WOW !!!!!HOME DEPOT LIGHT
Printed From: Utah Reefs
Category: Specialized Discussion
Forum Name: DIY
Forum Description: Do it Yourself
URL: http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2561
Printed Date: July 04 2026 at 5:03pm
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.03 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: WOW !!!!!HOME DEPOT LIGHT
Posted By: seti007
Subject: WOW !!!!!HOME DEPOT LIGHT
Date Posted: May 14 2004 at 5:00pm
|
I went to home depot to buy a light for my refugium. I wanted to get the flourax light that made quite a sensation last year for being a cheap light that output (atleast claimed to) 500W of light while consuming 65W. the spectrum was good too. However, while looking around the aisles, i found that they now carry a 175 metal halide (mercury vapor) fixture. It is made by regent and says "dusk to dawn" on it. It also says blue/white light. Well I had to try it, so I brought it home and within minutes I had it fired up. All i have to say is WOW, The spectrum starts up at very Blue and at full brightness looks just like the 10K bulbs I have. It comes in a complete kit (magnetic ballast, weather resistant housing, reflector etc) all for $22 . That should make it very attractive for all the DIYers out there. BTW. the other flourax fixture that was a flourescent bulb was $34 and not nearly as bright. I would highly recommend the Regent light for people starting new systems. Asad |
Replies:
Posted By: reptoreef
Date Posted: May 14 2004 at 6:38pm
| Is their anybody in the club that would be able to test the true kelvins? This could really damage all the profits of MH brandnames/manufacturers if it is comparable. |
Posted By: ewaldsreef
Date Posted: May 14 2004 at 10:49pm
|
Please let us know how this light does in the long run. Sounds like a great refuge light if nothing else. ------------- Contact me for professional aquarium maintenance and localy grown coral frags. [URL=http://www.aquatitranquility.com][/URL] |
Posted By: acerob
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 6:22am
|
I saw this light a few weeks ago and was wondering if it was something that we could use on our reef tanks. thanks for the info. ------------- Highland, UT 12g Nano 90g Reef |
Posted By: Skyetone
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 8:34am
|
for that price, I could make 400 watts easy.... LOL The bulbs are small right? ------------- I will just give my warning that your system will flood, bulbs will burn out, and things will take continuous maintenance... get over it. Magna |
Posted By: coreyk
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 9:24am
|
so is it metal halide or mercury vapor? i thought they were different checkout these threads -- is it one of these bulbs? if it is the 4000k bulb i wonder if you can run a normal aquarium bulb on it? you dont have aother 175w bulb to test on it do you? |
Posted By: Aquarium Creations
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 9:57am
|
Yes they are diffrent, that ballast will not fire a Metal Halide bulb i did some testing on that unit last year found it wasnt the greatest light for what was needed for aquarium use but good luck.... ------------- Aquarium Maintenance,Consulting,Custom Built Glass Aquariums Rimless/Euro,24Hr Emergency Service 8015485201 Www.UtahAquariumDoctors.com [email protected] |
Posted By: chrisslc
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 1:42pm
|
Mercury Vapor is an older technology that does not produce light as efficiently as Metal Halide, So I would bet that the 175w MV is not putting out as many Lumens per Watt as a 175w MH. However at the $22 price tag that still seems a pretty good DIY option. ------------- Murray, Utah just north of the park. "It's all the same to the clam" -Shel Silverstein |
Posted By: bhaight
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 2:12pm
|
I'm thinking of doing a fish only tank and I would guess that these lights would be a great option for that. Thanks for letting us know! ------------- Bill Haight You'll need a bigger boat. |
Posted By: chrisslc
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 5:05pm
|
I have considered this personally but have never been able to convince myself that these are a good alternative for lighting. I'm not saying they absolutely aren't but, beyond the reason above it seems that they would be hotter and not really the "Ideal" range of color spectrum, "good enough" maybe. And to paraphrase someone else recently, Everything you could think of has been tried and their are reasons why people recommend Metal Halides and variants of flourescent. But then again I'm all for DIY, and people do amazing things with unusual methods all the time Edit: just reread the post above me and am shagrinned (sp?), probably a great option for FO. ------------- Murray, Utah just north of the park. "It's all the same to the clam" -Shel Silverstein |
.
Posted By: seti007
Date Posted: May 15 2004 at 7:24pm
|
Update... I have the light going on my refugium (55gal). I let it run all night and all day today, It has turned a little to the yellow side. It looks very similar to 6500 K Iwasaki. I think it is a great light for growing algae and hopefully coralline on the rock in my refuge. In anycase u cant beat $22. I will try to see if it fires my 175 MH bulb. Ill keep u posted. Asad |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: May 16 2004 at 6:58am
|
here is some info on the bulb that comes in that unit.
http://donsbulbs.com/cgi-bin/r/b.pl/h39kb175.html ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: jfinch
Date Posted: May 16 2004 at 9:25am
|
The color temp on that bulb isn't all bad (5700 K), but the lumens seem awfully low (7800 lumen). If it's really 5700 K then it should appear a little more yellow then the readily available Iwasaki bulb. ------------- Jon https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6y_EzjI_ljbIwf2n5uNzTw" rel="nofollow - What I've been doing... |
Posted By: seti007
Date Posted: May 16 2004 at 9:30pm
|
The specs say its 7800 Lumens (initial lumens) I think the lumen value goes up as it warms up because it gets considerably brighter (and yellower) within a few minutes. I think that the 5700K is accurate and should be great for macro algae in a refuge. Asad |
Posted By: jfinch
Date Posted: May 16 2004 at 10:13pm
|
No, the 7800 lumen is the value when the bulb is new. As it ages it drops down to a lower value. Maybe around 6240 lumens like this MV 175 watt bulb from Iwasaki: http://www.eyelighting.com/ebtseries.html - http://www.eyelighting.com/ebtseries.html I agree, it might be a good bulb for a sump. It might even be ok for a tank, but I'm sure I wouldn't really like the color. ------------- Jon https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6y_EzjI_ljbIwf2n5uNzTw" rel="nofollow - What I've been doing... |
Posted By: acerob
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 8:47am
|
how about mixing these lights with PC's or NO acintic lights?? ------------- Highland, UT 12g Nano 90g Reef |
Posted By: kcliao
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 11:32am
|
Bruce, Suzy has one for her refugium. She likes it. Thanks, KC ------------- I am from Pacific Ocean. |
Posted By: acerob
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 12:00pm
|
I was thinking of trying one on a nano. I have seen several posts especially on RC that talk about using MH on thier nano's, but expressed that they do run a little hot. Do they run hot? what do you guys recommend?? ------------- Highland, UT 12g Nano 90g Reef |
Posted By: seti007
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 2:14pm
|
This particular light runs quite hot. You would have trouble running it without adequate ventilation. Also you will have to make a DIY enclosure for it as it comes with a huge outdoor housing. ASad |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 5:11pm
|
seti007 have you tried a MH bulb in the fixture?
------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: seti007
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 9:55pm
|
Yes It does fire the 175 watt Ushio 10K bulb I have and the light output looks the same as the electronic ballast that is supposed to drive the MH lamp. I also tried the mercury vapor lamp in the electronic ballast and it produced a very dim yellow light. Asad |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: May 17 2004 at 10:20pm
|
So, let me see if I understand. For $22 we can buy a ballast and fixture that runs a 175W MH!
Kewl 
I will be anxious to here how long it lasts. ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member 
|
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 7:05am
|
WOW i'd like to try that.. anyone have any old 175 MH bulbs 6500 to 10k? ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: coreyk
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 8:20am
| so ... if this ballast fires a standard MH bulb. does it also put out the same amount of light with that bulb? |
Posted By: seti007
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 12:16pm
| Well its very unscientific but from looking at it, the color/ intensity seems the same. the bulb i used is an ushio 10k 175w/ |
Posted By: Skyetone
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 4:27pm
|
so.......... what home depot? I can see it now.... "wow, we sure moved alot of those lights this week...." ------------- I will just give my warning that your system will flood, bulbs will burn out, and things will take continuous maintenance... get over it. Magna |
Posted By: coreyk
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 4:47pm
LOL ... i was thining the same thing!
|
Posted By: jfinch
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 8:20pm
|
I would be cautious about using a metal halide bulb with a mercury vapor ballast. Metal halide ballasts are rated to run mercury vapor bulbs but mercury vapor ballasts are not rated to operate metal halide bulbs. It will most likely shorten the life of the metal halide bulb. And frankly it might be dangerous. But I'm not really sure If you want a better bulb, you might check out the Iwasaki bulbs. They're actually mercury vapor bulbs. Or just use the mercury vapor bulbs as is. Mercury vapor lighting was used in horticultural applications before metal halides came about. The disadvantages of mercury vapor (compared to the same wattage MH) are more heat, less light and poorer color spectrum. But they will grow stuff. I still can't believe how cheap HD is selling them for Asad, if you do decide to keep the MH bulb in the fixture, keep this thread updated with how it progesses. I'd be interested in what you find. ------------- Jon https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6y_EzjI_ljbIwf2n5uNzTw" rel="nofollow - What I've been doing... |
. Normally, MV ballasts are not any cheaper then MH...Posted By: seti007
Date Posted: May 18 2004 at 10:57pm
|
Update..... Well I let the lights run for a day with the MH in the mercury vapor ballast and vice versa. A most peculear thing happened. After runnig fine and firing up multiple times ( I tested by turning it on and off several times) the metal halide bulb fails to fire any more in the mercury vapor ballast. I switched them back to their respective ballasts and now they both work. I guess JFinch is right, MH bulbs are probably not rated to run in Mercury vapor ballasts and might just be hit and run at best. I guess I would need to try out some other MH bulbs and see how that works. If someone had older 175W MH lamps laying around that they want to lend me, i can test those out. Also, the mercury vapor bulb ran on the 50 gal tank i have in my basement that I use as a growout tank. In just one day the xenia closest to the surface(that used to absolutely love the 10K ushio light) has shriveled up and seems to be burned. Could this indicate a large amount of UV being emitted from the bulb? If so, this bulb might not be a good option for a reef tank. This brings me to my next question, does anyone know of a mercury vapor lamp that has a high Kelvin rating like a 10K or higher? So for now the MV bulb is back in its ballast over my refuge. I will see how it grows the macro algae. I will keep yall posted. Asad |
Posted By: jfinch
Date Posted: May 19 2004 at 6:36am
|
Look for a 175 watt MH probe start bulb. All MV ballasts are probe start. The Ushio is a pulse start bulb. I'm not aware of any MV bulb with a CRI higher then 6500 K. ------------- Jon https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6y_EzjI_ljbIwf2n5uNzTw" rel="nofollow - What I've been doing... |
Posted By: acerob
Date Posted: July 21 2004 at 12:33pm
|
seti007, how has the Home depot light faired over the past couple of months?? ------------- Highland, UT 12g Nano 90g Reef |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: July 21 2004 at 12:39pm
|
i have them over my experiment tank they are great so for corals are growing good. the lights alittle yellow green. but everything is doing great so far.
do a search for experimental tank and you'll see it. ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: acerob
Date Posted: July 21 2004 at 12:40pm
|
cool, I was wondering if anyone was having any luck with them. ------------- Highland, UT 12g Nano 90g Reef |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: July 21 2004 at 12:45pm
|
yeah i'm going to update my post with new pics. just have to take the pics.. lol ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: July 21 2004 at 12:49pm
|
ok one more thing. the bulbs in this setup are 5700K. i have been looking to get 6500 or better. anyone know where to get these MV bulbs or a listing of bulbs and kelvens? ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: Skyetone
Date Posted: July 21 2004 at 4:56pm
|
so you say that the lights are growing corals... or is it the other lighting growing the corals.... Would you say it would be a good add on to say a PC lighting system? or would you say that you can run it alone? ------------- I will just give my warning that your system will flood, bulbs will burn out, and things will take continuous maintenance... get over it. Magna |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: July 22 2004 at 6:39am
|
well everything is growing and seems happy. i also use 2 110w vho's. i don't think i would run them alone i use actinic bulbs too. they are only 5700k so if looks of the tank matters, you would not want to use them. most ppl like a more blueish look these give off a greenish yellow look.
------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: Skyetone
Date Posted: July 22 2004 at 4:45pm
|
so in your opinion is it the VHO's making things grow or the MH? ------------- I will just give my warning that your system will flood, bulbs will burn out, and things will take continuous maintenance... get over it. Magna |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: July 23 2004 at 6:44am
|
i'd say both... ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: Skyetone
Date Posted: July 23 2004 at 6:53am
|
sounds like I need to go to HD... anyone else using these lights? ------------- I will just give my warning that your system will flood, bulbs will burn out, and things will take continuous maintenance... get over it. Magna |
Posted By: dschultz
Date Posted: January 26 2005 at 8:15pm
|
I have had 3 of these lights on my tank since I set it up. The
growth with them is excellent, but the color is definatly too much on
the yellow side for my tastes. I have 3 400W 10K MHs on the way. I will
keep the Home Depot 6800K MV lights for the soon to be grown
out/frag tank in the basement, you can't beat them for the price. ------------- --David |
Posted By: acerob
Date Posted: January 27 2005 at 10:31am
|
peregrinus, do you think that the actinics helps with the coloring on your with these lights?? ------------- Highland, UT 12g Nano 90g Reef |
Posted By: peregrinus
Date Posted: January 27 2005 at 1:41pm
yes my setup with 2 175 homedepot MV's and 2 110 vho .03 actinics make it a white light. it looks good with it like that but green/yellow with just the MV's.
 ------------- In Clearfield Quantum mechanics the dreams stuff is made of. |
Posted By: FISHMAN Dan
Date Posted: February 15 2005 at 6:51pm
|
I used one for a while on my fuge and found the light peaks too high in the green spectrum (note moe's book) and the dropoff in intensity is noticeable after 3 months, I replaced mine with a mh ------------- 125 reef, grower of hard to find macro algea,(feather giant feather, branching coraline ect... |