coralife vho fluorescent bulb

[connieyvonne]

I got 2 of the coralife vho fluorescent bulbs that are 36" for a really good price. Remember that I am new to this hobby. I put the bulb in my 36" flourescent fixture that comes with the aquarium and it doesn't work. So.....i am guessing that it is pulling to much "juice"...okay...dumb question....what do I need in order to be able to use these bulbs....They are for a fowlr tank. no corals...I just want the fish to have plenty of lighting. Thank you for your help. :confused:

[Lemmz]

you need a ballast rated high enough to fire the bulbs, a standard fluorescent ballast wont do it

[jsr]

I run VHO's and use IceCap ballast. You will need to buy the ballast and endcaps if you plan to DIY. The ballast is about $140 and the caps are about $10 per pair. I dont know if those bulbs have internal reflectors so you may need to but a reflector as well.