Thinking of going 150w HQI to 175w SE. Advise!

[OCDP]

This is a crap shoot.... but I have a good deal on a 175w PFO system.

Just seeing what others think... if I should, or shouldn't.

Right now I run a 150w HQI over my 20g tank. I have been offered a 175w SE system. What would be better? I am not worried about the extra 15w of lighting for heat or anything...

But would 150w HQI be the same intensity as 175w SE?

Basically I just want to know if this would be a waste of time (no noticeable difference in corals,etc...) Or if I should take it into consideration. The price is right... just to note.

Thanks guys.

[Delphinus]

If you're happy with what you've got, I don't see any reason to make the switch.

To me, the differences between 150w and 175w:
1) Lamp selection. Not all bulbs come in all sizes. And even then, not all makes and models are always the same between wattages.
2) Reflector selection. If you were wanting to use a Lumenarc, you'd have to use a SE bulb. Let's face it, you're not using a Lumenarc over a 20g. The reflector is ten times bigger than the tank. (Ok, not "ten" times but you get the idea.)
3) Overall presentation. Nice thing about DE's is they tend to be on those neat little pendent packages. A SE bulb can be as ghetto as a simple bulb on a socket. Or as elegant as a prefab pendent. Who knows? It totally depends on what you get.
4) Ballast selection can play a role as well.

I have run both SE and DE over a 20g tank, and to be honest, I was happy with both. I wouldn't really say one really beat out the other. They both have individual pluses and minuses but overall they are basically equivalent. I like the compactness of a DE pendent, I liked the simplicity of my SE.

[OCDP]

Thanks Tony. I am happy with mine right now... so I suppose that leaves me no real reason to switch. And you're right, the DE setups seem to be a little more sleek and compact as compared to the SE setups.

And for only a 15w increase, it doesn't seem right to me now that I think about it more and more.

I think the HQI stays heh... sorry to waste the post / time. Just wanted to be sure of my decision. And I think it makes most sense to keep my current setup as is.


Thanks again.
Scott

[StirCrazy]

Originally Posted by OCDP

Thanks Tony. I am happy with mine right now... so I suppose that leaves me no real reason to switch. And you're right, the DE setups seem to be a little more sleek and compact as compared to the SE setups.

And for only a 15w increase, it doesn't seem right to me now that I think about it more and more.

I think the HQI stays heh... sorry to waste the post / time. Just wanted to be sure of my decision. And I think it makes most sense to keep my current setup as is.


Thanks again.
Scott

that 15 watt increase is deciving.. 175 is a limited bulb choice and for power out put it isn't much better than a twin 96 watt PC set up. your 150HQI has way more usable output than a 175 watt bulb.

Steve

[TheReefGeek]

Im not so sure about a 175 MH being the same as a 2x96w, have any proof of this for us? The reading I have done suggests that MH can penetrate much better than PCs, regardless of watts.

[Funky_Fish14]

The HQI actually use more than 150W, the 150W is just an approximating figure. People hook up a 250W HQI ballast to a regular 250W SE to overdrive the bulb and get more output. Anyways, theoretically both are about the same and if you are happy with what you've got, the change is just a waste of time IMO. Also, everyone is talking about the 15W difference, 150 and 175 are actually 25W's apart

Cheers,

Chris

[StirCrazy]

Originally Posted by TheReefGeek

Im not so sure about a 175 MH being the same as a 2x96w, have any proof of this for us? The reading I have done suggests that MH can penetrate much better than PCs, regardless of watts.

ya, at 20" of depth through water the PAR from my 175 was only 5% higher than the PAR from my twin 96 watt PC set up.

do a search and you will see all kinda of light testing I did about 3 or 4 years ago

Steve

[StirCrazy]

Originally Posted by Funky_Fish14

The HQI actually use more than 150W, the 150W is just an approximating figure.

No 150W is a designed figure of what the bulb will actually use, and no the bulb doesn't use any more than that, aside from the standard deviation inherent with all manufacturing. so one might be 145W one might be 155W but they are all designed to use 150W and should be with in a set tolerance of that number.

Originally Posted by Funky_Fish14

People hook up a 250W HQI ballast to a regular 250W SE to overdrive the bulb and get more output.

Chris

OK people, I am getting tired of repeating myself here, well maybe not
A 250W HQI ballast will not overdrive a 250 watt bulb, it just applies the current and voltages in a different manor but the end result to the bulb is still 250W. so you are not overdriving the bulb but rather running it properly. If you want to get technical the HQI ballast is the closes thing we have to an European ballast and it will drive European bulbs correctly. and sense all our bulbs are based off German bulbs, you do the math..........

Steve

[Invigor]

You're outta your mind to give up a 150w hqi for a 175w mogul