Question about power compacts?

saltwaterdude

saltwaterdude

Member
Do they look just like normal hood lights except they are VHO lights?
What is the difference between them and VHO lights, MH, and NO lights?
And if I get them, can i just lay them on my glass top like I have my normal hood lamp now?
 
saltyrich

saltyrich

Active Member
There is a distinct difference between metal halide, vho, NO, and pc. I'll leave the mh alone because I don't use those. VHO, PC, and NO lighting are types flourescent lighting. First, NO indicates normal output, VHO indicates very high output, and pc indicates power compacts. NO and VHO bulbs are very similar in the way they look. However, a 24" NO bulb puts out 20 watts, while a 24" vho bulb puts out 75 watts. The type of light emitted is different also. VHO being better in quantity as well as quality of light emited. Power Compacts are powerful flourescent bulbs that are compact in size. Each one of these has different characteristics in terms of output of lumens, depth of effective light penetration, asthetic look of the lighting, etc. It is up to you to research and determine what you want. I recommend choosing a lighting system based on what you want to keep both now and in the future. It will not do you any good to purchase for example, several normal output bulbs for your tank if you want to keep higher light requiring corals in the future. Good luck!
 
saltyrich

saltyrich

Active Member
The bulbs are yes. You typically get a specific number of fixtures in a kit or full hood. For example, I have a power compact hood on my 20 gallon that is 24" wide and has 2x65 watt pc bulbs in it. If you want my honest opinion, I like VHO lighting better than pc. I like them both, but I really like the look of vho lighting better. Just my opinion. I recommend you do an online search for "aquarium lighting" and look at the difference between the different types of lighting. You will then be able to see exactly what you could put on your tank and compare!
 
ncjetskier

ncjetskier

Member
I have used 4 96 watt power compacts for two years. As far as "how they look" it will always depend on what type you put in (50/50, 10K, 6500 etc). I just switched to MH since I was bored and feel that it is better for coral. The PC put out a very intense light (almost like a tanning bed). They are small and last about 1 yr. The bulbs are about the same price as VHO. It is a matter of preforance. If you have a small hood, and want a ton of light, I would go with PC.
 
ncjetskier

ncjetskier

Member
There really is not any difference. A IceCap 660 ballast will also run the same wattage of PC as well as VHO (you can use the same ballast to run both). The bulbs are about the same price.
 
jonthefb

jonthefb

Active Member
ive used all three, pc;s vhos, and metal halides, adn the form really dictates the function. for example, in my 20 gallon, like saltyrich, i have 2X65watts of pc's i love the look of them and have had great success with them so far, however on my 135 mh, is the way to go and i love the look of them as well. take a look at some of hte tnak pics around the site, and on the net, an dthen decide for yourself which you would like to try!
good luck
jon
p.s. if you ever wanna talk fish in colorado, email me at jonthan.garnett@attbi.com
go avs!
 
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