PC ---> VHO upgrade

imtheonlylp · 11/20/2006, 08:00 PM

ok, i just upgraded (not much) from PC (4x65w coralife retro) to a 4x110w URI w/icecap660 setup....i like the brightness of the lights; they light up the entire tank unlike the 22" predecessors...however, the new bulbs (2-super actinics and 2-aquasun) give this pink look to the tank...i have the 46.5" bulbs...anyone know how to get more of a "white" or "clear" light? thanks

dadummy · 11/20/2006, 08:22 PM

try this,

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...hreadid=976348

imtheonlylp · 11/20/2006, 09:24 PM

well....just as i was typing the first post to this thread, i heard a "bzz" sound coming from the den...to my horror, i found the canopy filled with smoke, so i turned the lights off, unplugged the ballast, and found the culprit to be one of the endcaps...i am positive that the wiring was correct, as i triple-checked it before anything was even installed...well needless to say, the damage cost me one endcap and one super actinic URI bulb....i just emailed marinedepot and hopefully this situation will be remedied...my corals are depending on it! here are some pictures:

twkenny · 11/20/2006, 09:31 PM

Wow..
Looks like the bulbs may not have been "tight" enough. Meaning the endcaps were possibly not close enogh together. I've seen the same thing happen with T5's.
If the lights lit, you wired them properly.....wiring 4 is pretty easy. Loose connections or bulbs can be problematic. Hope it all works out.

imtheonlylp · 11/20/2006, 09:41 PM

yeah, they were very tight...in fact i almost thought the endcaps were too close together...but the insides of the endcaps had a little "give" to them, so they didnt put too much pressure on the caps themselves...i have confidence in marinedepot's customer service; they replaced my 48" bulb order with these 46.5" ones because i didnt figure in the surrounding edges of my canopy when ordering them...keeping my fingers crossed though -=\

twkenny · 11/20/2006, 09:53 PM

Good luck! Glad nobody got hurt and you caught it in time.....
I'm sure they will help you out.

dodgersfan25 · 11/20/2006, 11:13 PM

well at least you were there to fix it before worse could have happened!

swegyptian · 11/21/2006, 02:29 AM

You might want to try a different brand of 10K. I have the URI, becuase I didn't like the other brand that I had, which made things look less pink, and more green. The bulb I got rid of was a coralife 10K. Maybe try using one or two of those instead.

imtheonlylp · 11/21/2006, 09:06 AM

i only have a couple of soft corals in the tank as of now....a blue-green ricordia and a couple of kenya trees...any idea on how hardy these guys will be for the next few days w/o lighting? i hate the thought of them dying because theyve been so great for a couple of years now...

11/20/2006, 08:00 PM	#1
imtheonlylp Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Columbus, Ga Posts: 465	PC ---> VHO upgrade ok, i just upgraded (not much) from PC (4x65w coralife retro) to a 4x110w URI w/icecap660 setup....i like the brightness of the lights; they light up the entire tank unlike the 22" predecessors...however, the new bulbs (2-super actinics and 2-aquasun) give this pink look to the tank...i have the 46.5" bulbs...anyone know how to get more of a "white" or "clear" light? thanks __________________ "Tomorrow is the only day that appeals to a lazy man" - Jimmy Lyons Current Tank Info: 75g glass, 20g sump/refugium, QueenTS200, CA2300 return pump, (2) AquaClear4000 powerheads

11/20/2006, 09:24 PM	#3
imtheonlylp Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Columbus, Ga Posts: 465	well....just as i was typing the first post to this thread, i heard a "bzz" sound coming from the den...to my horror, i found the canopy filled with smoke, so i turned the lights off, unplugged the ballast, and found the culprit to be one of the endcaps...i am positive that the wiring was correct, as i triple-checked it before anything was even installed...well needless to say, the damage cost me one endcap and one super actinic URI bulb....i just emailed marinedepot and hopefully this situation will be remedied...my corals are depending on it! here are some pictures: __________________ "Tomorrow is the only day that appeals to a lazy man" - Jimmy Lyons Current Tank Info: 75g glass, 20g sump/refugium, QueenTS200, CA2300 return pump, (2) AquaClear4000 powerheads

11/20/2006, 09:41 PM	#5
imtheonlylp Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Columbus, Ga Posts: 465	yeah, they were very tight...in fact i almost thought the endcaps were too close together...but the insides of the endcaps had a little "give" to them, so they didnt put too much pressure on the caps themselves...i have confidence in marinedepot's customer service; they replaced my 48" bulb order with these 46.5" ones because i didnt figure in the surrounding edges of my canopy when ordering them...keeping my fingers crossed though -=\ __________________ "Tomorrow is the only day that appeals to a lazy man" - Jimmy Lyons Current Tank Info: 75g glass, 20g sump/refugium, QueenTS200, CA2300 return pump, (2) AquaClear4000 powerheads

11/20/2006, 11:13 PM	#7
dodgersfan25 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Valencia (So Cal) Posts: 757	well at least you were there to fix it before worse could have happened! __________________ -rich Current Tank Info: 90 Gallon Mixed Reef

11/21/2006, 09:06 AM	#9
imtheonlylp Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Columbus, Ga Posts: 465	i only have a couple of soft corals in the tank as of now....a blue-green ricordia and a couple of kenya trees...any idea on how hardy these guys will be for the next few days w/o lighting? i hate the thought of them dying because theyve been so great for a couple of years now... __________________ "Tomorrow is the only day that appeals to a lazy man" - Jimmy Lyons Current Tank Info: 75g glass, 20g sump/refugium, QueenTS200, CA2300 return pump, (2) AquaClear4000 powerheads

11/20/2006, 08:22 PM	#2
dadummy Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: S.Fla Posts: 1,041	try this, http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...hreadid=976348

11/20/2006, 09:31 PM	#4
twkenny Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Sunny South Posts: 1,081	Wow.. Looks like the bulbs may not have been "tight" enough. Meaning the endcaps were possibly not close enogh together. I've seen the same thing happen with T5's. If the lights lit, you wired them properly.....wiring 4 is pretty easy. Loose connections or bulbs can be problematic. Hope it all works out.

11/20/2006, 09:53 PM	#6
twkenny Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Sunny South Posts: 1,081	Good luck! Glad nobody got hurt and you caught it in time..... I'm sure they will help you out.

11/21/2006, 02:29 AM	#8
swegyptian Registered Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Central Illinois Posts: 991	You might want to try a different brand of 10K. I have the URI, becuase I didn't like the other brand that I had, which made things look less pink, and more green. The bulb I got rid of was a coralife 10K. Maybe try using one or two of those instead.