Planning A New Tank

[Phoenixfish]

Hello there, well in he next few months i should hopefully be setting up a 4 or 5ft (compared to my 2ft nano with sump) and like to go metal halides,

now i know there are los of brands and "cheaper models" on the net but i was thinking of a n Arcadia model

ether the new Arcadia Classica 150 wat with blue Leds RRP £180 ish
The Twin Arcadia Classica 150 wat with blue Leds RRP £270 ish

Possibly and Arcadia Series 3 250 wat

or if i can source one cheap enough a Series 4 250 wat

things aren't set in stone yet as to which tank (beware of braces etc etc) nor the coral type (but i think it will be a mixture of LPS, SPS and Softies also a clam would be quite good, i love monti's and scroll coral)

Im also not afraid to pay large amounts if its worth paying for,
but my main question after all that is

How much power does each of these units require to run? i cant find anoy information online and before i contacted Arcadia i wanted to ask here,

many thanks
Phoenix fish

 

[SkiFletch]

I'm almost positive that Arcadia units use magnetic ballasts. If so, a 150watt halide will draw about 190watts of electrical, and a 250 will draw about 310-320 watts of electrical. Lets then do some quick math and make it easier... Say 200watts electrical for a 150 halide. Go with an 8hr/day light cycle, that's 1600watt hours per day. Multiplied by 30 and it's 48000watt hours per month. Divide by 1000 and you have 48 kilowatt hours per month which is the unit of measure you pay on your electric bill. So multiply 48 times your cost per kilowatt hour to find out how much your lights cost you per month. Make sense?

 

[Phoenixfish]

I'm almost positive that Arcadia units use magnetic ballasts. If so, a 150watt halide will draw about 190watts of electrical, and a 250 will draw about 310-320 watts of electrical. Lets then do some quick math and make it easier... Say 200watts electrical for a 150 halide. Go with an 8hr/day light cycle, that's 1600watt hours per day. Multiplied by 30 and it's 48000watt hours per month. Divide by 1000 and you have 48 kilowatt hours per month which is the unit of measure you pay on your electric bill. So multiply 48 times your cost per kilowatt hour to find out how much your lights cost you per month. Make sense?

crystal clear, but which range is that for? im just noting because one of the selling features of the Series 4 is more economic over the series 3, now i understand that the Classica will probably have and "average" to cheap ballast and therefore would be more expensive to run but at half the price of the series 4 RRP whos really complaining,

if anybody has any of these units mind posting the details on the plug/ the Watts per hour i would appreciate it greatly.

 

[SkiFletch]

If the series 4 is listed as a more efficient 250watt halide then I'll bet money it's got an electronic ballast. Good to see Arcadia doing this. An electronic ballasted 250 will draw about 275 from the wall. They're electrically close to 90% efficient. Over time that 30-40 watts of energy saved can for sure be significant, especially with high electrical costs in the UK.