PC's vs VHO

up north hermit

up north hermit

Member
Well I wasn't going to get any more involved in yet another lighting debate but...... :D
I researched this subject for over three months, and talked to many experts personally, and I have to totally disagree that "the wonderful color of VHO is for our benefit and not the corals."
If you can direct me to ANY source to back up this statement please enlighten me and I will stand corrected.
I believe this debate is getting old. When it comes right down to it it has to be an individual decision based the needs of ones' particular application.
When can we stop making black and white statements, and just share experiences? It's just too confusing for people when they hear "you must" , "you cannot" "never" "only" and on and on. I guarentee you 10 years from now there will be something else to argue about.
Now I know that I'm an old timer, but honestly folks we never did much debating and we certainly were not as polorized in our opinions. Geez, now you gotta be a PC'er, a VHO'er, or a Metal Halide guy or gal and stick to your side.
I'm on the side that works for you!! And especially your creatures!!
I did not choose VHO for the color, indeed not, I didn't realize how great the color was until I fired them up. But I'll share this: I have had a Pagoda Cup coral under PC light that never opened in three months. Thee days after I installed the VHO it opened up and has been open ever since.
I'm getting tired of listening to myself. :rolleyes:
In my correspondence with other reefers I am hearing my own sentiments echoed about this lighting issue. So I know I'm not alone, altho maybe the only one on this board, :D
CLUNK..,CLUNK..,off the soap box now.
Please don't get nasty on me, just needed to vent.
My HUMBLE .02
Hermit
 
tnreef

tnreef

Member
Hermit,
You have always had my respect and you still do.
I am not saying the K rating is not important just that a PC with 10000 K puts out more lumens than a VHO with 10000K.
I can not post a link to the site but I would be glad to share them over email. my email is shown as my home page on my profile.
The wonderful color I am refering to is that dark blue that is not possible with PC and VHO is very crisp, not hazy like the PC. I have used both but my last use of VHO was a few years ago.
Too many times in this hobby people are too concerned with what is in their intrests not the livestocks.
THIS IS WHAT I WAS COMENTING ON.
as always "IMO" Darryl
 
burnnspy

burnnspy

Active Member
Plato, I recommend 1 MH bulb for every 2ft of tank length. Wattage depends on your choice of corals and the depth of the tank.
Hermit, there is nothing wrong with VHO for most corals.
I like to recommend lighting based on the simple fact that upgrades waste money and a lot of new reefers don't know what they are going to add to their tank until it is too late, so it is better to have overkill in lighting then to make the livestock suffer under suboptimal conditions.
As for the VHO - PC debate, PC's are new and are not recommended or used by the pros(coral farmers who make a living from coral growth), maybe in the near future PC technology will surpass VHO.
BurnNSpy
 
up north hermit

up north hermit

Member
TNReef,
I sssoooooo agree with you. The livestock should not only be our main concern, but IMHO, our only concern.
Instant gratification, in this hobby, is deadly.
Thanks for your respect, the feeling is entirely mutual my friend. ;)
(I think I need to up my milligrams of hormones to a higher daily dosage...... :D)
Humbly yours,
Hermit
 
C

coralbeauty

Guest
Plato:
Where in Oregon do you live?? There are several shops in the greater Tigard area. My favorite is one called Waves. It is in Lake Grove, Lake Oswego area. They have a few fish, but tons of wonderful, but not cheap coral! In Portland proper there are several more, but I usual do not bother with the drive. I can always find something wonderful at Waves.
As far as the lighting discussion, I am with Hermit. She is the one who gave me the advice on VHO. However, it is a personal decision based on many factors. The most important needs to be the health of the coral, etc. I have space and heat issues so VHO was my best option on my 55 galllon. My 37 gallon is an Eclipse III so PC was my only real option, unless I wanted to cut into the hood!
Also, like hermit I am old, (sorry hermit you said it first) and I have found few absolute in this world. I also agree with BurnNSpy try no to upgrade, do it right the first time, or set a plan and build as you can afford.
Enjoy your tanks.............Connie
 
q

q

Member
Connie
I live in Milton-Freewater. About 4 hours from Portland.
I do agree with matching lighting to the corals. The only thing is defining what exactily is intence lighting, moderate lighting, ect ect. I haven't seen anything to say what that is and you probably can't. If the corals are bleaching to much or of the corals are not showing good color.
IMHO this is the true joy of fish keeping. Finding out how to make the species thrive in an artificial enviornment.
So since there is the technology with icecap balasts to limit the amount of light output I am going to go MH and adjust as necissary based on the response of my corals.
As I am still acquiring knowledge I am going to buy a few reference books on corals and their requirements.
Unfortunatly I do not know of any book that has given a difinitive answer to lighting. I would settle on any good book so please give a refference. This is why I started this post.
Up North Hermit I believe you hit the nail on the head when you said lighting is application based. But for the firstimer who wants to set up once and do it right the first time I must gain knowledge from those more experienced than I.
SO I THANK YOU ALL ;)
 
C

coralbeauty

Guest
Hey you live way.....out.......there.....
Portland and Vancouver are full of great shops. Coral Visions in Vancouver and Soutas in Portland are great places. There is also a guy who sells tank proporated specimens (softies and SPS) who lives in Milwaukie. He will let you come to his home and pick out of the tank. However, you might do better having him ship to you.
Good luck on the lighting thing. I wish I could use MH. I really do think it is best. It is a long story but it will not work in my house unless I cut holes in the custom built-in bookselves. My hushand, the selfish man he is, thinks that would be a very poor idea. (LOL) So it is VHO for me, and I just have to limit what I keep and were I keep it.
Good luck!
Connie
 
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