Possible Lighting Change - Opinions Wanted!

[sweetpea]

I have been overdriving 4x24w T5s with an IceCap 660 over my 20g tank for almost 2 years now. It was mainly a holding tank for SPS frags, but I moved all of the frags to my 90g a couple of weeks ago. I plan to make the 20g home to my GSM clown, and I want to get him a nice anemone.

Honestly, I'm getting a little tired of replacing the bulbs when they blow (every 4-6 months), so I've been considering changing the light set-up... maybe downgrading the ballast? What do you all think? Ideas? Suggestions?

 

[roland jacques]

i think you may have something wrong with your ballast... Id call Ice Cap and get there input on that. Your bulbs should last years without burning out. the output should just decliene over time.

Are They getting Very hot?

 

[gwhiz]

I agree with dawg and roland. I'm actually about to go the other way. I've got bulbs and endcaps on order to move to driving 6 80 watt T5's with two 660's. (I've been using the Icecaps with a mix of VHO and T5). I've been doing a lot of checking around prior to making this move and haven't heard of a problem with frequent replacement.

Do you have any fans on the lights? Is the canopy enclosed?

 

[sweetpea]

Thanks for the suggestions. I really appreciate it!

The canopy is enclosed, and there are two 3" fans inside plus one 10" fan sitting on the floor blowing up and behind the canopy.

Are the bulbs getting very hot? I don't think so... when I've flipped open the front to access the tank I never noticed what I would consider excess heat (just some really bright lights ). If the bulbs were overheating, I'd think the tank would be hot, too, right? The tank runs at about 82 when the lights are on and typically drops down to 78-80 at night (winter/summer). However, I have 2 MaxiJet 900s for flow and a 1200 powering the skimmer. With 3 PHs in there I can't really say that the lights are heating it up too much. Agreed?