Lighting Question

Arbee03 · #1 12-16-2003, 06:25 AM

Hi,

I hope someone can help me out with this one. I picked up a used 48" PC lighting system (no markings or writing to determine the brand name) that came with 2 Daylights and 2 Actinic bulbs. My problem is that the bulbs are only 12" long, so there is quite a gap between each side. The daylights say 36w on it but nothing on the actinics. My question is do 48" PC lighting fixtures usually come standard with 36w bulbs or can I use higher wattage pc bulbs? I checked the ballasts and there were no indications on max watts allowed. I noticed that most power compact fixtures were being sold with 4X55w, 4X65w, and 4X96 watts but nothing at 4X36w.

Bob I · #2 12-16-2003, 03:50 PM

I would say that the ballast is usually matched to the tube, so in most cases you can only use one size of tube. There are some special ballasts that will run a varity of tubes, but in this case that is probably not true.

Arbee03 · #3 12-16-2003, 05:10 PM

Thanks for the reply,

I was wondering though, whether these fixtures originally came with higher wttage pc's (eg. 55w or 65w) and have just been rplaced w/ lower 36w bulbs prior to me buying them. Would it have any effect on the ballasts if I were to replace them w/ 55w or 65w bulbs? It just seems awkward that a 48" fixture would house such short bulbs, whereas the higher wattage bulbs would fit perfectly into my fixture. I was just getting started w/ the hobby when I bought these fixtures, so I didn't know very much about lighting. Couldn't figure out why the bulbs were so short, then realized they were only 36w pc's.

kuatto · #4 12-16-2003, 05:36 PM

sounds like someone modified the fixture to house smaller bulbs,sounds strange to have a 12inch bulb in a 48inch fixture

Arbee03 · #5 12-17-2003, 02:39 AM

Made a mistake w/ the measurements. They're actually 16" ttl length. So end to end, they would only total 32'' . I still have a good 14" gap in between. I was thinking of replacing them with 55W bulbs w/c are 22inch long (when these burn out). I was wondering if there were any way to test the ballasts or the bulbs to determined whether they really are burning at 55 watts. Any Lighting Specialists out there that may be able to help me out? TIA

martym · #6 12-17-2003, 02:52 AM

I have a 48" Pc light over my tank. It has 4X65w. If you would like you could bring the lights over and try it with my bulbs or ballast to see if it works. I don't think it would do any damage to give it a quick try

. Mine are the 2 pin type. PM me if you want.

Arbee03 · #7 12-17-2003, 03:09 AM

Thanks Marty,

I don't think they will work though as mine come with 4 straight pins. I did remember somebody mention to me about AquaFanatics selling 48" fixtures using 36W PC bulbs, so I checked out their website and sure enough they had them. They're JBJ brands ($299) and from the looks of it, I might be stuck with 36W bulbs. When I get the chance, I'll head over there and see if their JBJ products are similar to what I have. Thanx for the offer.