Ok, well I have to admit that I’m a little shy on my knowladge of MH systems. I recently took down a 29g that I left at my parents house and brought the stuff down here. It had a 175W MH light on it that I decided to use for the frag tank eventually. The bulb in it was over a year old, so I decided to buy a new bulb for it. When I got the bulb yesterday I screwed it in and tried to fire it up. My problem is that when I turn the switch, the bulb goes througth a minute or so of darkenss, which is normal, then fires. It starts warming up and getting brighter but it shuts off after 30 seconds to a minute. I’m not sure if this is a problem with the bulb or the ballast, but I’m pretty sure that something is wrong and decided that I would ask you guys to see what you think.
The only possible solution other than something isnt working right is that its not getting enough current because it is on the same circut as the rest of the fish tanks… anyone think that might be the case?
I know I’ve read about this before, and I apologize I didn’t commit the answer to memory because I’ve never had MH lights.
I don’t think its a current issue. It takes more current to fire a bulb then to keep it lit (assuming I remember my HS science class correctly) so if it was a current issue the bulb wouldn’t fire at all.
I’m sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but I think its probably a problem within the ballast.
[quote=“icy1155, post:2, topic:666”]
The only possible solution other than something isnt working right is that its not getting enough current because it is on the same circut as the rest of the fish tanks… anyone think that might be the case?[/quote]
Not a chance, It would not fire at all. The problem is probably the ballast and bulb combination. Not all bulbs fire with all ballasts. The ballast is probably a m57 and you need to have a bulb that has the proper ignition capacitor ti work with it. I have an old bulb that will work to test it. It may be the bulb but usually they wont fire at all
Take a picture of the exact setup
It usually skims better. Also take a picture of the Gate valve. It is a gate valve or a ball valve
Al hit it on the head. Its a compatibility issue.
There are sevral kinds of ballast electonic, pulse, magnetic, hqi etc. Not all bulbs will work with all ballasts. Its gets a little complicated but there is a great FAQ on the RC boards.
Reefers say wait between 6months and a year before getting an anemone so that your tank gets fully established. The main reason in that is so your nutrient levels do not fluctuate at all, because despite BTAs being easy out of anemones, they are still hard to keep, and will not tolerate huge fluctuations that a new and not yet established tank does. Hence why general advice is to have an older tank. Generally if a mature tank has pristine water and the anemone dies, its from the stress in shipping, or was it in bad condition when bought and already on its way out. I’m not saying that a brand new tank can’t keep an anemone, but its more risky.
Also you need to feed anemones, they do not get all of their nutrients from just light alone. If you don’t feed them, they can shrink in size, and not have as vibrant as coloration as they would underfeeding. I have witnessed this in person when I haven’t feed them, then after a few weeks of feeding their colors are so much better.
Sorry haven’t checked the board in a few days, thought I’d put my $.02 in on anemones.
“This bulb will work with a standard magnetic ballast, magnetic pulse-start ballast or electronic ballast.”
Look at number 2 on the FAQ. That is where I got that info on the current being an issue. I am going to try it on the other side of the house tonight to see if it is an issue. If not im guessing that I just need a different bulb… even though it says that it is compatable with multiple types of ballasts and mine is a nomral magnetic ballast.
If the ballast attempted to draw more current than the circuit could provide the breaker should trip.
Googled “BTA anemone photosynthesis” and found a bunch of pages… not one mentions that you “NEED” to feed a BTA and all suggest that a BTA can survive quite well and infact thrive on light alone. Some examples…
http://www.centralpets.com/animals/fish/saltwater_inverts/swi1663.html
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemonelightngfaqs.htm
http://www.saltcorner.com/sections/zoo/inverts/softcorals/anemones/Equadricolor.htm
While some suggest that feeding would be beneficial to get them to divide and grow quicker, not one suggests that they can not exist if they are not fed. I’m not saying that it isnt benefical to feed them, or that they wont do better if they are fed, just that it is in no way a necessity. If the lights are adequate, a BTA should be able to exist just fine on photosynthesis alone. If the anemone does poorly when not being fed, I am guessing that it is under inadaquate lights.
I feed some of my anemones… and they are doing well. I also dont feed some of them (hard to get to) and they are doing fine too.
[quote=“logans_daddy, post:9, topic:666”]
If the ballast attempted to draw more current than the circuit could provide the breaker should trip.[/quote]
True. Im not sure what the problem is… it says the bulb should work with any ballast so I dont think its that either… IDK.
[quote=“a1amap, post:4, topic:666”]
[quote=“icy1155, post:2, topic:666”]
The only possible solution other than something isnt working right is that its not getting enough current because it is on the same circut as the rest of the fish tanks… anyone think that might be the case?[/quote]
Not a chance, It would not fire at all. The problem is probably the ballast and bulb combination. Not all bulbs fire with all ballasts. The ballast is probably a m57 and you need to have a bulb that has the proper ignition capacitor ti work with it. I have an old bulb that will work to test it. It may be the bulb but usually they wont fire at all[/quote]
This site lists the XM 10,000 175W as a probe start that runs on a m57 ballast…
http://www.aquarium-lighting-guide.com/metal-halide-ansi
Although it could just be that it needs to burn for a while before it will work right…
Why does my metal halide bulb flicker and turn off?
http://www.aquarium-lighting-guide.com/metal-halide
"New metal halide bulbs require up to 100 hours to burn in and could flicker or turn off during that “break in” period. If your bulbs are not new and flicker or turn off then you need to check that you are using the correct ballast for your bulb. "
Flicker yes but I have never seen one turn off because it was new
OK and it is a gate valve from Savko
My old sunpod would flicker a little as it would start. It seemed to do it constantly, not just with new bulbs. I now have icecap ballasts and the start immediately. The only time the dont “fire” right up is if they are turned off, but i think this is typical of all MH ballasts.
Im with Al, i cant imagine that it would simply shut off but who knows. Where did you buy the bulb from? Can you exchange it?
there is one problem with this, how do we calculate the amount of food that it gets indirectly from the water column and livestock?
i would be amazed if a BTA could survive, let alone thrive, in a sterile SW environment with no microfauna. Im not saying its impossible, i would just be surprised.
This one right? Real long in the center
not something like this (color may vary)
Ok, turns out I just had to let it run for a while. I ran it for a while this afternoon after it flickered and turned off and it turned back on and then ran like a champ for 30min before I manually turned it off. I guess that I was just worried over nothing… seems to be fine now. I had just never heard of it turning off while the lamp was burning in. Thanks for the suggestions though.
No it is like the one on the top.
Can you take a picture of it in action? Show the output plumbing also. If the out put height is too high it causes back pressure in the same way as closing the gate valve. If its too high then the gate valve is ineffective.