"AC/DCdude17" wrote in message
...
X-No-Archive: Yes

Moontanman wrote:

Mostly people like me to whom the price is more important than the
quality of
the light. don't be such an elitist.

I'm hardly being an elitist. I'm simply bringing it to the attention that
you're
wasting the potential of the expensive aquarium lamps. You'll only get
half the
output and you'll have to use twice as many fixtures to get the same
output.
Considering the price of the lamps, you're actually not saving anything
from having
to buy twice as many.

Not every one can afford the best.

I think you're thinking it's way more expensive than it really is. Adding
a
commercial grade ballast will set you back $12 and gives you 1.5 to 2
times the
light output per lamp relative to cheapo shoplight. That's two expensive
lamps you
have to buy, so you actually save. Just because residental grade ballast
runs at
lower power doesn't mean lamps last longer. You need twice as many lamps
on
shoplight to get the same output as lamps running on commercial grade
ballast,
therefore that's twice as many lamps you have to replace periodically,
either that
or you cheap out on $12 and deal with only getting 50% power out of these
expensive
lamps.

some of
us have to settle for what we can afford.

^read the above




over my 77g heavily planted tank I have one double strip light with 2 x 40 w
G.E plant bulbs and one cheapo shoplight from Home Depot with 2 x 40 w
Sylvania Gro Lux. I have injected CO2. The plant growth is very good. I have
the same shoplight over a 33g heavily planted livebearer tank and one over
two 20g tanks that sit on a stand side by side. All tanks have excellent
plant growth. The 20's are not using CO2 at all. Those cheap lights may not
be the best but everything I have planted so far has grown.

Rick