DIY: How to get a 175w MH ballast and Mogul socket for under $50!..pic heavy - Page 3

H20ENG · 10/26/2007, 06:46 PM

Sorry, I missed the last few posts on page one

PaulErik,
I just checked your site- great stuff. Thanks for the info about the LPS lamps. We have a bunch of 90 watt LPS lamps at work for an exhibit (art museum) and the light is so sickly yellow that people are calling it "zombie vision". Wondering why they are used so much in tunnels, etc. higher contrast?

PaulErik · 10/26/2007, 07:23 PM

LPS lamps are pretty much monochromatic. They are good for contrast. The general idea is that they are good for foggy and rainy condensations but no strong evidence shows this. Due to the monochromatic light the lighting industry is preferring other (fuller spectrum) lighting these days. Current studies have shown the human eye performs better with whiter/bluer light due to scotopic vision (low light levels). Metal halide lighting sales keep increasing in the roadway and security lighting applications for this reason.

H20ENG · 10/26/2007, 07:40 PM

We also have some nice Philips 35w halide pinspot lamps. I'd like to find some good high color temp lamps for them to convert to reef use.

We have a bunch of $16 each T2 flourescents that are complete garbage. The ends burn and lose the gas- about once a week

Hear that Cannarella? Tell your guys to stay away from T2s for now

cannarella · 10/26/2007, 07:52 PM

I work in IT, I have no clue what we make. I love the look of MH for parking lights and road lighting. I can't stand MV and the orangey look. Oh yea, we don't make lamps, just fixtures.

Atarax · 10/26/2007, 08:01 PM

I have a question PaulErik, keep in mind i know nothing about all this voltage, wattage, amps and ohms stuff. There is an electrical supply company just down the street. Graybar, and i was wondering if there was an inexpensive balast they sell that can run a MH bulb properly.
dunno if u know of them or not but here is the link.
http://graybar.com/

spleify · 10/26/2007, 10:48 PM

Nothing like hijacking this poor guys thread.

Young Frankenstein · 10/27/2007, 03:54 AM

1. The capacitor is in all magnetic ballasts for MH bulbs to limit current since they have a natural property to draw more current than they need to work. Without the capacitor the lamp will go on and probably overheat, start a fire, of just burn out.
2. The light bulb in the photo is a mercury vapor and not a MH, I can tell this by looking at the filament.
3. All this is great information and you can use the same procedure as kindly stated in this thread, just make shure you have a MH light fixture

4. Try to recycle, we take fixtures out all the time in this trade, you can find them in ebay or from local suppliers for a fraction of the original cost or sometimes free

spleify · 10/28/2007, 06:14 PM

Any update's and pics on the reflector yet?

kysard1 · 10/28/2007, 06:53 PM

I thought the capacitor just helped with the power factor, I know HPS lamps will run without a cap.

cannarella · 10/28/2007, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by 0 Agios
1. The capacitor is in all magnetic ballasts for MH bulbs to limit current since they have a natural property to draw more current than they need to work. Without the capacitor the lamp will go on and probably overheat, start a fire, of just burn out.

I thought that is what the ballast was for. I thought the capacitor was for the initial strike. One of my electrical engineers at work told me once you could hook up a MH lamp to a regular 120v source and it would draw more and more power until it burns out or trips the circuit.

PaulErik · 10/29/2007, 07:21 PM

The purpose of the capacitor will depend on the ballast circuit type. In every ballast circuit type it is used for power factor correction.

Some HPS, MH and MV ballasts will run fine without a capacitor. In a HX (high reactance) or R (Reactor) ballast circuit the capacitor only does power factor correction. Without a capacitor the lamp will still operate the same but the power factor will be low. A CWA (constant wattage autotransformer) ballast circuit the capacitor is required for the lamp to operate properly.

Any discharge lamp will draw as much power as it can until it fails. This is why a ballast is needed. The ballasts secondary coil limits most of the current in a CWA ballast circuit but the capacitor is used along with the ballast to limit current.

10/26/2007, 07:52 PM	#54
cannarella Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Loganville, GA Posts: 935	I work in IT, I have no clue what we make. I love the look of MH for parking lights and road lighting. I can't stand MV and the orangey look. Oh yea, we don't make lamps, just fixtures. __________________ If my phaser discharges off by as little as .06 terra watts, it would cause a cascading exothermal inversion. Current Tank Info: 65 Reef

10/26/2007, 10:48 PM	#56
spleify Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Denver, Colorado Posts: 9,579	Nothing like hijacking this poor guys thread. __________________ Make it a Great Day!!!! Current Tank Info: 60 gal SPS cube, with 25 gal refugium, 400W MH, DIY Lumenarc III, DIY skimmer, DIY stand and canopy. 40 breeder LPS with 40 gallon sump, DIY stand, 250W MH

10/28/2007, 06:14 PM	#58
spleify Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Denver, Colorado Posts: 9,579	Any update's and pics on the reflector yet? __________________ Make it a Great Day!!!! Current Tank Info: 60 gal SPS cube, with 25 gal refugium, 400W MH, DIY Lumenarc III, DIY skimmer, DIY stand and canopy. 40 breeder LPS with 40 gallon sump, DIY stand, 250W MH

10/26/2007, 06:46 PM	#51
H20ENG Pro builder/aquarist hack Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: NORCAL (Vacaville, CA) Posts: 5,125	Sorry, I missed the last few posts on page one PaulErik, I just checked your site- great stuff. Thanks for the info about the LPS lamps. We have a bunch of 90 watt LPS lamps at work for an exhibit (art museum) and the light is so sickly yellow that people are calling it "zombie vision". Wondering why they are used so much in tunnels, etc. higher contrast?

10/26/2007, 07:23 PM	#52
PaulErik Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: North Charleston, SC Posts: 1,703	LPS lamps are pretty much monochromatic. They are good for contrast. The general idea is that they are good for foggy and rainy condensations but no strong evidence shows this. Due to the monochromatic light the lighting industry is preferring other (fuller spectrum) lighting these days. Current studies have shown the human eye performs better with whiter/bluer light due to scotopic vision (low light levels). Metal halide lighting sales keep increasing in the roadway and security lighting applications for this reason.

10/26/2007, 07:40 PM	#53
H20ENG Pro builder/aquarist hack Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: NORCAL (Vacaville, CA) Posts: 5,125	We also have some nice Philips 35w halide pinspot lamps. I'd like to find some good high color temp lamps for them to convert to reef use. We have a bunch of $16 each T2 flourescents that are complete garbage. The ends burn and lose the gas- about once a week Hear that Cannarella? Tell your guys to stay away from T2s for now

10/26/2007, 08:01 PM	#55
Atarax Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Florida Posts: 103	I have a question PaulErik, keep in mind i know nothing about all this voltage, wattage, amps and ohms stuff. There is an electrical supply company just down the street. Graybar, and i was wondering if there was an inexpensive balast they sell that can run a MH bulb properly. dunno if u know of them or not but here is the link. http://graybar.com/

10/27/2007, 03:54 AM	#57
Young Frankenstein Moved On Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Miami Florida. Posts: 3,842	1. The capacitor is in all magnetic ballasts for MH bulbs to limit current since they have a natural property to draw more current than they need to work. Without the capacitor the lamp will go on and probably overheat, start a fire, of just burn out. 2. The light bulb in the photo is a mercury vapor and not a MH, I can tell this by looking at the filament. 3. All this is great information and you can use the same procedure as kindly stated in this thread, just make shure you have a MH light fixture 4. Try to recycle, we take fixtures out all the time in this trade, you can find them in ebay or from local suppliers for a fraction of the original cost or sometimes free

10/28/2007, 06:53 PM	#59
kysard1 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: SE PA Posts: 827	I thought the capacitor just helped with the power factor, I know HPS lamps will run without a cap.

10/29/2007, 07:21 PM	#61
PaulErik Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: North Charleston, SC Posts: 1,703	The purpose of the capacitor will depend on the ballast circuit type. In every ballast circuit type it is used for power factor correction. Some HPS, MH and MV ballasts will run fine without a capacitor. In a HX (high reactance) or R (Reactor) ballast circuit the capacitor only does power factor correction. Without a capacitor the lamp will still operate the same but the power factor will be low. A CWA (constant wattage autotransformer) ballast circuit the capacitor is required for the lamp to operate properly. Any discharge lamp will draw as much power as it can until it fails. This is why a ballast is needed. The ballasts secondary coil limits most of the current in a CWA ballast circuit but the capacitor is used along with the ballast to limit current.