MH or PL?

[ah tong]

Hi guys,
will be upgrading to a 3 or maybe 4ft planted tank if budget permits soon.
I am currently using PL for my 2ft planted tank.

I would appreciate if those of you who have used MH or both to give me advice on this. I can't make up my mind which to buy.

MH: does it jack up your electricity bill? how about maintenance?

Thanks!

[tawauboy]

your electricity bill will ‘upgrade’ along with the size of your tank. bigger tank requires more lights than smaller tanks. however, your electricity consumption will be identical if you compare between 300w of pl and 300w of mh.
mh has a better penetration than fl. usually tank < 2’ deep does not require mh but this is up to individual. mh maintain it’s light intensity longer that pl so in the long run it may be cheaper to maintain. the drawback is the higher startup cost and mh heats up your tank.

[loupgarou]

MH doesn't do nothing to your bill.

a 150W running 12 hours a day =

150W X 12 hrs X 30 days = 54000 WH of electricity

Price of electricity = $0.15 per kWh.

54000/1000 * 0.15 = $8.10
$8.10 per month

assuming that $8.10/mth is affordable to you.

[ah tong]

Thanks guys!
I would be getting my tank with 2' ht minus the gravel ht. Any recommendations where to scout for MH lights and prices?

I am very tempted to give it a try as it is easier to do tank maintenance comparing to PL lights.
BTW, what's the distance between the MH light and the water surface?

[vinz]

do a search on AQ, There are a few threads on lighting shops to get MH.

The cons with MH are that you need to mount them on the ceiling or walls, assuming you get those pendant ones from lighting shops. There are those made to sit on top of an aquarium, but those tend to be much more expensive and sometimes too close to the water (heating problem).

[ah tong]

vinz,
Ya, saw the previous discussions.. Trying to locate the one at Kelantan lane area. Remembered saw it in forum before somewhere.
But the prize is a real put off man! sob....[