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I dont understand why you posted this.
If you dont touch the bulb when its on then you have nothing to worry about. Why are MH more of a fire hazard?
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MH vs VHO
- Thread starter spaulr
- Start date
I dont understand why you posted this.
If you dont touch the bulb when its on then you have nothing to worry about. Why are MH more of a fire hazard?
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Sponge - Aluminum foil will work, but Josh mentioned it will start to flake on you. I have used an aluminum tape from a hardware store to cover the top of my hood in my nanocube. It is about 1.5" wide and is adhesive. I don't remember if it was expensive, but it is very easy to use. I have had it in there for 2 years now without it peeling off or flaking. It may take you a while to cover a large hood using 1.5" tape but maybe they make it in wider sizes. Just a thought.
Thanks everyone for your input. 2 175s 14k MH will look pretty nice. I stopped by a LFS to check out what they looked like. Granted they had 400w's but I assume the overall light experience will be the same. I'm also going to get a icecap 430 with 2 VHOs actenics.
Also, Sponge I did use foil on my tank when I was running RO (Regular Output) tubes. It worked, but I agree about the flaking and I also had salt buildup problems(might have just been my negligence though :lol: ). I had to change it out a few times a year.
Also, Sponge I did use foil on my tank when I was running RO (Regular Output) tubes. It worked, but I agree about the flaking and I also had salt buildup problems(might have just been my negligence though :lol: ). I had to change it out a few times a year.
If you're interested in 175 watt 14Ks, check out the new Iwasaki Aqua2s.
Sanjay did a review on them and on electronic ballasts they are the brightest 175 watt lamps he's ever tested.
Sanjay's article:
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2005/12/review
A couple of vendors who have them in stock:
http://www.coralreefecosystems.com/ltg_bulbs-mh.asp
http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc
Sanjay did a review on them and on electronic ballasts they are the brightest 175 watt lamps he's ever tested.
Sanjay's article:
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2005/12/review
A couple of vendors who have them in stock:
http://www.coralreefecosystems.com/ltg_bulbs-mh.asp
http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc
Chris, thanks for the links. Coralreefecosystems has the bulbs, but has them listed as a 15k bulb. Is that right? Since that appears to be a bluer light, should I still use actenics, or use a 50/50 type actenic? Or does that come down to a personal preference thing?
I don't know about the 15k bulb, but to answer your other question the use of actinics is completely personal preference. I specifically use 14k or 20k MH bulbs because I do not use actinics, so I want the blue coming out of the halides. People who like using 10k bulbs typically will add actinics because 10k is so white. With 14k bulbs you really don't need actinics for anything other than the look you are trying to achieve. The presence or absence of them won't affect the health or growth of your corals in any significant amount IMO. What you can do is buy a couple vho actinic bulbs and a couple 10,000k and experiment to see which combination gives you the perfect look. HTH
It's hard to make recommendations not only because it has a lot to do with personal perference, but also, the manufacturer's ratings are usually very arbitrary. Very few lamps actually put out the actual color temp they are rated for.
Many lamps listed as 10Ks actually test at 7K or 8K (ie. yellower than true 10K). Most 14K and 20K lamps actually test far bluer than their ratings (many are past the detection limits of Sanjay's setup which is something like 30K IIRC). There are also a few 10K lamps that test blue/dimmer than what you'd normally expect from a 10K...
To complicate things even further, different lamps will have different color temps and brightness when driven by different brands/types of ballasts. Sanjay's site is tremendously helpful in that regard. You can look-up the lamp+ballast combination you're interested in and get some idea as to the color temp and brightness to expect. He's tested a lot of the popular equipment.
FWIW, the Iwasaki Aqua2 lamp tested at right around it's actual rating 14K - 15K depending on the ballast used. Many people would probably want to use actinics with that lamp, although, again it's a preference thing...
HTH
Many lamps listed as 10Ks actually test at 7K or 8K (ie. yellower than true 10K). Most 14K and 20K lamps actually test far bluer than their ratings (many are past the detection limits of Sanjay's setup which is something like 30K IIRC). There are also a few 10K lamps that test blue/dimmer than what you'd normally expect from a 10K...
To complicate things even further, different lamps will have different color temps and brightness when driven by different brands/types of ballasts. Sanjay's site is tremendously helpful in that regard. You can look-up the lamp+ballast combination you're interested in and get some idea as to the color temp and brightness to expect. He's tested a lot of the popular equipment.
FWIW, the Iwasaki Aqua2 lamp tested at right around it's actual rating 14K - 15K depending on the ballast used. Many people would probably want to use actinics with that lamp, although, again it's a preference thing...
HTH
Maybe I'm way off here but this is my plan. Someone let me know if this is stupid. I have 2-250W 14k MH and 2-110VHO one full spectum one actinic.
I believe i read in the forums that it is not good for either the ballast or the MH bulb to run the MH over 10 hours a day. I dont remember. I am currently running my 50/50 about 12.5 hours a day and my MH about 9.5. This way to simulate morning and evening weaker light and full strength at noon. I plan on running my 120 with the VHO's this way as i do not want to have a full blue tank for 4 hours a day with full actinics. Am I crazy? I dont know as Im a newb. Coral seems to be happy,growing and regaining color.
Just thought I'd throw this out there Spaulr as everyone seems to say "matter of preference" and noone really ever reveals exactly what they like. ie; wattage, kelvin,hours, etc.
Good luck. :wink:
I believe i read in the forums that it is not good for either the ballast or the MH bulb to run the MH over 10 hours a day. I dont remember. I am currently running my 50/50 about 12.5 hours a day and my MH about 9.5. This way to simulate morning and evening weaker light and full strength at noon. I plan on running my 120 with the VHO's this way as i do not want to have a full blue tank for 4 hours a day with full actinics. Am I crazy? I dont know as Im a newb. Coral seems to be happy,growing and regaining color.
Just thought I'd throw this out there Spaulr as everyone seems to say "matter of preference" and noone really ever reveals exactly what they like. ie; wattage, kelvin,hours, etc.
Good luck. :wink:
You can run halides as long as you want but most people run something simliar to what you're doing, ie. 8-10 hours for the halides and 10-12 hours of VHO supplemental. It's got more to do with simulating a normal day/night cycle - not limitations of the equipment.
Thanks Chris, Trido88. I knew I was missing something. I guess lighting is just something you shouldn't skimp on. So, I'll run the halides for 8 hours and 2 vhos for the entire 10 hour light period. I like the idea of producing a light cycle.
Does anyone run moon lights? That seems to be a fad that has come about recently. Are there any studies that show the benifits of using a "moon light" or are they merely for night viewing and the "coolness" factor?
Does anyone run moon lights? That seems to be a fad that has come about recently. Are there any studies that show the benifits of using a "moon light" or are they merely for night viewing and the "coolness" factor?
Mainly the coolness factor. I had them in the PC hood I had before I got my MH pendants, and they were very cool. There are reports that they will trigger spawning in some corals, fish, and inverts, but I don't know how accurate that is. They also supposedly help your fish and inverts avoid accidentally running into an anemone at night...but obviously this doesnt apply to everyone. If you dont mind spending the money I would definitely recommend them, strictly from an aesthetic point of view. They are pretty nice.
I decided that I wanted a DE bulb due to the fact I can get more out of the bulb per watt than SE bulbs and that the bulbs tend to last longer.
I've only been able to find 1 company that sells a dual 150w DE 3 foot fixture. I'm pretty sure this is what I want....just wanted to see if someone had heard of them. Fixtures won't be available until end of the month due to a warehouse fire of some type.
http://www.customaquatic.com/customaqua ... LT-AB75070
The price is really good too. I couldn't find 2 HQI pendants for this price...or even a DIY pendant kit ( ~$600 just for the HQI).
What do you think?
I've only been able to find 1 company that sells a dual 150w DE 3 foot fixture. I'm pretty sure this is what I want....just wanted to see if someone had heard of them. Fixtures won't be available until end of the month due to a warehouse fire of some type.
http://www.customaquatic.com/customaqua ... LT-AB75070
The price is really good too. I couldn't find 2 HQI pendants for this price...or even a DIY pendant kit ( ~$600 just for the HQI).
What do you think?
Aqua Medic is a good company. I have not personally used that setup but they are a large company (German I think) with a good reputation. I am sort of surprised you couldnt find pendants for close to that price; I think my 250w pendants cost me about that much, but I bought separate components and it was kind of DIY. Anyway for the ease of setup and use I think that is a great choice.
I'm revisiting this because I've spent countless hours on the phone with various shops, Marine Depot, Custom Aquatics, Premium Aquatics.
Tank size 36x15x16. I want to keep LPS (acans, blastos), zoanthids, mushrooms. No SPS at this time.
That being said, a lot of dealers have been telling me that 2x150w DE MH will be too much MH type of light for the LPs corals at that depth.
I'm still really up in the air about this one. If 2x150 is too much MH halide light for those critters at that depth, I'm thinking about getting 1x150 DE MH pendant DIY and put that in the middle. It just seems like the edges (6" per side) of the tank will be pretty dark. If its still too dark I'll guess I could always pick up another 150w pendant.
What I'm sure I'm going to get Tek 5 2x39w retro kit and maybe even go for 4x39 if space permits. Best bang for the buck, long term maint isn't bad, high output for low watts.
Sorry for the flip flopping, but the cost involved in lighting is the highest and I'd like to get it right the first time. I think all that PVC glue is boggling my mind :lol:
Tank size 36x15x16. I want to keep LPS (acans, blastos), zoanthids, mushrooms. No SPS at this time.
That being said, a lot of dealers have been telling me that 2x150w DE MH will be too much MH type of light for the LPs corals at that depth.
I'm still really up in the air about this one. If 2x150 is too much MH halide light for those critters at that depth, I'm thinking about getting 1x150 DE MH pendant DIY and put that in the middle. It just seems like the edges (6" per side) of the tank will be pretty dark. If its still too dark I'll guess I could always pick up another 150w pendant.
What I'm sure I'm going to get Tek 5 2x39w retro kit and maybe even go for 4x39 if space permits. Best bang for the buck, long term maint isn't bad, high output for low watts.
Sorry for the flip flopping, but the cost involved in lighting is the highest and I'd like to get it right the first time. I think all that PVC glue is boggling my mind :lol:
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