to see any site beat aqualux's for retrofit parts...

 

[cyclops23]

thanks! now all i need is the money. i spent a lot more on the the light as it is than i wanted to. i might wait a while, theres no corals or anything that needs the light in the tank yet. i was just going to take the parts off the housing and make a wood canopy. at least with woodworking i know what im doing wiring it might get a little tricky, though

 

[REMF]

Now now Horkn,

they are the lowest priced of the 3 good reflectors, and they have the best performance as well.

You know I am a big Aqualux fan, and a workhorse user, and yes you are right about the best price, but I do belive the Ice Cap SLR out performed the Aqualux reflector a bit in par ratings done by Grim.

Again I do feel Aqualux is the best bang for the buck, but I am just keeping it real.

 

[cyclops23]

do i need the standoffs and hard endcaps? i was just going to use 1"x1" pieces of wood screwed to the top of the canopy as a standoff.

 

[REMF]

The endcaps at Aqulux snap into the standoff's. Yes get them it is very easy and you have to run the wire thru them any way.

 

[horkn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7120539#post7120539 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by REMF
Now now Horkn,

You know I am a big Aqualux fan, and a workhorse user, and yes you are right about the best price, but I do belive the Ice Cap SLR out performed the Aqualux reflector a bit in par ratings done by Grim.

Again I do feel Aqualux is the best bang for the buck, but I am just keeping it real.

the par of the ic and aqualux were equal for all reasonable purposes.

since he did not actually post par numbers, and he wasnt happy with getting a broken bulb from aqualux at the time (thats why he did not mention aqualux at all, instead used "brand X" ) he did not report things as they should be(actual numbers), but rather said at surface level, the ic and aqualux were 10% better for par than the tek, and at a lower depth (like 16" IIRC) the icecap and aqualux were basically dead even at 20% better than the tek. I think he phrased it as the ic with "slightly more" par than the brand x. I nearly always list the aqualux and IC as tied for 1st, and the tek in 3rd place.

However,since the ic is not available in 5 foot lengths, and the aqualux is, and the aqualux is still cheaper than the IC, even when the aqualux CDR's are not on sale.. i consider that to be of importance and has to be weighed when calling the reflectors out in 1-3 position..

also, aqualux has better prices on standoffs and endcaps than reefgeek last time I checked, about 2 weeks ago.

 

[REMF]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7120743#post7120743 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by horkn
the par of the ic and aqualux were equal for all reasonable purposes.

True but you are probably a Green bay Packer fan HAHA :rolleye1:

 

[horkn]

yes i am.

that is a good thing, for many reasons. even despite last season. I dont need to tell you if you are an NFL fan. lets see, no nfl tean for AK, so, let me guess, based on your comment about me probably being a packer fan....

you either like the vikings, bears, or lions:lol:

 

[REMF]

FOR LIFE

 

[horkn]

ugh, nailed it...


hope you can win by longwell kicking field goals all day, because culpepper is gone...


all i can say is that the nfc north is messed up when the bears win the division:lol: