70W metal halide?

[Rsk8r4lif]

Right now i have two power compacts on my ten gallon tank. one is 36 w and the other is 24w. i was reading alot of posts on here and i noticed alot of people with ten gallon or twelve gallon tanks had 70 watt metal halides. But when i searched online for them i really didn't find many... at all. where did you guys get yours? and is it possible to make one? i've got not much money. thanks

 

[phenom5]

i got mine at illuming.com.

around 130 bucks if i remember correctly. good quality, great customer service.

 

[Rsk8r4lif]

They seem to have good prices, but the only thing i can find on there is the ballast for a 70 watt, they dont seem to have the bulb or retrofit kit. or the whole thing in general. thats what i was finding on other sites too. i'd find like the bulb, or the ballast, and that'd be it lol. any other ideas?

 

[traveller7]

fwiw: I like 70wt MHs for small tanks, alot. But the bulbs tend to be pricey and have little in the way of color options.

IMHO, buy a 150wt system and raise it up a few inches.

 

[Rsk8r4lif]

Yeah thats what another guy just told me from the local fish store. I think thats what i might do, the only problem is i do have some soft corals that i'd like to keep, zoo's frogspawn, leather, and i was afraid it might be too much light for them. maybe not though.

 

[mister crabs]

start out with a short lighting cycle for the hallide and keep ur compacts to fill out the cycle. As u gradually increase the cycle time of the hallide to a full 8-10 hour cycle you can get rid of the pc's. If you go with a 14k bulb you wont need actinic supplementation either. Alot of nano reefers with aquapods and nano cubes go with a sunpod fixture from current lighting that has the 14k bulb and moonlights built in. check out nanocustoms.com or drsfostersmith.com . both carry the 70w and 150w versions

 

[Rsk8r4lif]

awesome thanks for the info i think thats what i might do.