WTH aquarium lighting too many choices

[thesnailgal]

So my husband and I decide to start up another tank. We have been out of the hobby for around 3 years. We picked up a used tank 95 gallon 3' wide and turned on the 400w MH it came with and it was glowing dim even after 2 hours. My husband looks at the ballast and it says ice cap mh-400 220v . So were thinking the previous owner has been using the wrong ballast all this time. We decided to upgrade the lighting on this tank but it seems like there is too many choices and too many conflicting opinions now! Led,mh,pc,t5,vho and they each seem to have their own sub categories. The led "thing" looks good but I read that people are switching back to MH. Right now were thinking about retro fitting in a 250w mh and 2 20" t5 lights. Our electric Coop doesn't really provide us with very clean electric and were worried that even with the use of surge protection that the led drivers and controllers might be too sensitive for our area. We have lost several LED tv's in storms even with the used of a high dollar surge protector. But our plasma tv just keeps right on going...

what do you guys think?

 

[cody6766]

I'm a big fan on MH or MH + T5. If your tank size allows, a new 400w ballast and a good reflector (say lumenbright/lumenmax) should get you going. If you don't want/need the extra power, a 250w will work with the same fixture. I'd recommend a Radium bulb for both the 250w and 400w. Add a pair Blue Plus T5s to supplement and you'll be all set. You may not even need the T5s, depending on how blue you like your tank.

 

[OKCchief]

I'm using MH with a pair of 12 CREE Royal Blue LED strips for the effect. While many others are, I'm not a fan of the growth and coloration that white LED's put out. MH's have their disadvantages, but I still favor them over an all LED build. I've never lost any LED's during electrical storm, but if I did they are easily replacable in a DIY kit.

It's all personal preference.

Looking forward to seeing your new build!

 

[Led Fish]

My 2 favorite tanks of all time use SOLs. So I purchased some for my tank and love them. Here are links to the 2 SOL tanks

http://www.theaquariumsolution.com/...t-09/stuart-bertrams-aquarium-april-12-iphone

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_LWF2mAs1U&feature=plcp