Is it worth it to retrofit aquarium strip lights?

[emc7]

I'm putting all my lights on timers and discovering some aren't self-starting--you need to push and hold a button to start. Is is easy/cheap or hard/expensive to change them to self-starting? Has anybody done this? Is it cost effective vs. buying new light? What if I wanted to add a second bulb for plants? Do you put new 2 bulb fixtures in the old plastic box or do you buy all new fixtures?

I'm not very skilled with a soldiering iron, but I do own one and I have replaced non-polarized cords with polarized ones.

[jones57742]

emc:

Is really odd for you to be asking the question and not Ron!

I presume that the lights to which you are referring are fluorescent.

The ballast and not the lights is the problem.

An electronic ballast will fire up the lights quickly and quietly as well as be much more efficient than an analog ballast (these are my words as I am no electrician).

If you have quality Tx lighting the ballast is probably external to the fixture and replacing your current ballast with an electronic ballast "should be" no problem.

If your lighting is PC, MH, etc then you probably have ballasts which are internal to the fixture. My proficiency with a soldering iron is much less than yours and I would be SOL with respect to ballast retrofitting in the fixtures for these lightings.

TR

[emc7]

Ron prob. knows the answer. So look for external ballast on the cord, right? Thanks.

[jones57742]

Originally Posted by emc7

Ron prob. knows the answer. So look for external ballast on the cord, right? Thanks.

emc: If this is a Tx lighting fixture without an internal ballast then the cord from the plug will go to a ballast and one or more cords will go from the ballast to the fixture.


emc: I have been into chunking, retrofitting and adding. If you have pic's and descriptions I may can be of some help.


TR

[joe kool]

check out ahsupply as they have some awesome retrofit kits that really brighten your tank. I've used there 55w as well as 96w kits on several aquariums, not just my own. I retrofitted a 55 gal for a hair salon that had the 2 separate hoods with 2 55w kits and the results were phenomenal their aluminum reflector is one of the best made for aquarium use hands down. They have several customer reviews and a comparison page for a popular brand fixture versus their retro fit kit.

They aren't the cheapest, I think it ended up being $90 or so to do that 55 gal and another $35-$40 for both 55w bulbs. You can find cheaper pre-built or assembled light fixtures but there aren't many that will rival the light out put of these kits regardless of cost and NONE of the cheaper ones even come close!

[joe kool]

here's a link:

www.ahsupply.com

I posted this seperately so it could be deleted if this isn't an "authorized" site to link to.

[Jgray152]

Marinedepot.com has some retro kits as well. They also sell just the ballasts. Im going to be going this route as I am knowledgable with wiring.

I agree that its possibly the ballast but if the tubes are old or el cheapo tubes they may have a hard time starting up.

[jones57742]

Originally Posted by Jgray152

Marinedepot.com has some retro kits as well. They also sell just the ballasts. Im going to be going this route as I am knowledgable with wiring.

I agree that its possibly the ballast but if the tubes are old or el cheapo tubes they may have a hard time starting up.

Yes!!! the salesmen at Marine Depot are very, very knowledgeable and Marine Depot is my primary source of hardware.

Excuse me here Jg but I did not discuss bulbs because emc did not say anything about flicker during or subsequent to ignition.

TR

[Jgray152]

True about the bulbs Jones. I must have jumped to conclusions.

I really respect marinedepot as they have a wide variety of products. I go there all the time to atleast find what im may be looking for. Their prices can sometimes be a bit steep but you can atleast find that same product else where for cheaper sometimes.