T5 ballast ,how many bulbs

[tttony]

I have my reef set up with two fulham workhorse 5 ballast doing great, one ballast does 4 24" bulbs the other does 2 24" bulbs. Im starting the build on my 120 corner ,I planned on using two more workhorse 5 , 3 -39 watt bulbs on each one. But I just pick up a bunch of 30 inch bulbs.


The question is and I cant find the answer on fulhams web page is how many 30 inch , 31 watt bulbs can I run on workhorse 5?

 

[batt600]

You can run on one ballest 1-3 39W T5 bulb on that ballest . the question is how deep is the tank going to be . If you can i would use 10 39w T5 bulb on that tank

 

[tttony]

Thanks for the quick reply.Im ready to wire these up now!

But I need to know how many 31 watt 30 inch long bulbs the ballest can do.
The tank is 30 " tall,

 

[NYreefNoob]

tank dimensions ? are the 30" bulbs regular t5 or hot5 bulbs this also makes a difference

 

[batt600]

Yes tank dimensions here are the spec of the ballest i got on the web



The Fulham Workhorse 5 T5 HO Fluorescent Ballast will run one of the following setups:

• 2-4 24W B T5 bulbs
• 1-3 39W T5 bulb
• 1-2 54W T5 bulb
• 1 80W T5 Bulb

and heres Fulham page for your ballest

http://www.fulham.com/Detail_CategoryWise.php?category=Ballast&type=WorkHorse

 

[tttony]

Thanks again the tank a 120 corner 30 tall , Im not two worried about parr. Its a fowlr planned with lps later. All bulbs are T5 HO.!! I have 6 39 watt 36 bulbs already. I just picked up 4 HO T5 31 watt 30 bulbs...

The question is, WILL ONE WORKHORSE 5, POWER THE 4 NEW BULBS.

 

[tttony]

Thanks batt600, but there no info on the 30 inch 31 watt bulbs. Im wondering that if I add up the wattage and it doesnt excced the output of the 3 36 39 watt bulbs i'll be fine

 

[batt600]

Yeah you will only be able to run 3 thats it

 

[tttony]

I thought that the 3 39 watters = 117 total watts
so would I really be pushing it if I did 4 31 watters =124 total watts ?

 

[batt600]

I wouldnt know .wont you call the manufacture there be able to give you the right answers or somone else on this forum

 

[tttony]

can you believe it!

Well , This is what they said...


The Wh5 will operate a 3XF39T5Ho. I do not see an 31WT5ho (30") in my lamp chart. The only HO I have before the F39W is F24T5HO. If you have the model number of the lamp, it will help me determine whether Wh5 is the right ballast to operate your lamp.

Until we determine what is the wattage of your 30" lamp, I do not have an answer for you. You have to take into consideration the current of the lamp-- not only the maximum power, to match it up with our ballast.

So much for tech support .lol ive dealt with alot of companies, this one needs some help in the tech dept.

 

[bizzarro]

You can't fault them, 30" T5HO isn't an "industry standard" size that is why they don't have an answer for it. The only bulb manufacturer I know that makes 30" T5HO is Coralife for aquarium use.

If I were you, I'd ditch the 30" and go with 36" because you'd have a hard time when Coralife stops making 30" bulbs... I assume you picked these up at Petco? Besides a few online places that's where I saw them and they were clearancing out already for the cheaper units and different brand bulbs.

 

[tttony]

Your right!!! I did get em at petco !!! $5.00 each x 4 = 120 watts of T5 Ho lighting!! Iam a master retro fitter, i know there not standard size, but in my 120 corner canopy Ive already got 6 36", 39 watters,So I was looking for a little fill color for my lion fish tank,tusk, beata, hippo, .... soon to be a lps reef.

I can ALWAYS SHORTEN the lamp bracket to have a 24 " bulb, I just want to START SOMEWHERE.

So again the question is does any one know the maximum amout of WATTS a wk5 can light.
Ive done this with Ice cap before, /they clearly state a maximum amout of watts whether is 5 -24 " or 2 -72 "