OPINIONS ON PC ~VS~ VHO!

[AQUAHOLIC1]

im doing a 103gal (custom built) reef. What are the pro's and con's of both PC and VHO for lighting? Which do you's recomend? I am aware of MH but dont want to spring for chiller, as well as heat up my room like hell. Just tring to find out the stats on PC vs VHO and how much of either i would need for this 103gal which is 5foot L x 20in H x 20inW. Thanks in advance guy's!

John

 

[kparton]

When I set up my tank the first time, I had PCs under a hood. I ended up installing 2 fans and still had troubles with heat, I had to prop open the canopy at all times. I don't have any experience with VHOs.

Would you consider MHs suspended above the aquarium? That's what I've done with my current setup and I'm very happy with it.

 

[AQUAHOLIC1]

dunno, from what im hearing in general Pc is almost just as good as MH without the expense im new to this so any opinions are welcome! thanks alot

 

[AQUAHOLIC1]

o and the Pc fixture im looking into has built in fans if thats a plus?

 

[kparton]

That's definitely a plus, at least you won't have to put them in on your own. I just wasn't a big fan, but plenty of people do really well with them.

For what it's worth, I paid less for a 2 175W 10,000K MH pendants than I did for my 4x96W PCs.

 

[Anonymous]

>from what im hearing in general Pc is almost just as good as MH
The important qualifer is "almost." As always, my opinion is a bit biased.

As far as heat vs light output, my feeling is that MH beats PC and VHO. But with larger surface area, VHO is cooler than PC (to the touch) and PC is cooler than MH.

IMO, for a 5 feeter tank, you will be slightly better off with VHO due to the size of the bulb for an even coverage. Wattage for either PC or VHO should be about the same, so it depends on what you going to keep. E.g., for a clam/SPS tank, I will get ~550W total of VHO, if space allowed. For softies and low-light, I will get maybe ~300W. For fish only maybe 200W?

 

[AQUAHOLIC1]

well i just came home from work i couldnt help but to stare at a PC unit all day ! lol 60incher with 4x96watts think imma go with that one! just gotta come up with the 649.95 even with my 10%discount still alot of money and the Reef expert at work said it would be good!

 

[mountainbiker619]

at one time I had one of those 4x96w pc set ups over my 120. Let me tell you they it put off quite abit of heat.

 

[Anonymous]

pc and vho are absolutely the same...

compared to mh, they both suck!!!! 8O :lol:

seriously-

neither have the 'punch power' that mh has, and neither provide the amazingly intense bursts of light that 'glitter lines' represent.

over time, mh's are also cheaper to use, watt for watt, for the same results/livestock keeping ability

 

[ricky1414]

i recently upgraded from no to pc about 3 weeks ago, and i am very happy with it. i have the 24" jbj formosa 2x65w with 3 cooling fans built in. lights are about 3" above the water line. it did not raise the temp of the tank. i know that everyone says that mh are better; they may very well be, but mh's (at least good ones) are out of my price range- I only have a little 20 gal.

 

[Bullredchaser]

650, for about a 100.00 less you can have metal halides with actinic lamps.That price is redicolous.Check this out http://www.hellolights.com/60reflectors.html

 

[hillbilly]

If you hang MH above the tank, instead of putting
them in a canopy, you should have no tank heating
problems, and the best lighting you can get.

 

[AQUAHOLIC1]

VITZ I THINK I KNOW YOU PERSONALY! haha well i know i do.

 

[Anonymous]

great, now i have a stalker :roll:

 

[AQUAHOLIC1]

lol dont you wish actually it's me john from the store

 

[PeeJ]

i have two 48 inch aqualights by coralife totalling 520 watts...very pleased

 

[Anonymous]

What are you going to be keeping? Do you have a canopy or an open top tank?

I know many reefers who started out with just pc or vho and then moved to MH or DE. I say do it right from the beginning, and go with the MH or DE.

I like vho better than pc because IMO vho give you more bang for the buck, more coverage, and the bulbs are not as fragile. Also, usually on vho the ballast is remote, so you get less heat over the tank (the fixture you are thinking about has the ballast inside right?).

 

[tenshi]

Alright here's my opinion and experience. I have 75 gallon reef ready Oceanic aquarium w/stand and canopy(All I have in there are softies). I bought a Coralife 260w PC unit (This unit has 4 little fans in it). After a couple of days I noticed that the tanks temperature raised a couple of degress(From 82 to 84 during the summer, I keep my apartment at 76). I got worried about the temp, so I ended up keeping the canopy open 24 hours a day. Keeping the canopy open did cut it with my wife cause she said it made the tank look ugly. So I installed a 4" fan on top of the canopy top(It's only on when the lights are on and brought the temperature down back down to 82 and got my wife off my case). So heat from the hood was my first problem(I really think the heat is mostly coming from the ballasts inside the light hood). Now because the hood has to be located towards the back of the tank so I'm able to open the glass top on the tank, my zoanthids located at the front of the tank have decided to face the light at the back of the tank(I had to move the rock they were on to the back of the tank where I didn't want them). Now that I think about it. I should've retrofitted the canopy with VHOs so I could've placed them towards the front of the tank as much as possible, I still would've had to place a fan in the canopy though, but the heat from the ballasts would've not been in the canopy. I would've also paid $52.00 more for the VHOs, but would've gotten 180w more, HMMM. So I'm planning a new 180 gallon tank for my soon to be new house and I'm planning on using three 250w MH and two to four 160w Actinic VHOs. I'll be able to keep SPSs, LPSs, and softies this way. When I start ordering my stuff for that stuff I'll order two 175w MH and two 110w Actinic VHOs and I'll be able to do the same for my 75 gallon tank. So that's my opinion.

Good Luck,
Tenshi

 

[AQUAHOLIC1]

My tank is 60x20x20 so what would you recomend? My buddie at work has a 180reef with PC and His tanks IS UNBELIEVEABLE!!! Everything is beautifull and healthy! Truly amazing! He recomended the PC but the MH set up for my tank is only about 70-100$ more. So now im confused. I hear soooo many good things about MH other then the Heat problems causing the need for chillers...etc and He has PC with awsome outcomes and no heat problems? My tank is an open top tank, it's custom built. What ya's think? Heres a pic of my tank just got dont building and painting the stand....

 

[tenshi]

Are you going to keep your aquarium in your bedroom? The reason I ask is if you do, there would be no way I would use MH in there. YOU'LD BAKE. I would use a 4 bulb 60" VHO retrofit kit. That would give you 5.4 watts per gallon. I know, I know, the gallon to watt technique sucks, but its the easiest for beginners. You can pick up the kit with bulbs at www.hellolights.com for $430.00 plus shipping or www.marinedepot.com for $485.00 with shipping. You could use a couple of computer fans between your tank and lights to keep the tank cool, computer fans are cheap. If after a while you think you need more light to grow SPSs then add a couple of bulbs. But then again if you have someone that can mentor you in person, go with what has worked for him.

Tenshi