I always want to buy more stuff ...

[sjpresley]

Kris:

 

Sorry if I sound nit-picky at times, but I am a scientist (biologist in fact) and I spend much of my time reading and writing. As such, I am accustomed to things being meticulously accurate to avoid ambiguity.

 

On an unrelated note, I am becoming quite the martini fan. How would you rate Absolut vodka in general? Do you think it would make a smooth tasty martini?

 

Thanks,

[OscarBeast]

Now, if PC is so "renouned", why are there VHO setups? What are the ratings for PC's? I have never seen a HO or VHO PC. Are PC's just regular? Or, did I miss something? Can you overdrive PC's on a "normal" ballast? Can you overdrive PC's period?

 

Cost. In general, who uses PCs? People with small tanks. As we have discussed before, VHOs are a hell of a lot cheaper on larger setups. I know most of the people in my reef club all use URI VHOs for a few of reasons: 1) They already are a well established lighting system with good bulb variety and have worked for these people in the past. 2) On larger tanks, the initial cost is cheaper, as well as bulb replacement being cheaper.

 

If you are wonder if there are different output levels for a PC style bulb, I think the only direction they would have to go is down because of their current output and heat generated. I could be wrong though. I am sure someone has tired to put more power to them.

 

They prefer their beleifs over what the true facts are.

You sure make reefers out to be pretty ignorant... Most people that I know embrace factual data. The problem is that there is a serious lack of unbiased data out there, or any data at all.

 

What I meant by the origional statement was the fact that adding PC's to a metal halide system would be the equivalent of rakeing leaves uphill. If you are using metal halides, supplimenting with PC's is basically a waste. Yes the light from the PC's will reach the corals, but why have 2 seperate systems in which one is outcompeting and killing the other? Another example, lets say I put a metal halide over my tank and then add a 32w pc right next to it for supplimentation. Now, the metal halide is going to be brighter, "outshining" the PC. Yet, I just bought and paid for that system as well as using electricity, not to mention the cost of replacement. I also now have to worry about the fact that the heat from the halide will shorten the life of that PC rather quickly and also cause premature failure.

 

When an individual uses PC lighting to supplement, it normally isn't for the increased output. It is simply for color adjustment and dusk/dawn viewing. If I am not mistaken Actinic 03 has a relatively low PAR value anyway. If you are talking about something other than Actinics or 7100Ks, then I really don't know what that reefer would be thinking anyway.

 

As far as heat causing premature failure for PCs, I have never seen any data to support this either.

[Guest AbSoluTc]

Originally posted by sjpresley

Kris:

 

Sorry if I sound nit-picky at times, but I am a scientist (biologist in fact) and I spend much of my time reading and writing.  As such, I am accustomed to things being meticulously accurate to avoid ambiguity.

 

On an unrelated note, I am becoming quite the martini fan.  How would you rate Absolut vodka in general?  Do you think it would make a smooth tasty martini?

 

Thanks,

 

You are fine. I understand what people are saying and I know where they are coming from. I was just hoping that "reefers" in general would be more apt to DO instead of just SAY. Test, experiment. The more the merrier. When I speak, I speak from experience. Nothing more, nothing less. My mind also loves to extend beyond its reach. Which is a drawback for me. I enjoy thinking ahead and welcome new things. The quicker I can push out the old with some new and more viable, the better.

 

As far as your martini goes, if you do regular absolut - mix in a tablespoon of sugar and let it disolve real well. Chill - pour and add your olive. You get a nice mix of flavor. As for having it straight up - its kinda zingy. Need to spice it up a bit. From what I hear, citron and mandarin are quit good. Havent been able to taste them yet.

 

Have fun

[tinyreef]

hey abs, aren't you underage? : kids these days!

 

just butting into a good 'heated' exchange. pc's are inherently vho. they're just bent tube vho. T5's are vho too but probably generate greater lumens per bulb area (i dunno, i haven't seen figures but i have seen them in person. blinding! )

 

actinics are w/o red and yellow which activate chlorophyll C (? ??? ). chlorophyll A is activated by blue light. so technically the actinics aren't low-PAR but different. granted, the common usage in reefing for PAR measurements is red/yellow, i believe.

 

i'm going to be using 18" uri vho's on my new 15H (10g footprint, 18" high). i let you guys know if they're enough.

[Christopher Marks]

I'll chuck in my 2 cents from experience. I started my 90 gallon reef using 4, 55w powercompacts. They were just fine for the year and few months I had them. I however decided to upgrade to VHO around that time. Why did I do this? Basically, as PC lamps are quite small, they simply do not spread light around the tank nearly as well as a larger VHO tube would. The PC to VHO jump showed quite a difference in how much more evenly the light was spread around the tank. I also found VHO system to cost quite a bit less than they used to when I had originally purchased my PC hood.

 

I feel PC's a great for nano reefs. Nano reefs are small aquariums, so a small powercompact bulb spreads light across the tank fairly well. And, PC's pack quite a bit of power into a very short tube. So for our application, they're useful.

 

But on larger tanks, they're just not going to provide nearly as much light as their larger VHO equivilent.

[jtown]

Originally posted by Christopher Marks

I'll chuck in my 2 cents from experience. I started my 90 gallon reef using 4, 55w powercompacts. They were just fine for the year and few months I had them. I however decided to upgrade to VHO around that time. Why did I do this? Basically, as PC lamps are quite small, they simply do not spread light around the tank nearly as well as a larger VHO tube would. The PC to VHO jump showed quite a difference in how much more evenly the light was spread around the tank. I also found VHO system to cost quite a bit less than they used to when I had originally purchased my PC hood.

 

I feel PC's a great for nano reefs. Nano reefs are small aquariums, so a small powercompact bulb spreads light across the tank fairly well. And, PC's pack quite a bit of power into a very short tube. So for our application, they're useful.

 

But on larger tanks, they're just not going to provide nearly as much light as their larger VHO equivilent.

 

would you concider a 20L a nano?

 

would it be wise to get a couple VHO's and put them in between the two PC's that I have?

 

and where is the best place to start shopping for kits? hellolights?

[Christopher Marks]

A tank that size it kind of on the edge of both. If you already have PC's, stick with PC's.

[tinyreef]

while i agree with chris on sticking with pc's if you've already got them, a 20L with vho is a perfect breeder tank setup (other than a 40 breeder or a 40L). then again 180g w/mh & vho ain't bad either, hmm :

 

in other words, you're fine imo.