Zabman Posted April 15, 2008 Report Share Posted April 15, 2008 What are metal halide lights? I know the difference between T5 & T8 Bulbs but thats about all. Also - Can anybody suggest good lighting for a 120 x 60 x 60 planted tank? and where I can purchase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tHEcONCH Posted April 15, 2008 Report Share Posted April 15, 2008 Metal Halide lamps are a kind of incandescent light, rather than a flourescent - whereas flourescent lamps work by sending electrical pulses through a gas, metal halides work like a normal lightbulb whereby they pass a current thorough a (metal halide) filament. They are very bright, get very hot, and are often used in more expensive cars for headlights (the ones that look blueish ffom a distance). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 16, 2008 Report Share Posted April 16, 2008 Also more relevant than cars, they're used heavily in planted tanks and reef tanks because they put out far more light than fluoros. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zabman Posted April 16, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2008 Awesome! Next question - I like the sound of the Halides, and have also read nothing but good things regarding them. Would I be right in assuming that they would be better than T5's? Whereabouts would I find the reflector thingies for them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted April 16, 2008 Report Share Posted April 16, 2008 meglight,megaheat,megabucks. Strong light is no real advantage to plants without adequate ferts and available carbon. It is a package. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zabman Posted April 16, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2008 So T5 lighting should suffice? I worry that I won't get enough light to grow all the plants I want to. The plan is to get CO2 injection in the future, a proper planted setup ie laterite - possibly undergravel heating (if this is neccessary in NZ). Just don't want to hamstring myself on the lights. If I was to get 4 T5 lights, It would probably work out at about the same as metal halides? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 16, 2008 Report Share Posted April 16, 2008 Unless you're serious about it, T5s will be fine for a plants. I don't think MHs are that expensive. You can frequently find MH units on trademe secondhand for like $150-200ish for a 250W DE. I only managed to get $300 for my dual 250W DE pendant. I don't believe heat is much more than you'd get from a similar wattage of T5s, it's just that the heat from like 500 watts of T5s is going to be produced over like an 8 square foot patch compared to more like 8 square inches for a MH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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