Full spectrum fluorescents and electronic ballasts
Dear Bob,
<Howdy>
Greetings from Central Indiana (land of pig farms and redneck sports). I have been thinking of using a normal output, full spectrum, fluorescent lamp to simulate morning and evening lighting periods over my aquarium. In reading your lighting article, you greatly recommended the vita-lite ( among some other, more commercial brands ).
<Need to modify the article, thanks for reminding me. The manufacturer, Dura Corporation, is out of business>
I happened to stop by Menards on the way home to see if I could find some of these more commercial brands that you listed. I found a Westinghouse ReaLite model 36516 with a CRI of 98 and 6500k. It is used to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). 
<Neat! I use such lamps on my photographic light tables when away from the tropics too long (or spelunkering). Really cheers me up>
Anyway the lamp was 8 bucks. Do you know of any who have experimented with this lamp and if so, do they keep their color and intensity?
<Should be fine for the intended use>
Also you mentioned the ability to use H.O. and VHO ballast formats with N.O. Tubes. I have had my eye on the Ice Cap 440 and 660 electronic ballasts but their kinda salty (no pun intended...) Do you know of a lower cost, true electronic ballast that will match the Ice Cap's performance?
<Unfortunately no... Bear and grin with Perry.T at Champion is my advice.>
Thank You Greatly, in Advance.
jS
<Be chatting, Bob Fenner>

VHO Ballast
Good morning WWM staff. Once again, I have a question that is burning a hole in my mouth.
<Most of my questions revolve around burning a hole in my wallet.>
I'm in the planning stage of a DIY lighting project. I have a 24" deep 120 gallon FOWLR that I would like to add some soft corals and anemones to.
<By anemones, I am hoping you mean mushrooms anemones or colonial anemones/Zoanthids and not clownfish host anemones as these are extremely difficult and I, in good conscience, can only recommend them to individuals dedicated to unlocking the secrets to their success.>
Would the IceCap 660 ballast work for this tank?
<Yes, you would be able to grow some soft corals, mushrooms, and polyps.>
I haven't found much information on it but it sounds like it should put out 96x4.
<I think you are a bit confused with the terminology. Your subject was VHO ballasts but the wattage you described, 96 is typical for Power Compact/Compact Fluorescent lamps.>
Assuming this will work, what type of bulbs would you suggest?
<2-3 full spectrum lamps with 1-2 actinics.>
How about two 20,000's and two 50/50's?
<Ok, but I prefer to use the spectral analysis provided with some lamps to make my decision vs. color temperature or other more marketing directed terminology/descriptors.>
I'm not a huge fan of the super blue tint but I know that it's necessary.
<We have a tremendous number of FAQ's in regards to lighting issues on www.WetWebMedia.com I would advise you to continue on in your education and read some of them.>
Thank you.
<You are welcome. -Steven Pro>

VHO Ballast
Hello, I am shopping for VHO lighting for my 125 gallon salt tank. I've arrived at having to decide between Icecap from Champion Lighting & Supply or for about $70 to $100 cheaper Hello Lights brand from hellolights.com. I've seen the many posts citing Icecap as reliable. Also, I've seen www.WetWebMedia.com staff praise the customer service (not necessarily the product). I can find nothing about the Hello Lights. Are electronic ballasts pretty much equal, or would I be taking a sizable risk with the off-brand ballast? Do you know anything about these Hello Lights ballasts?
<I have no experience with Hello Lights. I would ask your fellow hobbyists on the message boards for opinions/feedback.>:
http://wetwebfotos.com/talk/index.jsp
http://www.reefcentral.com/
http://www.reefs.org/
Cheers, Byron
<Have a nice day! -Steven Pro>

Fluorescent Ballast Question
Hello WWM Crew,
Over my 55 gal tank, I have a 2 light 4 ft fluorescent shoplight.  I have a few plants, a few fish, and it's doing ok.  It's running on an ancient magnetic ballast.  Never had a problem with the ballast until I started using some of the newer T12 bulbs.
In the past the ballast would hum when the lights first turned on but would eventually settle down.
With the bulbs I'm using now, the ballast hums as long as the lights are on.  The hum isn't too bad, can't hear it over the TV.  My problem is I've discovered the lights aren't as bright as they could/should be.
I have a 24 inch fixture that's using a 2 foot version of the same bulb in the shoplight and it's much brighter.  I'd like to put a T8 ballast into the shoplight, but I still have at least a couple year's worth of T12 tube's.  It's also easier for me to find 5000K and 6500K bulbs in T12 version at my local hardware stores.
Until T8's become a little more common, I'd like to be able to make use both world's.  Have you had any experience with the combo ballasts that claim to run T8's and T12's?  None of the light shops I've spoken to sell them, but they've heard of them.
Thanks for your help, Lewis
<Sure, you are talking about Ice Cap 660's. They will drive anything from compact fluorescent to VHO and also NO T-12's.
I imagine T-8's could be wired in as well. Check out the lighting section of any of the wetwebmedia.com sponsors that carry hard goods. Champion lighting has the most info on driving regular NO T-12's on Ice Cap ballasts. championlighting.com  Craig>

- Fluorescent Ballast Life -
WWM Crew,
I am trying to decide whether or not I should replace my bulbs or possibly need to replace my whole light fixture. The unit I'm confused about is a CSL 4 x 55 watt ABS hood( 2 8800 daylight + 2 actinic).  I bought it about 2 years ago and it was a used unit in good condition, so I really don't know exactly how old it is. I had been using it on a 90 gal reef tank that I just had a custom oak canopy made for with 4 x 110 watt VHO lighting, so I was now using this light on my 55 gal tank. Well I  realized my bulbs were due to be replaced. And as I was looking at the tank (55 gal mini-reef) it appeared that the left half of the tank seemed to be just a little bit brighter than the right side. I thought well that's because the bulbs just went past a year old and they need to be changed. Just to be sure it was a bulb problem, I decided to swap the bulbs on the left to the right and vice-versa. I was sure that now the right side would appear to be brighter. However that was not the case, the left side still appeared to be brighter. Then I thought it must be because the overflow box is on the left side or the LR is at an angle that reflects different, so I picked up the whole hood and swung it around 180 degrees and now the right side was indeed brighter. Also just to be sure this was not being caused by a dirty piece of plastic, I slid the plastic lens from the bottom of the hood.  Still no change the left half of the light is definitely a little brighter than the right. So my dilemma now is whether or not it's worth spending 100 dollars on new bulbs when there must be a problem with the ballast on the right half of the unit. I know bulbs are always in need of replacing but I've never heard of people replacing ballasts, nor do I know if that is even possible in a pre-manufactured ABS hood. <It is, you just need to disassemble it.> I would greatly appreciate any thought you might have on this matter. <Well... my thinking is in line with yours, that typically ballasts have a lifetime of at least ten years or better. Most modern ballasts are solid state so there's really not much that can/will age, but will instead just crap out. I'd at the very least pop some email to Custom SeaLife to see what they think about the whole thing.>
Thanks again for your help,  Kevin
<Cheers, J -- >

Buffering/lighting
Hi Bob,
My tap water does not have a lot of buffering capability.
<Do you need, want more? Can be augmented easily>
When I do my regular water changes (7 to 10days), the tank water has a pH of 7.8. I use Instant Ocean Salt and my replacement water has a pH around 8.2. I believe that the shift in pH after water changes is stressing my system. 
<Good point.>
I have started to use Kent Marine's Super Buffer and now my pH stays at 8.3 and.
Alk = 4 mEq/l. Is this method of keeping up Alk/pH up a good idea or would the two part supplements be a better choice?
<Two part would be better.>
I did read the article in FAMA as requested by you about the Ice Cap ballast running NO fluorescence. I remembered reading that article years ago and another (same concept) with a plant tank. It really sounds like they are having tremendous results with NO tubes and VHO ballast. My main question here is with tube replacement. Ice Cap says 6x longer life. The recent article in FAMA state that regular replacement of the tubes have been unnecessary. Also in FAMA with the other article on the plant tank he state that he has been running the same tubes for years. Now what puzzles me is that this is exactly opposite of what most say. Hmmm?
<The use of electronic ballasts in these cases does extend effective lamp life as far as I'm aware, but don't know about six times, definitely not indefinitely. You can test for intensity, spectral make-up over time... or just observe your plant livestock for changes. Bob 
Brad

Lighting Question
Hi Bob or Anthony,
<tweedle-dum here...>
Another quick question: (I got such great advice the first time I figured I'd pester you folks again).
<we make half of the stuff up, but it's convincing>
If I was going to upgrade from standard fluorescents to HO or VHO bulbs
<no HO...a dying technology. VHO or Power compacts please>
would it be possible to get a strip light fixture from a place like the Home Depot to operate them in?
<a reflector yes, but nothing else. Need specialized end caps and ballast>
And would I still need to invest in a good ballast too?
<yes... and Icecaps have good customer service>
I figure the brighter light would not only be great for the fishes but also for casting some cheer during the gray winter (Feb.'s the worst on the east coast). Thanks guys. "Warm" regards, Adam
<alas, an expensive but worthwhile investment. Cheers from "sunny" Pittsburgh PA. Anthony>

Fluorescent lighting question
I tried to read the Fluorescent lighting FAQ section on your web site but it's not coming up. The PC FAQ is, just not the Fluorescent page. I've seen that in a few other areas but I'm remiss in mentioning them to you. The frames and banners all load, but the content does not. There are no error messages.
<Some of the article pages are not complete and merely have a link with no content, but all of the FAQ pages should work. I looked at this page has a bad link. The FAQ for fluorescent lighting is here http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fluoltgfaqs.htm>
At any rate the question I have is a pure DIY question. I'm building a new canopy for my 80 gallon long aquarium. The tank is currently dry but should be full of water in a few weeks. The tank is 6 feet long with one opaque divider in the middle. I intend to put a glass top on under the canopy. Now that you know my parameters I'm looking into just using a 4 bulb 40W electronic ballast from Home Depot to power 4 36" 36W lights. As I recall if the bulbs only need 36W there is no problem with using a 40W ballast.
<Yes, most of these ballasts will run 40 or 30 watt lamps.>
I intend to use two full spectrum and two actinic bulbs on a FOWLR tank. (Alternately I may add a second two bulb ballast and run the actinics in there for sunrise/sunset simulation on a different circuit.)
All of that said do you see any potential problems with the setup? I can buy an Icecap setup for about $120 or I can build my setup for about $25. -David Rencher
<Do be sure to use water resistant end caps, plastic junction boxes, and follow all applicable safety codes for electrical work. -Steven Pro>

Tar vs. Electronic ballasts
Good day, Can you tell me the difference between a tar ballast and the other types of ballasts? << Sure, but in simple terms because I don't know much about them.  The other kind of ballast is an electronic ballast.  My understanding is that an electronic ballast will run all bulbs (of a certain wattage) but a tar (also called a coil) ballast will run some bulbs but not all.  However the main difference is that a tar ballast is way stinkin' hot and will burn you after has been on for a few hours.  An electronic ballast is so much better.  I have them, and can't imagine using any other type of ballast.  I only recommend electronic (although they are much more money like $150 USD as opposed to $50 USD).  If you want more in-depth info please write back. >> Which is better?
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