Cheap Metal Halide

[AMS]

Why spend the money on those expensive metal halide lights specially made for aquariums when you can buy them for at least $100 cheaper at home depot? This is just one metal halide at home depot. For some reason the URL doesnt take you directly to the halides, just search metal halides and theyll come up.

Just letting everyone know, just in case you didnt .

 

[superman]

The Spectrum needed in reef Aquaria is completely different, that is why we don't buy our Metal halide lighting from Home Depot.

 

[AMS]

Oh sorry I feel really dumb. I was told at an aquarium near my house that they use the exact same ones on their reef tanks. I guess they dont know theres different spectrums needed.

 

[SkiFletch]

Dont feel dumb, you had some good ideas there. the halides from a hardware store often have the same fixtures, but the bulbs sold with them are typically below 10k color spectrum. it still might be more cost-effective to buy the fixture and replace the bulb with one suitable for a SW aquarium, but I'd challenge you to find a better price at a home depot than you can get off Ebay... For some reason the lighting is DIRT cheap there

 

[superman]

It's not that the spectrum isn't up to 10,000k, it's that the spectrum doesn't even reach 3,000-4000k even. 6,500k would even be good enough (basically true daylight spectrum) but the metal halides used in industry/home applications just don't have that a white enough spectrum that even comes close to applicable to our tanks. The closest things that I have seen that people do use on some small tanks and refugiums would be the Lights of America brand compact fluorescent fixtures and bulbs that utilize an inexpensive compact fluorescent that is pretty darn bright and is 6500k. The replacement bulbs are only about $10. I use the 65 watt fixture on my refugium/frag grow out tank. It is awesome and cheap. They claim that these have a light output equivalent to 500 watts incadescent.

 

[Aquascaper]

Search around for Aquabay, Lowbay & Growbay metal halides (basically all thwe same just different names). They're usually very cheap and all you need to do is change the bulb.