[raycopp]

The Way My Hood Was Built The Only Mh Lights That Will Really Work For Me Is 3 24" Coralife Aquapro Fixtures. I Will Hang Them.since I Will Only Be Having Soft Corals I Will Use 3 150's Plus The Actinics.since These Fixtures Have Cooling Fans Will I Still Need To Install Fans In My Hood? The Problem I Have Is My Hood Goes Wall To Wall And To The Ceiling. No Place For The Fans To Go On The Outside Of The Hood. If This Will Not Work I Will Need To Sat With Power Compacts Only.

[Reefland]

I think this should work as long as there is some holes in the canopy for the warm air to vent out.

[James]

If your going to have only soft corals in your tank, then power compacts will be all you need. though they do get pretty hot. You may have to mod your fixture some to have at least one fan.

[Ninong]

Originally Posted by James

If your going to have only soft corals in your tank, then power compacts will be all you need.

Don't forget, his tank is 30" tall, 200 gallons.

[James]

Originally Posted by Ninong

Don't forget, his tank is 30" tall, 200 gallons.

Oops didn't know how deep it was, a little deep for pc's

[raycopp]

thanks for all your help.i am going to buy 3 250w 14k. We figured a way to use cooling fans in the hood. Any input on these lights would be apprecaited

thanks

[Reefland]

Sounds like a very nice setup to me, be sure to post some pictures for us!

[Ninong]

Originally Posted by raycopp

thanks for all your help.i am going to buy 3 250w 14k. Any input on these lights would be apprecaited

You didn't specify which 250w 14,000K lamps you are buying but based on your previous comments, I will assume you are asking about Hamilton 250w 14,000K mogul base lamps and a standard M58 magnetic ballast. (P.S. -- Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm confusing you with someone else who asked about Hamilton lamps???)


According to testing peformed by Dr. Sanjay Joshi, that lamp produces 53 PPFD (PAR) with a standard M58 ballast, it produces 69 PPFD with an Ice Cap electronic ballast and 99 PPFD with a PFO HQI M80 ballast.

For comparison purposes, a Ushio 250w 10,000K mogul base lamp produces 159 PPFD with an M80 ballast and an XM 250w 10,000K mogul base lamp produces 182 PPFD with an M80 ballast.

I would suggest that the Hamilton 250w 14,000K lamp is a very poor choice for a 30" tall aquarium, especially if it is operated with a standard magnetic ballast. It would be twice as good if run on a PFO HQI M80 ballast but still not nearly as effective as most 10,000K lamps of the same wattage.

[Ninong]

Looks like you're the same guy who was asking about Hamilton lamps in another thread.

OK, what lamps are we talking about now? I know they're 250w 14,000K but what brand?

P.S. -- What fixtures are you using for these 250w 14,000K metal halides? I thought you were going to get the Coralife AquaPro fixtures (150w HQI DE)???

[raycopp]

the lights i was thinking about was the hamilton reef star hqi system 3 250w 14k not the mogul.why are these not the right lights to buy? i

[raycopp]

The ballast is an HQI ballast

[Reefland]

That would definitely provide better results. Sanjay's site doesn't list the Hamilton DE's.

[Ninong]

Sanjay tested 250w 14,000K DE lamps from five different manufacturers. The PPFD ranges from the mid-50's to the low 70's. He does not list Hamilton. However, even when Sanjay lists Hamilton as the "manufacturer" of the 250w 14,000K SE lamp that he tested, they are really just the "brand," not the manufacturer. Hamilton does NOT manufacture any lamps at all. I know that they used to get a lot of their lamps from the BLV (owned by Ushio) factory just outside of Munich, but they may be getting some lamps from other sources, too.

It's impossible to say what the intensity of the 250w 14,000K DE lamps are that Hamilton includes in their fixtures unless you know who made them and if that lamp has been independently tested. Just as important as the PPFD, would be the spectral distribution chart.

In any case, it is obvious that the 14,000K lamps are not as intense (much less PAR) as the 10,000K lamps. BTW, both Ushio/BLV and AB insist that their 10,000K lamps are actually 13,000K. Whether they are 10,000K or 13,000K, they produce a lot more PAR than any of the 14,000K lamps. On a side note, I see where Giesemann is now supplying Megachrome 13,000K metal halide lamps in all of their fixtures and calling it their own brand. I wonder who makes those?

If you search on this board you will find posts from members who have used 14,000K lamps over their reef tanks. I know Papa Doug used them. I'm not sure if he still does or not.

There was a lot of interest in the ALS 14,000K lamps about four or five years ago and then all of a sudden people got turned off on those in a hurry. Poor quality and unreliable peformance seemed to be what many people reported.

I think that you should know exactly what you are buying before you reach a decision. Then you can compare your choice to other possible options before making a final decision.

[Ninong]

I just noticed another member of Reefland who uses Hamilton 14,000K metal halides: Hamilton bulb blew