My ballast has gone on my 4' flourescent double strip light. Does anyone know roughly how much a new ballast will cost? Do I have to order or is there a local store where I can get one?
Thanks all.:D
My ballast has gone on my 4' flourescent double strip light. Does anyone know roughly how much a new ballast will cost? Do I have to order or is there a local store where I can get one?
Thanks all.:D
TGVAS Director /Webmaster
What kind of tubes??? Allbrite here should have what you need.
Global Moderator
If your in Victoria, try Albrite Lighting on Cloverdale. They will be one of the cheapest places to get a ballast.
Traco
I have a spare t8 ballast somewhere, never got around to using it.
Sojourn
Thanks everyone. They are Coralife T12 fluorescent bulbs that are in there, Kris, so the T8 ballast won't work? I was thinking of switching the whole setup to the T5 fluorescent setup but the bulbs are only 3-4 months old. But if a ballast costs a lot, might be cheaper to go that route.
I'll check with the manufacturer to see if this ballast works with t12's. I know that some are rated for both, but this is marked for only t8sOriginally Posted by traco
I've seen it repeatedly stated that the standard fluorescent bulbs we use in the hobby are only good for 6 months (I've used them for much...much...longer) so this may be a good time to upgrade. J&L has t5 retro kits ranging from $130 - $200 and you may do better then that at Albrite.I was thinking of switching the whole setup to the T5 fluorescent setup but the bulbs are only 3-4 months old. But if a ballast costs a lot, might be cheaper to go that route.
Thanks Kris, I'll go take a look.:wave:
no prob
let me know if you want to stay low cost / DIY pricing.
All you would need with my ballast is new bulbs
K
Other than price, what is the difference between these two retrofit kits?
JL Aquatics
http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_pages/details/l-fl-retro2.php?product_ID=sl-t5rf4602
Progressive Growth (here on the Island in Colwood)
http://www.progressive-growth.com/pr....php?prod=7078
Last edited by traco; 09-06-2007 at 08:22 AM.
Well I can tell you from firsthand experience that the bulbs you get from Hydroponics stores are excellent for growing plants, but the light looks pretty ugly. These bulbs are geared for optimal plant growth and don't take into consideration colour rendition. Bulbs designed for aquarium use typically have modified CRI ratings by artificially boosting areas in the red and blue spectrum to create a higher contrast. This makes fish and plant colours look great, while still providing enough photosynthetic usable radiation for plant growth.
If budget is a real concern, the setup from progressive growth will work for a low cost, but you might find that it's visually unnapealing (the light will have an obvious yellow/green cast and fish colours will be washed out).
I have used both, and have had great luck growing plants with both, it's just a factor of how the light looks.
Oh, and the link to JL is for just the bulb, not a fixture or ballast.
... Work Horse WH7-120-L Ballast and 4 ice cap Ends. Unsure of age of Ballast but worked hard on my 75g reef. I upgraded to a dimmable ballast. Will drive 4 NO bulbs, or fewer HO, or VHO bulbs. More details available here: http://www.prolighting.com/wo7elba12loc.html. Comes with a 40 W Plant / Aquarium bulb (4'). I am unsure of the status of the bulb and one of the contacts on one of the end caps may be worn out. 25$ ...
http://tgvas.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=1955
I'm interested in your ballast if no one else is Todd, I need another Workhorse 7 to drive 2 more 96 watt power compacts for my 105 gallon. I'll be going to a dimmable model down the road for the profiluxes, but it will definately help me get more light in the interim.
Send me a PM!
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote