Thinking of switching ballasts for the Current USA Outer Orbit HQI fixture..

[NewGirl]

Hi guys,

I have the Current USA Outer Orbit Pro HQI/T5 250 watt light fixture and after reading an article that said electronic ballasts run cooler and save on electrical costs, I was thinking of switching out the magnetic ballast that came with the fixture to an electronic ballast. Has anyone done this with this type of fixture? If it is advisable to do so, what would be a good brand that you guys would recommend? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[danno14]

Check this out first:

http://www.reeflightinginfo.arvixe.com/selectperformancedata.php

This is a link to the web page of who I consider the "Godfather" of reef tank lighting. What you look to learn is here or linked from here. In short regarding your query, generally speaking an HQI ballast will draw more energy, but also puts out more usable light. There is a measure of efficiency Sanjay uses that divides output by amps (or vice versa) to arrive at a number that is comparable between bulbs and ballasts.

Good luck! D

 

[NewGirl]

Thanks for the info, danno! I'll definitely check it out!

 

[Dirtsquirt]

I don't think that you'll see a gain when switching from the magnetic to an electronic, mostly due to the upfront cost of the upgrade itself.

It's like buying a hybrid that gets 5mpg better but costs 10k more than the standard model

 

[Reeferdude]

Good analogy!

 

[NewGirl]

Thanks for the advice! I think I will probably just stick with the magnetic ballasts, then, it'll save me some $$$ for other stuff!