Eb0la11's 165G Reef Tank Build

[kien]

Originally Posted by Eb0la11

Ok so if my params read good again today I might be making a trip to the fish store for some of my cleanup crew. Probably start off small, get maybe 2 crabs, 4 snails and a couple star fish or something.

So Ive been running just my centre MH on my coralife pro for a couple reasons. The biggest being the stupid legs didnt work very well and so the stand is resting on top of the tank on some 2x4's and so I didnt want any lights heating up the wood cause itd make put burn marks on the light or I dunno. Just not a good idea...

So today I go to turn on the ballast that Im using to power the middle MH and the light comes on, is warming up and then flickers and turns off. Now I turn it on and it just glows real dim.

Is it burnt out? Was suppose to be a brand new bulb. Ive never had a light burn out on my aquarium, especially a MH so I dont know really if its another problem? Help? I used the same ballast to turn on a diff light and it worked, so problem seems to be the bulb or connection in there or something.

For the starfish it depends on what starfish you get. Some (or maybe most?) are very very sensitive and would not make a good starter/test creature at all.

Did you install the bulbs yourself or did they come pre installed in your fixture? Those HQIs are sensitive and you can not hold the middle part with your bare oily fingers or you will ruin them. You have to handle just the end tips or better yet wear gloves like those white ones.

If they did come pre installed then they are probably just defective or possibly loose? Try openning the fixture, taking the bulb out and re-seating it. They can potentially come loose during transport. Again don't forget to wear gloves!! My last light fixture (currents USA) had the T5s fail on me after a week and I had to replace them with higher quality T5s. I am assuming the ballasts you are using are the coralife ones that come with the fixture and not some other third party ballast? Some ballast and light combinations don't work too well together.