bwthomas77
New Member
I am a newcomer to this forum so I apologize if this is old news.
I have recently set up a 180 gallon reef system. I am running a 6' Hamilton technology 2x250W 10K bulb with actinics. I believe the ballasts for these are not electronic. I am also running a PW200 return pump and Magdrive 18 on the skimmer. My power bill has just about doubled. I realized that I would see an increase but did not think that the tank would be consuming the same amount of energy as the rest of my house each month (in the middle of summer in TN). Anyhow, it seemed the metal halides were the most likely culprit and was wondering if anybody had any recs on how to make the system more efficient. Perhaps electronic ballasts. Thanks.
I have recently set up a 180 gallon reef system. I am running a 6' Hamilton technology 2x250W 10K bulb with actinics. I believe the ballasts for these are not electronic. I am also running a PW200 return pump and Magdrive 18 on the skimmer. My power bill has just about doubled. I realized that I would see an increase but did not think that the tank would be consuming the same amount of energy as the rest of my house each month (in the middle of summer in TN). Anyhow, it seemed the metal halides were the most likely culprit and was wondering if anybody had any recs on how to make the system more efficient. Perhaps electronic ballasts. Thanks.
