where to put ur MH ballasts

mikegray

mikegray

Member
these things are huge (dual 250watt ballasts.) where do u guys put these things there nowhere near the tank to put em or in the stand.. didnt realize how HUGE these things are... i might have to put them in the closet or the garage and run chords under the house and up to my tank...
 
swatskee

swatskee

Member
I have mine mounted in my basement in an enclosure with the cords running up through the floor. saves space and looks nicer.
i would not stack them, they get pretty warm. Also, keep the cap away from any metal.
swat
 
mikegray

mikegray

Member
i dont have a basement. hmm.. ill maybe just find a way to get in the garage.... it cant be outside right? ir maybe ill put them in my closet somewhere across my bedroom away from my tank... but im afriad 2 dual 250watt ballasts will warm my room.. and the VHO one on top of those 2.
any ideas?
 
jobob

jobob

Member
i put mine under a chair next to the tank. or maybe behind the couch. ???? i guess u could run wires from the closet.
 
mikegray

mikegray

Member
so u guys think it will be ok to put:
Dual VHO ballast
Dual 250watt MH ballast
Dual 250watt MH ballast
next to my tank or in the same room or do u think that will greatly affect Tank Heat?
all 3 of them
 
mudplayerx

mudplayerx

Active Member
DO NOT STACK THEM! That is just asking for a disaster like a fire or explosion imo.
I have mine underneathe the tank inside of the cabinet. Just make sure no cords or anything else are touching them. Try to treat the ballasts like you would a fire and you wont have any problems.
 
mikegray

mikegray

Member
so i can put them in my room. on wat a 2x4 piece of wood or a 1x4? and have them like a 1" apart from each other?
 
mudplayerx

mudplayerx

Active Member
I'd have them a little more than 1" away from each other. They radiate a tremendous amount of heat (enough to actually burn your hands on) and need room for that heat to dissipate. Having them too close together might cause them to short cicuit or cause a fire.
If you have no choice but to place them close together, make sure they aren't touching and put some sort of fan by them.
ps- just because they have mounting brackets does not mean that you have to mount them. Mine are not screwed into anything. They are just sitting in the cabinet.
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
Yeah I wouldn't stack them on top of each other......They do put off a good amount of heat, but wouldn't be concerned about them heating your room up that much. Mine never run hot enough to the point that I can't touch the housing (case) that is!!!!!
 
mudplayerx

mudplayerx

Active Member
Mine get pretty hot, about as hot as a frying pan that has been off the stove for about 3 mins... no instantaneous burns, but will definately cause blisters if you were to hold onto one.
 
E

exile415

Guest
Originally Posted by mudplayerx
Mine get pretty hot, about as hot as a frying pan that has been off the stove for about 3 mins... no instantaneous burns, but will definately cause blisters if you were to hold onto one.

wow it gets that hot?
 
mikegray

mikegray

Member
i had a idea just now.. looking at my huge canopy which is 14" tall.. the top doesnt open up... can i put like a 2x4 up there and mount them to the 2x4 and put on top of my canopy up there? would that heat up my tank or inside my canopy? even on the 2 by 4? then i can even have a huge room fan up there blowing on them at all times and keeping air around my tank decent cool temp also? would this work or not ontop of canopy..
 
jobob

jobob

Member
i think that would work, u could build a little C shaped cover to hide them. and heat can still get out from the top and the back. i would def put them on a borad maybe a 1x4 or 1x6.
 
mikegray

mikegray

Member
yea i was thinking 2x4. if thats overkill id do a 1xwatver.. but yea i im not worried about hiding them.. my tank stands at 6 feet 2 inches so most people will have trouble seeing them anyways..... hehe... and ill have a fan on top moving air around them....
 
swatskee

swatskee

Member
check with the mfg, but some models only allow the cap (starter) to be no more than 2 feet from the lamp... fyi
 
hun25

hun25

Member
OK, Now I am confused!!! I just bought 2x250w Mh lights with Icecap ballests. I dont have them yet but I still dont know what to do with the ballests. I hear they get hot, Can they go on the floor behind or beside the tank? Do they need to be on something or can I put them directly on the carpet? :notsure: :notsure: :notsure:
 
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