So even though this has been done a lot of times, I just wanted to share my biocube lighting upgrade. I decided to do it by myself rather than purchase the nanotuners kit because I had an extra biocube hood sitting in my office (one of the on and off switches went bad, so they sent me a new hood)
Anyways, I bought a Workhorse 3 Ballast from ReefRunners, it will support well over the wattage that I needed, but this way, if I have a ballast go out, I can just wire one of my fixtures up to this and not have to worry about it.
For now I decided to not make a quick disconnect for my ballast box. I am hoping to do an LED retro this summer, but wanted something right now for extra color in my tank.
Right now I have Two Actinics and one 10k, thought the Hamilton Tech Actinic is about twice as blue as the Coralife one, which is making me want to switch the coralife out for a 50/50 Hamilton Bulb just to help my corals out a little bit.
I don't have a lot of build pictures, but if you look at the hood, since I drilled it and used the stock wiring, everything looks pretty stock. I also used the stock reflector and cut off the side vents covering the fans for better airflow.
I'm sure that the fan wasn't needed on the project box as the ballast doesn't get too hot, but it made for a fun project, and now I have a light in my cabinet so I can check my timer
If anyone has any questions, please let me know. I know we have a lot of people on the forums with biocubes, and this was a really easy modification that cost me in total about $25
Total Parts List
Workhorse 3 Ballast
Radioshack 7x5x3 Project Box
Computer Case Fan (60MM)
Case Fan Cover
Hamilton 24w Actinic Bulb
Misc Radioshack Connectors
Electrical Tape
Power Cord (From an Ikea Power Strip)
Project Box Outside
Project Box Inside
Hood
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