vho + wh7

[Invigor]

to get the correct light output from VHOs I must run these in series, assumingly like this: http://www.fulham.com/NewFiles/wire04.gif

however there are 4 wires on a wh7, a vho requires 3 red and 1 yellow..so in series 2 vhos should get 3 red one yellow, and 1 remaining red must be capped.

I'm assuming having all 4 wires running the bulbs causes extreme heat and melts the endcaps..is that what happened to you steve?

[StirCrazy]

I'm assuming having all 4 wires running the bulbs causes extreme heat and melts the endcaps..is that what happened to you steve?

nope never happened to me, It was Brad that had the melt down, but it wasn't because of 4 wires it is because it was not wried using both pins on the yellow side of the bulb. so to much power going through one pin eventually caused it to fail and sense it had no where else to go overheated the other end.

I ran 4 wires for two years with out a problem.

Steve

[KarlK]

I assume your running 48" 110W VHO's?

If so, you need a Work Horse 7 ballast to drive 2 of them.
The WH7 has 4 red wires. 2 go to each bulb (on one end). The yellow wire goes to the other end of each bulb.

[Invigor]

I assume your running 48" 110W VHO's?

If so, you need a Work Horse 7 ballast to drive 2 of them.
The WH7 has 4 red wires. 2 go to each bulb (on one end). The yellow wire goes to the other end of each bulb.

True, but that doesn't operate the bulbs at full VHO, only HO. Which makes a $40 VHO bulb look like a sissy against a $5 philips bulb.

[00nothing]

I'm assuming having all 4 wires running the bulbs causes extreme heat and melts the endcaps..is that what happened to you steve?

nope never happened to me, It was Brad that had the melt down, but it wasn't because of 4 wires it is because it was not wried using both pins on the yellow side of the bulb. so to much power going through one pin eventually caused it to fail and sense it had no where else to go overheated the other end.

I ran 4 wires for two years with out a problem.

Steve

hey all jsut brand new to this site but came ehre jsut to speak with stircrazy hows that for special lol

i am going to be setting up a wh7 with 2 vho's and am trying to understand the correct way to wire this i found one of your posts on AP with the diagram and it looks like the key to this is to give each post of the endcap a lead out instead of looping them together and giving them one lead coming out i am i correct in what i am seeing in the diagram

and also regarding endcaps a lot of people i have heard of having problems with overheating issues it has been with Icecap endcaps is it possible that there very design feature is also there flaw with omstone style endcaps they are exposed giving the heat a chance to escape the icecaps being enclosed wouldnt they actually hold the heat more

thanks for any help and now that i know about this forum i might be around here more

:mrgreen:

[StirCrazy]

hey all jsut brand new to this site but came ehre jsut to speak with stircrazy hows that for special lol

Wow, welcome to the site.


i am going to be setting up a wh7 with 2 vho's and am trying to understand the correct way to wire this i found one of your posts on AP with the diagram and it looks like the key to this is to give each post of the endcap a lead out instead of looping them together and giving them one lead coming out i am i correct in what i am seeing in the diagram


Yes this is correct. If you use a jumper there is a chance it could work lose, fail ect. this would put all the current through one pin which is the cause I have seen of your next question.


and also regarding endcaps a lot of people i have heard of having problems with overheating issues it has been with Icecap endcaps is it possible that there very design feature is also there flaw with omstone style endcaps they are exposed giving the heat a chance to escape the icecaps being enclosed wouldnt they actually hold the heat more


the problem like I said is mostly from incorrect/short cut wiring. yes the enclosure also helps by raising the temp, but on its own this is not a problem. If for some reason the power is forced to use one pin then it will get hotter and from what I have seen on a couple bulbs it will eventually melt the pin and cause extreme heat build up in a localized area which seams to be enuf to melt the icecap end caps. I did simulate this on a old bulb at home and was able to get some good arcing while it was melting the pin then after this all that happened is the end filament got red hot as the power had no where to go.

Steve

[00nothing]

wow i jsut finished reading the thread on RC concerning fires with endcaps and every single person has always said it was from an waterproof endcap that really scares the hell out of me a lot of people suggested soldering the wiring directly to the pins or using connectors. I think connectors are going to be the way to go the kind used when wiring up car stereos and other electronics. Now i jsut need to find a way to hold the bulbs in place i was thinking some pvc cut into short pieces and sliding the bulbs through these but doing it a way that there is one support ant each end and one in the middle jstu so that if i ever bumped one end it would not fall into the tank, anyone have any thoughts on this

[scotchy]

So a wh7 will run 2 VHO bulbs then? Up to what wattage? Been thinking about changing over from pc to VHO. Invigor, where in Regina do you find a wh7 anyways?



Scott

[Invigor]

Invigor, where in Regina do you find a wh7 anyways?

I didn't, I bought it from aquaria.ca for $54.99. If you get one gimme a call and I'll help you wire it to do VHOs :D they don't have it listed on their site on how to do it. Also if you want some endcaps and vho bulbs I'll make ya a deal :) I've got 2 10000k uri's...they're pinkish but bring out incredible colors on the fish...they are absolutely vibrant with color. I originally bought the wh7 for t5s, but they sent the wrong endcaps and I decided to try the VHOs out just to say I did.

Now i jsut need to find a way to hold the bulbs in place i was thinking some pvc cut into short pieces and sliding the bulbs through these but doing it a way that there is one support ant each end and one in the middle jstu so that if i ever bumped one end it would not fall into the tank, anyone have any thoughts on this

i'd avoid putting plastic near the ends of the bulbs, they get pretty hot. I don't really need the "waterproof" endcaps so I might drill some holes in it to release some heat so they don't overheat..I just like the security of holding the bulbs in place.

[Invigor]

I've also noticed a lot of growth in my corals since i've installed the VHOs :)

[scotchy]

I should come over and check that out some time. On another note did you still want to borrow my cassete deck?



Scott

[Invigor]

nah, I just bought some megadeth tapes off ebay. feel free to drop by anytime, i'll pm you my addy and stuff.

[StirCrazy]

So a wh7 will run 2 VHO bulbs then? Up to what wattage? Been thinking about changing over from pc to VHO. Invigor, where in Regina do you find a wh7 anyways?



Scott

up to 220 watts, so two 4 foot VHO's

Steve

[sleeman]

up to 220 watts, so two 4 foot VHO's

Steve

Steve,
I am not sure if that is correct. I asked the same question on Reefcentral, and this is what I got. I was asking about thw WH8 as they are not making the WH7 right now. the WH8 is virtually the same ballast, it is just in a bigger case. Here is the link to the question.
If these guys are wrong that would be great as I will only have to buy one ballast vice 2.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=514658&highlight=workhorse

Cheers,

Al

[StirCrazy]

up to 220 watts, so two 4 foot VHO's

Steve

Steve,
I am not sure if that is correct. I asked the same question on Reefcentral, and this is what I got. I was asking about thw WH8 as they are not making the WH7 right now. the WH8 is virtually the same ballast, it is just in a bigger case. Here is the link to the question.
If these guys are wrong that would be great as I will only have to buy one ballast vice 2.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=514658&highlight=workhorse

Cheers,

Al

they will run two VHO fine at full VHO power, you just have to hook them in series instead of parallel. If you run them in parallel you only use 2 wires per bulb and you get HO output like a Icecap does. If you run 3 wires and set them up in series they run at full VHO output, and if you use 4 wires you can overdrive your VHO.

Steve

[Invigor]

a wh8 also has 8 lead wires instead of just 4

[StirCrazy]

a wh8 also has 8 lead wires instead of just 4

what are the wire colors and how many?

Steve

[Invigor]

my mistake, it's only 6 red and 1 yellow, not 8 red.