ballast

[leaffish75]

Im about to order a ballast. I have only keep nano reefs but now i want to turn my 90 into a reef tank. I want to use 2 250watt MHs. So i have some questions.
1st would i really matter if i had 2 seperate ballast vs. on that will run to lights.
2nd which of the following brand is better:
Hamilton, Ice Cap, Blue Wave
the Blue wave is only one that come already for 2 bulbs. the others i will have to buy 2 ballast.
Also the Blue wave somes in Standard Magnetic ballast or Pulse Start. Which of these two are the best? I would like to run what ever bulb i want (most likely the 10K XM)

[Tim Marvin]

Coralvue

[alton]

Electronic Ballast are the best with no heat and lamps will last longer. But with some brands it's going to be new technology and with new technology comes problems.
Pulse Start is better than magnetic

[jaded]

Dont count out ARO for your electronic ballasts. cheap at hello lighting too

[360Reef]

FYI - IceCap ballasts and ARO ballasts are the same guts. Also keep in mind that different electronic ballast are tuned to run different bulbs. I would first do some research on whihc type of bulbs you want to run and then select your ballast. Just my 2 cents.

-Greg

[leaffish75]

okay first is it better to use one ballast to run 2 lights or one balast per light?
Are ARO good? arent they electric ballast?
I really dont want ice cap since it sint setup as "plug and play"
I still can't figure out wich one.
Hamilton
Blue wave standard Mag - maybe not this one
Blue wave Pulse
ARO Cubicus

Any other input? this is a hard decision!

[alexwolf]

i love the ARO, i am running 4 of them and they are great. they run ANY bulb, are silent, and dont put out a lot of heat. very nice.

[leaffish75]

cool thanks every one
I had it narrowed down to the ARO or one of the Blue Wave II (magnetic or Pulse) but i think ill get the ARO.

[Tim Marvin]

I would get the ARO, IceCap or Coralvue. I have used just about every bulb and ballast out there and the IceCap has given me the best results and performance. The IceCap will fire everything so far except the DE XM.

[ratboy]

I run 2 400W coralvue MH's and love em. Totally plug and play (screw in bulbs and connect 2 wires w/ slide connectors) and also include fans to keep the ballasts cool. Plus with Greg (360reef) local I couldnt touch the prices I paid.

-Erik

[jaded]

all the research is done... check out the link below for a side by side compare of the different bulb "colors". At the bottom of this page you will see a link to a forum thread that goes into great detail on all the aspects of different combos of bulbs and ballasts

link (http://metricksystem.com/chris/250wcolour/)

[leaffish75]

i found a site with the comparison of different ballast and the Blue Wave seem to do better with the 10K XM than the ARO. now im torn again.
those last lights on that link are awsome!
I do plan on adding 2 VHO super acintics.

Okay i went to the hellolights.com site and the ARO that i was wanting isnt available yet. it said coming soon. I emailed them trying to find out when. A ARO ballast for only $100 is a good deal.

[jaded]

before the "betrayal" I was looking at the ARO and XM 10k's. I did a ton of reading and everyone that was running that combo was happy with the results (growth) in the tank as well as the look.

Now that I'm forced to start over my plans have changed but I still think that would be a great setup. Good luck and if baytown is not to far from SA I would be happy to help with the DIY stuff! I have a pretty full wood shop in the garage and I'm always looking for a reason to get splinters

[leaffish75]

hehe. im about 2 or 3 hours away. Baytown is about 30mins from houston and 45 from galveston.

[jaded]

I think you can probably find a drill press and straight edge somewhere a bit closer then... I'd love to see the finished product

[leaffish75]

Im about to start on the stand. Right now i have a DIY angle iron stand. It could support a big rig but i want cabinets so im doing a wood cabinet while the tank is being drilled. I was going to DIy the lights but the ballast i would be using would only run the Iwaski 6500K bulb.

[jaded]

I thought you were ordering a new ballast? If so the icecap and ARO will run just about anything. Anyway... dont forget to take pics!

[leaffish75]

jaded - i am ordering a new ballast. I was just saying orginally i was going to do DIY ballast and wiring but decided not to.

[jaded]

ic