Hardware Bulbs

[saltyeel]

I was setting up my own canopy And was wondering what is the differemce between a hardware store's metal halide bulb and a aquarium store's halide? Same wattage. Also could i get compact flores. from a hardware store?

 

[krishj39]

from what i gather, you can use a hardware store MH ballast, but they most likely run much hotter than those designed for aquariums. also, likely to wear out faster. Don't know from experience though, and I don't know about the PC's. Do you mean the bulbs or the ballasts? Probably the same is true for PC ballasts as MH, but if you meant buy the bulbs, chances are the spectrum is way wrong in those from a hardware store.
If I was to change to MH, I would definitely look into getting the ballasts cheap from a hardware store too.

 

[grimm reef]

Originally posted by SaltyEEL
what is the differemce between a hardware store's metal halide bulb and a aquarium store's halide? Same wattage. Also could i get compact flores. from a hardware store?
The difference between HW store MH and Aquarium MH, is that the hardware store bulbs are Mercury Vapor, High pressure Sodium or Incandescent Bulbs these types of bulbs are not good for your tank if you have Corals, Anenomes ect.. reason being is that these bulbs emit large amounts of yellow, orange , and red light which is only good for growing undesirable hair algae'

 

[conundrum]

the difference is the light spectrum output, you may be tempted to buy home depot 4000k (kelvin) bulbs(look yellow), don't waste your money, algae likes them but, The things in your tank require a higher wavelength 5500k at least and 10,000k to 20,000k are best but higher looks blue. And yes, the good stuff costs alot more.
If you think doubling your efforts can compensate for lack of skill, there is no end to what you can't do.