HMMMM???

[Phil5613]

I am trying to figure out where to throw my money t5ho or mh. I traditionally use halides but with my 90 now I have pc's which I am unhappy with. so time to change the hood. the problem becomes do I build the mh hood the way I always do or just buy the t5 fixture and call it good? is anyone using t5 right now is it living up to the billing? or will it be the same as the pc hood fine for shrooms and softies but naught else? I don't want to throw good money after bad any tips/advice? I do like this hood. also the lfs i really like in my area says t5 is wave of future.
http://www.arcadia-uk.com/en/180overtank.html
I also like the SKR with the moon lights and more bulb option.
http://www.skronline.com/skraqualuxhome2.htm
The Arcadia has the legs which do make for a nice option.

T5 is still very new and not everything is known yet. MH has always been top dog and always will be top dog. The thing you need to concider is which ballast and matt has posted some very good links to E-ballast and ICECAP ballast.
I have not done alot of research on them yet but if asked right now I would go with the E-Ballast dual 175 .....2x175w E-Ballast & Reflector Combo

[Iceman30]

They may be wave of future for replacement of VHO, but still do not have the punch to push to the bottom of a 24" tank !!! NO MATTER WHAT, THEY CAN NOT...if you want to keep clams, sps..and keep them happy, you need MH...and on a 90, you need 250's to reach the depth of the tank...check out this
http://www.hellolights.com/hidretrofitkit.html

they are at least the same if not cheaper than the T5, IMO, just because they come from Germany, doesn't mean they are the best...heck, I have a 400 watt 20k on a 30 gallon long mixed tank with many sps, lps, softies and 3 clams...all lovin it..with no chiller, with fans and auto top off from rodi, you can make mh work without the heat problems some people have.

good luck and just my opinion....8 yrs worth

Iceman the E-ballast is MH. Right?
I still use 440 watts of VHO and everything is happy even my clam.

The 2x 175 would be 350 watts so is that enough for clams?
If I ever have to switch I would do 2 x 400 watts = 800 watts. but tight with money right now.

[Iceman30]

Yeah, the E=ballast fires MH bulbs. Icecap sells a MH electronic ballast also. I have always used coil and cap ballasts myself. I had an icecap vho ballast once, went through 2 in like 3 months then sold vho's and went to MH. I had 2 250 20k on 150 gallon and was great for everything. 175's are good, but not much to step up to 250's, not even much more heat, step up to 400 and you get lots of heat to deal with too, but if you have chiller, or sump with some fans and auto top off for the evap. you will be ok...can't always go with total watts per gallon..MH are more intense therfore push further into the water. At 12" 175 watt MH will have more PAR which is the photosynthetic use of the light than 400 watts of VHO..175 good to like 18" deep 250 24 to 30 and 400 30" and up, depth of water. If your clam is on the bottom of your tank..he will get enough light to survive and adapt to that amount of light but clams, like sps like intense light, email me and i'll send you a pic of mine, if you want...400 watt 20k with 2 96 watt pc on 30 gallon long, only 16" deep..I don't run the PC and the mh at the same time for temp reasons and because the mh is 20k..but clams and torch open up good under PC but when they go off and MH comes on BOOM they open way up !!

[freyja]

hey hey >> the vote is MH, my friend had a couple diff set ups then T5's it wasn't long at all before he went right for the Halide,, so maybe save a step....and some money along the way. What i'm wondering for my tank it 's a 75G, right now just VHO lighting,, can't keep much... wondering about the Jebo PC's on Ebay,,great price > why are you unhappy with your PC's? My budget wants me to wait just a bit if i can on Hallides' LOL,,,it told me so,, but i'im still soo tempted...

[Matt Rogers]

I'd wait and get halides, not sure why you would go from VHO to PC anyway.

(THanks for joining 3reef! )

[Phil5613]

I now have over 500 watts pc over the tank and still thinking of going to mh like I did with other tanks in past . The tank is doing great but I hate to hesitat about putting something in the tank because the lighting may be an unknown. But for the time being the pc will do the wife has lowered my allowance ("How much fish crap and tools do you need?) but with everything in the works who knows what the future holds.

[Gresham]

Switch over to MH. Tell your wife that in the long run, it'll save you money (less bulbs to buy) and it'll look WAY better You can never have enough tools, I'm not sure what she's talking about

[Scuba]

How often do you need to change bulds in both a PC and MH?