Metal Halide And Fluorescents

[guidedbyechoes]

I was wondering how many watts of fluorescence would be equal to 50 watts of MH? I was wondering if one beat out the other over wattage consumed to lumens produced.

 

[Colin_T]

Generally 50watts of light is 50watts. The light from Halides will penetrate deeper water and is better for tall tanks. T8 or standard Fluoros are only useful in tanks up to 18inches high. T5 fluoros can be used on tanks up to 2ft high.
different globes will produce different amounts of light/lumens. Generally a higher wattage globe will produce more lumens but uses more power to do so.

Fluoros are generally cheaper to run because they produce less heat. But the newer metal halides have electronic ballasts and are much more efficient than earlier models and don’t use much more power than the same wattage fluoro.

 

[guidedbyechoes]

Generally 50watts of light is 50watts. The light from Halides will penetrate deeper water and is better for tall tanks. T8 or standard Fluoros are only useful in tanks up to 18inches high. T5 fluoros can be used on tanks up to 2ft high.
different globes will produce different amounts of light/lumens. Generally a higher wattage globe will produce more lumens but uses more power to do so.

Fluoros are generally cheaper to run because they produce less heat. But the newer metal halides have electronic ballasts and are much more efficient than earlier models and don’t use much more power than the same wattage fluoro.

I was lead to believe a 50 watt metal halide would produce more lumens than a t5 lets say power compact of the same wattage. SO I am misunderstanding somehow?

 

[andywg]

Ahhh, but lumens is biased towards the spectrum of light we see. To really compare the bulbs you want to compare either PAR or PUR (Photosynthetically Available/Usable radiation) at the depth of your substrate but accurately monitoring and calculating these is not much fun.

As a result you cannot just look at watts as different tubes will have different lumens/PAR and PUR readings.

As a rough guide, MH tend to penetrate the water better for things that need intense light (shallow water corals).

 

[Rooster]

Watts IS a measure of power consumed.... nothing to do with output of light - or my kettle would need a welding mask to operate !

MH does output "more" light in the "right" spectrum - but as for comparison on a light for light basis, its a tough one... as a lot of the power used is converted into heat, not light...

 

[guidedbyechoes]

I see, I was just wondering what type of light I would need to be the most efficient both space wise and consumption wise.

 

[Mr Bliss]

Metal halide does produce a lot of heat. This can be good or bad; in my case it's good since I don't need a heater at all, the lights keep my tank at 26 - 28C even now when it's kinda cold outside (and in the house!), although I worry about overheating in the summer.

 

[guidedbyechoes]

Metal halide does produce a lot of heat. This can be good or bad; in my case it's good since I don't need a heater at all, the lights keep my tank at 26 - 28C even now when it's kinda cold outside (and in the house!), although I worry about overheating in the summer.

couldn't you just run a fan over the tank in the summer?

 

[Mr Bliss]

Metal halide does produce a lot of heat. This can be good or bad; in my case it's good since I don't need a heater at all, the lights keep my tank at 26 - 28C even now when it's kinda cold outside (and in the house!), although I worry about overheating in the summer.

couldn't you just run a fan over the tank in the summer?

Yeah that's what I plan to try if it becomes a problem.

 

[Colin_T]

I see, I was just wondering what type of light I would need to be the most efficient both space wise and consumption wise.

fluoros are more efficient than halides and produce less heat. However, they aren't as good on big tanks if you want to keep lots of plants or corals, eg: 6x2x2ft tanks. Halides are better for this purpose, or if you can afford them, the new LED spotlights. They are very efficient but extremely expensive.

 

[guidedbyechoes]

I see, I was just wondering what type of light I would need to be the most efficient both space wise and consumption wise.

fluoros are more efficient than halides and produce less heat. However, they aren't as good on big tanks if you want to keep lots of plants or corals, eg: 6x2x2ft tanks. Halides are better for this purpose, or if you can afford them, the new LED spotlights. They are very efficient but extremely expensive.

There are leds in sunlight colors now? How do you factor in WPG for them? I have experience in wiring up leds if these are similar to the ones I used I might be able to make my own lights. If not I have a friend thats almost an electrician to help me.

 

[Rooster]

almost an electrician

 

[guidedbyechoes]

almost an electrician

aka not gone through the full what is it 5-10 years of training. He's got two.

 

[Rooster]

almost an electrician

aka not gone through the full what is it 5-10 years of training. He's got two.

Sorry - not laughed out loud for a while.... theres NOTHING wrong with "non certified" folk, dont get me wrong... Ive encounted a LOT of "educated" people would would struggle with Lego, and a hell of a lot more without paperwork who could give NASA a run for their money.

That said, I wouldnt dream of encouraging anyone to tinker with "dangerous" things .... dont want anyone learning, do we ?

(Disclaimer - if you are in ANY doubt, DONT TOUCH ANYTHING (or even discuss it))

 

[guidedbyechoes]

almost an electrician

aka not gone through the full what is it 5-10 years of training. He's got two.

Sorry - not laughed out loud for a while.... theres NOTHING wrong with "non certified" folk, dont get me wrong... Ive encounted a LOT of "educated" people would would struggle with Lego, and a hell of a lot more without paperwork who could give NASA a run for their money.

That said, I wouldnt dream of encouraging anyone to tinker with "dangerous" things .... dont want anyone learning, do we ?

(Disclaimer - if you are in ANY doubt, DONT TOUCH ANYTHING (or even discuss it))

There are definately risk involved but if you are careful and do clean neat work(besides making sure power is off when you are working on the circuit) there shouldn't be anymore risk than working on a tube guitar amplifier. Which we have done. And the caps in there hold a charge for a long time.