Hey guys I just bought a fixture on ebay (regretting it now) with 2 250W 14k metal halides, 2 LED moon lights and 4 55W actinics. I just plugged it in and noticed it got real hot real fast and upon further review realized the fixture doesn't have any cooling fans : (. So I opened it up to see if there would be room anywhere to add some, turns out I have no idea what "enough room" is. I also found two large tan cubical objects in the center of the fixture with a bunch of copper wire wound up inside it and a number of different wires going in and out of it with a few that just stopped. It was super hot. I'm guessing this is some sort of power supply but I have no idea how any of this stuff works....
So, to my question, well questions.
Does anyone have any recommendations to what type of fans I should use, how many and where to place them (I can send pics if anyone has any idea about this)
...and...
What the heck are the two large cubes in the center with the wires hanging from it?
The joys of ebay and starting a reef tank. Thanks everyone.
Yes, MHs do run hot, especially if you have double ended bulbs.
What you saw was most likely the ballasts (transformers) for the MHs. Most likely there is also one or more ballasts for the actinics.
Before you worry about fans, I would first replace all the ballasts with electronic ballasts. Your savings in power will more than make up for the costs of the ballasts, The fixture will also run cooler.
As for fans there are a couple of options here. If you use the typical computer fans, they usually run on 12V DC, so you'll need a power source for them too. You can also get similar fans the run on 110V AC and wire them so they are supplies from the power cord.
Lighting Fans
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