best lighting for zoos?
- Thread starter bawla47
- Start date
coralfarm123
New member
MH is best for growth, but I agree with surfnvb7 on that it probably has more to do with water chemistry and quality. I don't have any experience with T-5 but I currently have tanks running with PC, MH, and VHO and all grow pretty well, but the MH are tops for sure.
floridareefs
New member
Same here. I would not trade back to MH unless something goes wrong, I mean badly wrong with the t-5s. My zoos has increased and actually have gotten better coloration.
surfnvb7
Premium Member
i'm not dissing T5's by any means b/c i havent tried them out yet.
but i'll have to defend MH's b/c i think alot of people that use them, dont understand that different combinations of bulbs/ballasts can have drastic different effects.
also, reflectors play a MAJOR role in how efficient a light can be. there is a HUUUUUUUUGE difference b/w a 250w, 20k XM bulb on a electronic ballast and a standard spider reflector, than a 250w, 20k XM bulb on a magnetic ballast in a lumenarc reflector.
but most people think a ballast is a ballast, and sadly most people that say their lights were better/brighter under VHO's/PC's have a wimpy electronic ballast driving a 20k MH bulb, and little or no reflector.
to me thats just common sense that its not gonna work out right.
or people go with a 10k metal halide bulb, that is essentially yellow, and then blame the metal halide for browning out their zoas and other corals.
.........again, common sense a yellow bulb is not gonna make zoas look very good. or may bleach corals when going straight from PC to MH.
theres alot less room for error with T5's. theres only 1 type ballast to choose from essentially, only a couple different brands of bulbs. and thats pretty much it. just mix and match to get a color you prefer.
so i honestly think the reason why *most* people had bad experiences with MH's is that they simply never found the right combination of equipment to work for the type of corals they had in their tank.
this is esspecially true with SE type set ups. as they are mostly retro fit kids, made to get into a DIY canopy/hood. alot of people just want to buy a complete canopy/hood already made for them, which is what the DE bulbs/set ups are essentially for.
so i still think SE metal halide type set ups are the best, but only if you know what you are doing with it. otherwise, it will obviously lead to terrible results considering the money you just spent on it.
but i'll have to defend MH's b/c i think alot of people that use them, dont understand that different combinations of bulbs/ballasts can have drastic different effects.
also, reflectors play a MAJOR role in how efficient a light can be. there is a HUUUUUUUUGE difference b/w a 250w, 20k XM bulb on a electronic ballast and a standard spider reflector, than a 250w, 20k XM bulb on a magnetic ballast in a lumenarc reflector.
but most people think a ballast is a ballast, and sadly most people that say their lights were better/brighter under VHO's/PC's have a wimpy electronic ballast driving a 20k MH bulb, and little or no reflector.
to me thats just common sense that its not gonna work out right.
or people go with a 10k metal halide bulb, that is essentially yellow, and then blame the metal halide for browning out their zoas and other corals.
.........again, common sense a yellow bulb is not gonna make zoas look very good. or may bleach corals when going straight from PC to MH.
theres alot less room for error with T5's. theres only 1 type ballast to choose from essentially, only a couple different brands of bulbs. and thats pretty much it. just mix and match to get a color you prefer.
so i honestly think the reason why *most* people had bad experiences with MH's is that they simply never found the right combination of equipment to work for the type of corals they had in their tank.
this is esspecially true with SE type set ups. as they are mostly retro fit kids, made to get into a DIY canopy/hood. alot of people just want to buy a complete canopy/hood already made for them, which is what the DE bulbs/set ups are essentially for.
so i still think SE metal halide type set ups are the best, but only if you know what you are doing with it. otherwise, it will obviously lead to terrible results considering the money you just spent on it.
floridareefs
New member
ALso, its important to note, with the MH you cannot get a complete all around light source that surrounds the corals completly like I can with my 2 Ice Cap 660 t5s on my 90. I have tried magnetic and tar ballasts and I do feel the Tar ballast "fully" pushed the MH bulb as it is intended to. Sure the Magenetic ballast will give you extra life on your bulb, but IMHO do not measure up. I do Like the Tar Ballast MH combo units, but the T5 combo I got is working and I took the plunge because I saw it locally, If not, I would probably still be running MH.
