I think i am converting back to plated from my SW experience. Just couldnt get the tank workin right and i dont feel like starting over so I am just going to give up for a while on Saltwater. I was wondering, would my 150W Metal Halide 10000k fixture work well for a planted system? I would like to grow a carpet of dwarf hair grass and would like to plant medium to high light plants.
150W Metal halide for tank?
- Thread starter Electric45
- Start date
Yeah, a lot of nature aquariums you see are run on halides... people shy away from them because they're expensive, get really hot, and eat a lot of electricity. But they can definitely grow plants as good as anything else.
You're pretty much going to have to use co2... were you planning on it?
You're pretty much going to have to use co2... were you planning on it?
I was planning on DIY C02. I have done it before and it worked great. However this time, I will be sure to purchase a ladder diffuser. Im pretty upset about how much money I spent tryin to get my saltwater tank to work. Probably over 400 dollars at least.... I just dont have hte patience for it anymore when things arent looking better, plus I dont have the type of money to keep trying. SOOOO..... back to freshwater, where things are cheap 
you don't have the patience for sw and you want a high tech planted tank? I have had both and I think sw was much easier. had my hands in the fw tank everyday. algae problems if you don't have everything in balance and with mh lighting you will need to keep everything balanced DIY co2 is ok for small tanks but is useless for tanks larger than a 55 unless you plan on making a bunch of them. a heavily planted tank done right is a beautiful sight but way too much work for me.
3dees;4647250; said:
I agree. My 55 planted is twice the work my 20 gal saltwater is. I only run a 54W NO on my planted and plants grow awesome. As mentioned, if things aren't balanced, you get tons of algae. The salt tank... do your water changes once a week and you're laughing. Easy in my opinion. I have sps, softies, etc. Running a 175 W MH.
Keep in mind that MH fixtures put out a TON of light. Look at all the ADA tanks running metal halides...they're 3ft+ above the tank. At that height you'll be scattering light over your entire house. In short, MH over a freshwater planted tank is extremely wasteful. The fixture has to be very high to reduce the intensity so you don't create an algae farm. They look cool, but there are much better options for a planted tank, like T5HO.
Just something to think about.
Just something to think about.
Ok... In responding to your guys opinions about sw vs fw which is not what i was asking about at all....
Had a sw tank before I moved, things went great, awesome in fact. Had softies that were doing so well and the tank was looking great. However, I moved to a new location and I have seen zero improvement in my tank over the past few months. It is not getting better and I doubt it will without getting an RO/DI unit along with a great skimmer. (Please dont link prices on these because I am not going to get them at this time). Due to being unemployed, I should not be wasting this much money on SW expenses trying to get this tank to work. I will have to either break the tank down and restart or just take a break for a while. I would much rather take a break.
Also, I never said i was doing a high tech planted tank. Just because its DIY c02 doesnt mean its high tech IMO. All i was wondering was how would the metal halide work and if it would be too much light. Anyways feel free for more advise on the fixture setup. I dont mind if its high above the tank also.
Thanks for the help everyone.
Had a sw tank before I moved, things went great, awesome in fact. Had softies that were doing so well and the tank was looking great. However, I moved to a new location and I have seen zero improvement in my tank over the past few months. It is not getting better and I doubt it will without getting an RO/DI unit along with a great skimmer. (Please dont link prices on these because I am not going to get them at this time). Due to being unemployed, I should not be wasting this much money on SW expenses trying to get this tank to work. I will have to either break the tank down and restart or just take a break for a while. I would much rather take a break.
Also, I never said i was doing a high tech planted tank. Just because its DIY c02 doesnt mean its high tech IMO. All i was wondering was how would the metal halide work and if it would be too much light. Anyways feel free for more advise on the fixture setup. I dont mind if its high above the tank also.
Thanks for the help everyone.