making sps frag tank with pics

YEA BABY, LB's came in, ill be a wiring fool today. for size comparison i took a pic of the large and mini LB's, the mini LB's are for the frag tank.

i also have to pull the rock rubble out of the bleach solution and rinse today then resoak in fresh for a couple more days with baking soda. but i have a bag full of plugs for the frags so hopefully the tank will have something to show off.

 

lights came with 18g and im switching it over to 16g, better heat transfer.

 

lol.. i will never understand the section :-D 16 g is.. 1.5mmq ?

for my HQI/MH i use only 2.5mmq wires.. but donno what gauge they are related too..

just cause the peak for start.. more the section less the volt lost and more the lifespan of the light..

not for heat this time.. as they uses only 3-4A so 1-1.5mmq is enough to dissipate all the heat w/o trouble..
but on the start you have a nice peak.. and so you need to loose less volts you can to have a perfect start and not damage the light each day a little more

 

par measures with 400w se mh reeflux 12k with hamilton e ballast on the table:
18" 930
12" 1400

need to get the other one together and measure under water, my target is 600-700 10" under water

 

18 g 1.02362 mm max 2.3 amps
16 g 1.29032 mm max 3.7 amps

American Wire Gauge table and AWG Electrical Current Load Limits

 

i'll use an 11g if within 1 meter from the starter.. only for the peak..

 

12g sry.. a 2.5mmq -.- that should be a 12g not 11g..

grumble.. damn gauges

 

18g is good for 250w mh, 16g is good for 400w mh, basically. if it were up to me i would put a 0g but there is no way it will fit.

 

i know..

but.. not complaning A/mmq that 4 A/mmq are good for this small sections.. complaning about other things..

spaeking to osram for job they told me about some hints on the peak of start and how to maximize the life of Sodium bulbs.. then they told me HQI/MH was the same.. all discharge lamps need a high tension start to turn on the light..
if it's not perfect it will not ignite all the noble gas inside the bulb and day after days you will make the bulb black cause some gas wont ignite and will not help to run.

so they told me they use small section due to economy but.. if.. to use something better..

so as i do electric implants (not only for job ) i decided to put something bigger.. 2.5mmq are each and cheap.. and they will fit w/o troubles i also use caps to close the wire so copper wont be attacked by salt-gasses

;D hope to be able to explane all :-/

 

alot of that also depends on the type of ballast used and which company the ballast came from, the wire just transfers energy from one place to another, with less resistance it can travel easier but the load is the same.

herres some pics on the new lights, there both up, now to hang them over the tank. the connections are soldered. the slide lets you adjust the bulb for centering.