HID lighting

[Hoovercat]

It seems like everyone uses fluorescent lighting. Does anyone use HPS/MH lighting on their tanks? Are the WPG rules the same for HID?

 

[malkore]

MH just isn't as popular in planted aquaria, because most of the time the tank sizes don't get big enough to merit the expense of MH.
From my understanding, MH is slightly less efficient than fluorescent lighting, in terms of lumen output per watt consumed by the bulb.
You could follow the basic guideline of WPG, but feel free to go over it just a little. For example, power compact users can grow glosso with 2.5wpg...but with MH I'd go for a full 3wpg.

 

[travis simonson]

Here's a great article if you're interested in the technical side of the WPG/Lumens/PAR argument. MH may not be as efficient in Lumens per watt but it does produce noticeably higher amounts of light in the photosynthetically useful spectrum than other light sources.

 

[savga]

I've looked into MH lighting for planted tanks, but bulbs with the right color temperature rating are hard to find. Most setups are for reefs and are too blue.

 

[travis simonson]

There are now 10,000K HID MH lamps available that I've seen many experienced aquarists using (Luis Navarro, Jeff Senske). I use mainly 10,000K CF lamps in my planted tank and the plants are doing great so I'll bet those new 10,000K MH lights do wonders

 

[Hoovercat]

Well, I've got a 29 gal and a 50 watt hps on the way, so we'll see if my swords and banana plant like it