carey
Aquarium Advice Addict
Ok, so I picked up a jbj viper 150w metal halide fixture for my 20g rimless last night.
I have to confess U am a total NOOB when it comes to hqi so bear with me as I ask some silly questions.
All I know is it has a 14000k bulb in it and the ballast is extremely heavy, wasn't expecting that! LOL
I have it hooked up now and to be honest I really don't see the blue in the light. The par38 bulbs I was using were alot more blue and alot brighter.
Is it natural for the MH not to look as bright? I moved my corals all to the bottom of the tank just in case, was this the right thing to do?
The fixture takes a double ended bulb so I have been pricing new ones, boy they arent cheap are they? lol
I was thinking a 20k as I really like a blue tank. BUT will a 20k encourage coral growth or is the par of the 20k not as good as say the 14000k?
I was thinking of buying one of the cheapo ebay 20'ks and seeing if the color is ok. I hear ushio is the top of the line but didn't wanna chance it for so much money.
What are the drawbacks to a cheapo hqi bulb? Do they not last as long? I'm fine with that if thats it. Or is the color spectrum so much different for a higher end bulb?
and what can I keep under this light? I wanted a clam and a mini maxi nem maybe at some point.
Any one who can shed some light so to speak on this lighting issue? lol
Thanks everyone for reading and if you have anything to add please don't hesitate!
I have to confess U am a total NOOB when it comes to hqi so bear with me as I ask some silly questions.
All I know is it has a 14000k bulb in it and the ballast is extremely heavy, wasn't expecting that! LOL
I have it hooked up now and to be honest I really don't see the blue in the light. The par38 bulbs I was using were alot more blue and alot brighter.
Is it natural for the MH not to look as bright? I moved my corals all to the bottom of the tank just in case, was this the right thing to do?
The fixture takes a double ended bulb so I have been pricing new ones, boy they arent cheap are they? lol
I was thinking a 20k as I really like a blue tank. BUT will a 20k encourage coral growth or is the par of the 20k not as good as say the 14000k?
I was thinking of buying one of the cheapo ebay 20'ks and seeing if the color is ok. I hear ushio is the top of the line but didn't wanna chance it for so much money.
What are the drawbacks to a cheapo hqi bulb? Do they not last as long? I'm fine with that if thats it. Or is the color spectrum so much different for a higher end bulb?
and what can I keep under this light? I wanted a clam and a mini maxi nem maybe at some point.
Any one who can shed some light so to speak on this lighting issue? lol
Thanks everyone for reading and if you have anything to add please don't hesitate!