New Lights?

[PRC]

I'm considering buying these lights...my current system is kind of a hodge podge of a couple of different lights from my 90g.....I can pick this up for $250. sell my lights and probably make a couple of bucks on it...But I don't know anything about Hamilton lights Here's the description on CL....How do you think they'd work on my 180g? They have 20k bulbs on them right now, that are about 8 months old, so they'll need to be changed relatively quickly and I don't care too much about the actinics because I barely use mine right now.


CL ad:

72" hamilton halide se fixture 2-250w 1-400w with dual VHO actinic just over a year and a half old comes with all ballasts bulbs 8mo. old looking for 350 or to trade for 72" t5 not looking for anything crazy converting to FOWLR

 

[yote]

Hamilton makes good lights.And you cant go wrong with the price plus it'll be plenty for about anything you want to keep.
I'd buy it.

 

[ccCapt]

That sounds good, but I would ask the seller a few questions.
What kind of ballast runs the VHO's? mag or elec
Was the unit modified...as in 1 250w ballast replaced with a 400w ballast. I didn't see any new Hamilton fixtures with 2x250 and 1x400.
What kind of ballast runs the 250's? 2 mags, 2 elec or 1 dual electronic
What ballast runs the 400? mag or elec

 

[PRC]

Thanks...After I got off the phone with him, I was wondering the same thing. As far as I can tell, Hamilton doesn't make a unit with 2 250's and a 400....The Ballasts are magnetic.

 

[ccCapt]

I would still go for it. Even wih mag ballasts it's a good deal and you can get another 6-8 months out of the MH bulbs...depending on what brand they are. Since the VHO's are only supplemental, you can use them for about another 4 months.

When it's time to replace the MH bulbs, you may want to think about getting a 250w ballast and replace the 400. You don't need it and it will generate a ton of heat.

 

[Smitty]

That sounds like a great deal...I'd go for it. Is there an attached fan to get rid of some of that heat?

 

[PRC]

I just got back from picking the lights up. Yeah it has 2 built in fans, 1 pulling air in, the other pushing hot air out. Has 3 Ballasts, 1 400w, 1for the 250's, and 1 for the actinics. Just got done cleaning it up. going to install it once my lights cool down enough to move them...Sorry, don't ask for pics. My phone is out of memory, and my wife has the camera camping for a week.

 

[PRC]

Ooooh...The actinics really make my zoas color up nicely...Pretty happy right now.:D

 

[reeffreak]

Hamilton was the first lighting system back in 1990.Well-made but not so attractive.They look exactly the same today.

Congrats,

 

[PRC]

Yeah, I don't care what they look like because they're behind the wall. The only person who sees them is me. They're pretty cool I'm enjoying them so far. The ballasts are some heavy mutha's.. They've really brightened up my tank. My zoas and favia just pop with color....Now I'm a little less jealous of everyone else. But just a little.

 

[Ulta]

Nice PRC!

I was considering picking up this Fixture for my tank:

I have an older, but in good shape, Hamilton 175 w x2, 40x2 t12 fixture that I no longer use. MH bulbs are pulseright 14k(used four hours a day for eight months). The 40 watt bulbs are uvl super actinics(used eight hours a day for eight months. The fixture has dual fans and a magnetic Ballast. I kept all three types of coral(soft, LPS, sps) in my 72 with no problems. I am asking $225 or best offer.

Only problem was that hes about 2 hrs away, and when asked to ship he mentioned the ballast being something like 40 lbs >.<!

Maybe if I can talk him down some on the price it would be worth the trip...

Any opinions?