MH ballast

[lunareclipse]

I wasn't sure where to put this post.
I have waited 2 years to set up my 150g tank. I lived in an apartment before and I wanted to move to my own house before setting it up. Well, I moved a while back. I had everything I needed to set my tank up except a sump tank and a pump. I got those and thought I was in business. I set up my tank, filled it and got everything running. Then I went to plug in the lights. I somehow lost the external ballast to my MH when I moved. Right now all i have is 2 CF 325 watts and 2 actinics. My 400 watt MH is made by JBJ. I went to their website and they only sell nano lights now. I have tried to contact them by email twice and no reply. I have looked on ---- for another double ballast and there aren't any that matches my lamp plug. Can I get a double external ballast that I can hardwire into my lamps? If I did that, how do you hardwire it? What is the best ballast to get to hardwire my MH lamps into without breaking my bank? And is it possible for someone that knows how to do this to call me or me call them so they can break this hardwire thing down Barney style for me?

 

[jimmyr1rider]

You can hardwire any company ballast to work with your pendant/fixture and bulb- IceCap for instance sells their plugs then you find the color codes of your fixtures wiring and the color code to the ballast wiring, wire the plug up accordingly, heat shrink it and your in business- just remember the only thing that does matter though is that your bulb and ballast wattage have to match. Good luck with it....Jimmy

 

[lunareclipse]

Originally Posted by JimmyR1Rider
http:///forum/post/3237547
You can hardwire any company ballast to work with your pendant/fixture and bulb- IceCap for instance sells their plugs then you find the color codes of your fixtures wiring and the color code to the ballast wiring, wire the plug up accordingly, heat shrink it and your in business- just remember the only thing that does matter though is that your bulb and ballast wattage have to match. Good luck with it....Jimmy
So I can cut the existing plugs off my lamps and hardwire it into any other ballast? And how do you heat shrink something? Use a blow dryer?

 

[jimmyr1rider]

Yeah cut the wire right where it goes into the bad ballast(ballast will now be a great door chock but if bad it already is in my eyes) Look up the wiring chart for that company and the new ballasts company and match them up accordingly. Yes will work with any ballasts- hot-ground-neutral- companies use their own color codes and vary is all.
Go to Radio shack and buy heat shrink tubing a variety pack- use the size thats slightly bigger than the wire its goin over then a second tubing that will fit over all 3 so youll be double covered with no water- electricity worries- I always solder all my connections especially ones that will be around moisture. Then before you solder the wires together you slide the tubing over the wires back a ways because it shrinks very easily due to being very sensitive to heat. Make sure you slide the big piece that will cover all 3 wires on first because once you solder any connections that one will not be able to be added and will be the one to keep al 3 intact as 1 cord. After you solder the connection let it cool down to where its cool enough to touch then slide the heat shrink over the bare wires that are now soldered- and heat it up I use a heat gun but you can use a cigarette lighter also and just go back and forth as well as twisting the wires so you hit it at every angle and youll see itll shrink right down to the same tightness that the insulation the wire came with does. Do one at a time and after one is done then move on to the next, then finally the one to shrink all 3 together. You want the tubing to be over the wires insulation on both ends of the soldered connections so there is no bare metal anywhere. Then slide over the big piece over all the wires and shrink that one to hold them all together and seal it like the ballasts cord and your good to go.

 

[lunareclipse]

lol. The ballast got lost completely when I moved. It is MIA. Was a brand new ballast when I got it.

 

[jimmyr1rider]

LOL ok then just order a quick disconnect plug with whatever ballast you get- an extra plug will have botht he cord that goes ballast to plug and plug to pendant- cut the cord to the pendant then and do what you would have done on the ballast end to the pendant end is all good. I only used IceCap as an example because its what I use- they sell the whole cord assembly as I believe most do.

 

[lunareclipse]

Both of my lamps hold 400 watt bulbs. I can't find a dual ballast that has 400 watts for each lamp. You said it has to be the same wattage as the bulb, right? So I have to find a dual ballast that can power both of my lamps. One that has 400 watts for each lamp I have? Or does the ballast have to total 400 watts altogether. If an item says it is a 400 watt dual ballast, is it 200 for each lamp totaling 400 or 400 for each lamp?

 

[jimmyr1rider]

Thats gonna be hard to find I think I had 400 watters goin but were too much for the tank I have- theyre really for like a 29 or 30 inch deep tank I have a 24 inch deep so I downgraded to 250's But yes your bulbs and ballasts have to be matching wattage. I had 2 going but used 2 ballasts I still am using the pendants the icecap pendants can take 250 or 400W so i switched bulbs and ballasts

 

[lunareclipse]

My tank is also 24 inces deep. Can I put 250 watt bulbs in them? Will it be on for growing SPS corals if I did that. I know it would be easier to find a dual ballast with 250 watt bulbs.

 

[lunareclipse]

Sorry if I sound like a newb. I have never had anything larger than a 55 g before. This 150g is throwing me for a loop. I have a feeling that after I get the initial setup worked out, it will be easier to maintain than a 55g though.

 

[jimmyr1rider]

I would contact your pendant company- I only know that my IceCap pendants accept both- if theyre the screw in(single ended) I dont see why not- if DE-(double ended) like one of mine are I had to adjust the length of the receptacle tabs- IceCap pendants come adjustable so that I could use the 250 is a much smaller bulb- contact the company that makes your fixture and ask or ask if anyone on here has the fixture and if theyve done it- but would still call the company and ask them, then yeah if able to use 250's then find the dual ballasts your lookin for and have at it.

 

[lunareclipse]

I have the screw in bulbs, and the company that made my lamps no longer makes them. I guess it only makes lights for nano cubes now. It has HID fixtures in it that the bulbs screw into. What is HID?

 

[jimmyr1rider]

Thats ok theyll still have the answers I believe if theyre still in business. I would personally think there wouldnt be any problem like I said the only thing I had to change in my pendant was the length of the receptacle with the double ended, my single ended one I didnt have to change anything- just screw in the bulb as long as it was a 250 with a 250 ballast but contact them anyway.

 

[lunareclipse]

ok, I have emailed them twice in the past few weeks and I haven't gotten a reply back.

If I don't hear from them, I will go get new bulbs and a new ballast and take it all out to the garage and experiment and see if it works. Are your screw in MH bulbs huge? The screw in part on mine is twice the circumference of a regular lightbulb.

 

[jimmyr1rider]

LOL yeah theyre very big I felt the same the first time I saw mine- I thought my double ended 400 w was big then I felt like I was holding a billy club with the single ended lol-- another thing to keep in mind- if you touched the glass on the bulb with your fingers wipe of your fingerprints with a dry paper towel- just isnt great for the bulb. I handle with either latex gloves or a paper towel so I dont get grease on it.
Dont have to use glass cleaner just wipe it off good with a clean, dry paper towel

 

[lunareclipse]

Ok, if I go buy 250 watt bulbs, what is the best ones? I like the pure white light 10k I think it is, but do MH have the same system as compsct florescents? Do they have 10k MH lights in 250 watts? What do you use to get the best coral growth?
Maybe you should go get a lawyer for this interigation.

 

[jimmyr1rider]

They have all different ones Most people go with either 10K 14K or 20K the warmer the light( the lowere the number) and the whiter the light- what you need to decide is what type of corals your going to grow and buy bulbs that suit them- 10K the warmer is used more for shallow growing corals- acros and simulates bright sunlight then 14K which I use have a little bluer look and are better fro mid depth corals and then 20K's are better for deeper water corals and usually have a really blue look. A lot of people use the 10K's for better growth of their SPS corals I went with 14K pheonix bulbs a little bluer but is mid temp range and can place corals at their depths according to light requirements. A lot of it has to do with if you like the white look or the blue look. Have heard some say that certain brands 10K's gave a greenish look they didnt like- may have to experiment with different bulbs till you find your favorite both for looks and results.

 

[lunareclipse]

I had bulbs that made my water look like pisswater once. I don't want those again. I will do what you do and get the 14 k bulbs. Just as long as they are bright and doesn't make my water look like a public pool, I am ok with it.

 

[lunareclipse]

I plan on growing all kinds of corals in my tank. I want my lights to be such that they would be appropriate to grow any type of coral.

 

[jimmyr1rider]

LOL a little in pics but I also have a blue background so that doesnt help- If you put a black background it wont in pics either. Yeah some bulbs put off funky shades. Ill get some pics of the clowns tomorrow and post them with the 14k's on tomorrow- Actually if you look at my tank thread the pics of the single clown hosting before they both were thats my 14 k"s but will get FTS for you tomorrow to look at what my halides look like. Just keep in mind its not that blue in person the camera makes it look a little more blue