PC or VHO

[radge69]

75G tank. Looking at 4x55W PC's or something comparable in VHO. No MH. What are your suggestions? Not planning on keeping any of the really high light corals.

 

[almarktool]

Radge,
i use the 4 x 96 watt setup on my 72 gallon tank and that works out quite well for me

 

[bang guy]

PC vs VHO really is just personal preference. Both will work equally well on that size tank IMO. I would suggest splurging for an IceCap 660 Ballast and then you could mix & match to get the best of both worlds. For example you could use 2X 96watt PC12,000K and 2 X 110Watt VHO Actinic.
I lean toward VHO if MH is not an option. Only because I've had more success with it and I prefer the URI Actinic over the PC Actinic. In addition, I'm a clutz and the PC bulbs break really easy.
If I had a 75 (and MH is not an option) I would start with 2 X 110Watt URI AquaSun and 2 X 110Watt URI SuperActinic all run off an IceCap 660.
A slight mod worth experimenting with would be to substitute the AquaSuns for T8 Daylight bulbs. The endcaps are hard to find, but the bulbs are really cheap and burn very bright but consume less power.
Guy

 

[slick]

It's really personal prefrence IMO. Ilike pc's

 

[bobby & kari]

i got pc on my reef set up and its blown out

 

[finland]

I have pc's, and am satisfied with the appearance. Only problem with them is they break easy at the end, and I have had bad luck with them lasting more then 6mos. I don't know if it is caused from a ballast problem or if I just have bad luck. They are supposed to last 12 mos. Next tank will have vho actinics, I like the appearance better then pc actinics. JMO