JMeesh
07/14/2007, 10:19 AM
hi guys. i recently upgraded from a 72w pc fixture to a 175w single ended metal halide setup. this is all over my 20 gallon tank.
in the 72w fixture i had 1 10k bulb and 1 blue bulb, both running 36w of course. its the coralife one. in the 175w i have an old 12k reeflux (i think) bulb donated from a great guy locally. i have a spider reflector, and a magnetic g.e. ballast. the bulb is about 8 inches off the water.
my question, finally :) is this - why does my tank look dimmer? it looks not as bright as when the pcs were over it. im not talking about under something as i know pcs reflect more. i mean smack dab on top of the center rock. it is much more purple, for sure. i understand the whole kelvin rating system, no problem. it just looks dimmer, weird as i now have more than 100 more watts and its halide not pc.
should i be able to see clues about the par my tank is receiving? my frogspawn changes its look some, it seems to stretch a bit more, but gets nice bulbs on the ends of it where as before it was just a tube.
of course, this is only after 2 partial days so my tank is nowhere near acclimated to it. i was just wondering, and as i mentioned in a different thread, i have no patience!!!! any ideas?
meesh
in the 72w fixture i had 1 10k bulb and 1 blue bulb, both running 36w of course. its the coralife one. in the 175w i have an old 12k reeflux (i think) bulb donated from a great guy locally. i have a spider reflector, and a magnetic g.e. ballast. the bulb is about 8 inches off the water.
my question, finally :) is this - why does my tank look dimmer? it looks not as bright as when the pcs were over it. im not talking about under something as i know pcs reflect more. i mean smack dab on top of the center rock. it is much more purple, for sure. i understand the whole kelvin rating system, no problem. it just looks dimmer, weird as i now have more than 100 more watts and its halide not pc.
should i be able to see clues about the par my tank is receiving? my frogspawn changes its look some, it seems to stretch a bit more, but gets nice bulbs on the ends of it where as before it was just a tube.
of course, this is only after 2 partial days so my tank is nowhere near acclimated to it. i was just wondering, and as i mentioned in a different thread, i have no patience!!!! any ideas?
meesh