# HQI Metal Halide Bulbs Life Span



## AheartlessFish (Mar 18, 2008)

Im planning for my future tank which would be a 30x30x21 (90 gallon square) and the light source i plan to use is a metal halide unit (250watts of hqi double sided with x2 65watt compact fluorescent lighting) and 4 leds
I will be mainly aquascaping some HC or glosso

I know nothing about metal halide bulbs and how they work i just know they can get hot.
ive read the following article which states that they only lose 20-30% of intensity but i dont mind that...250 watts would become a 200ish watt bulb then ^^.
(http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-04/ac/index.php)
I dont wana read more articles i just wanted personal inputs on this topic.

i understand rex grigg believes that a bulb will grow plants as long as it lights up (aka no need to change it every 6-12 months)
and im strongly for that ^^

my question are:
whats the life span on these bulbs (as in until they blow or go out not until i should replace them due to wattage/spectrum loss)?

if i use a 10,000k bulb, and it loses spectrum over time....doesnt that just means it becomes a 9000k? or 8000k? etc.?

thanks


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## wwh2694 (Aug 15, 2008)

As for ADA Mh bulbs they recommend it to be change every 12 months. The PAR value goes down overtime and will make the plants grow slow. U want ur light to be low anyways easy to control co2 and fertz. Mh bulb will last for a long time but the ballast thats another story. Some ballast will not last as long as ur bulb some only last 2-3yrs other will last u 10yrs. The ballast the i bought from Fishneedit.com only last 2yrs. I got another one and it looks like they recalled it. Hope this one will last. Now the ADA ballast i have on my solar 1's, only used it for 9 months.


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## AheartlessFish (Mar 18, 2008)

thanks alot for your imput...cause its really making me rethink...haha...
i will be buying a unit that has it built in...thats what i heard about the ballasts...they go out fast which is making me iffy...
i dont plan on buying a new light every 3 years...sounds expensive and lame.


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## gr33nthumb (Oct 18, 2011)

wwh2694 has some very valid points, especially about the high/low light factor of MH lights. I run a 150w double ended over a 30 gallon and the light is the most brilliant, awesome light I have seen, displaying the tank unlike any other type of light. The drawback: the line between balanced and not is VERY thin with this much/type of light. Take into consideration how active you want to be with your setup: do you want to mess with it like a scientist, or do you want something That is more or less "set it and forget it?" Thats partly how I made my decision, hope it helps you some!


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## AheartlessFish (Mar 18, 2008)

when i had my 100 gallon setup, i ended up messing with it like a scientist 2 hours + a day (on free days of course which was almost everyday)...
i got tired of messing around with a fully planted tank (like stocked to the max with only 1/3 of the tank was swim space). So I only play with carpeting plants now and keep the long stem plants to a low amount that is prune-able yet gives plenty of swim space for fish  i find doing this = less maintenance.
If only hygrophilia polysperma sold for big bucks O.O! i think its illegal in the trade tho 

I think im gona end up with t5ho due to price managability and the negativity im getting from halides (cost wise)


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## gr33nthumb (Oct 18, 2011)

That's awesome, I happen to be a Hygro lover myself! If its hygro species I want to grow it!

I love and prefer the scientist route for sure, its what the hobby is all about for myself. If cost is an issue I would check this link out: http://www.fishneedit.com/metal-halide.html The 150w silver pendant is what I ended up picking up off craigslist for $60, plus 6500k bulbs I found for $20. The prices on that site are not bad at all and the quality of the thing when I got it and tore it apart is exceeded my expectations for sure. Yes, I am slightly MH biased


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## AheartlessFish (Mar 18, 2008)

haha im same

if im gona get it, its gona come off of craigslist!! hhaha i refuse to pay 500% markup pricing on lights! craigslist has been doing me very well on all my fish stuff


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## gr33nthumb (Oct 18, 2011)

AheartlessFish said:


> haha im same
> 
> if im gona get it, its gona come off of craigslist!! hhaha i refuse to pay 500% markup pricing on lights! craigslist has been doing me very well on all my fish stuff


It really has for me aswell, as like yourself, I cant fathom spending $200+ on a fixture I could have made for $40 at home depot! Crazy part is, when you tear into one of those fixtures there is NOT $200+ worth of components! Craigslist for the win, and good luck on picking your lighting!


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