MH or Halogen

[lwkimbley]

I have found two 175 watt Hallogen lights. The housing looks just like a MH and the kelvin is 10,0000. What is the difference if the wattage and kelvin rating is the same?

[lwkimbley]

sorry kelvin is 10,000

[Poseidon]

PAR

Photosynthetically Available Radiation (or something close to that.) I am sure Ninong will correct me if needed. Just because 2 bulbs CONSUME (watts) the same amount of energy, it does not mean they RADIATE the same. I would bet that if you put the 2 next to each other the MH would be SUBSTANTIALLY brighter then the halogen.

[Arctic Fox]

Poseidon is right
also, just because a light says 55 Watt or 500 Watt doesn't actually even mean that's how much energy it uses!
I have 130 Watt Compact Fluorescent bulbs that actually use about 26 Watts worth of energy.
VHO's are the same way, they might be a 200 watt bulb but they only use like maybe 50 watts worth of energy.
Someone told me the 130 Watt Compact that are supposed to be as bright as a 130 watt incandescent bulb but I think these are a lot brighter than any incandescent bulb I have seen.
I heard some manufacturers have done this to try and make it easier on people because who wants to buy a "26 watt bulb" right? But it seems to me it did the exact opposite because a 200 watt CF is not as bright as a 200 watt VHO which in turn is not as bright as a 200 watt MH.
They need to put on the side of the package what wavelengths the light emitts and how many lumins at what ranges of wavelengths it emitts

[lwkimbley]

The voltage is 200 something the wattage is 175 and the color is 10,000K. It is the same numbers on a MH 175 watt!

[lwkimbley]

oh the lumens was 14,000, I think!

[saltjunkie]

heck, buy it.. let us know???

[Ninong]

I have found two 175 watt Hallogen lights. The housing looks just like a MH and the kelvin is 10,0000. What is the difference if the wattage and kelvin rating is the same?

Do you know the name of the manufacturer? The product code number?

I don't know of anyone using halogen lamps in place of metal halide lamps for reef tanks. That's because most halogen lamps are around 2800K - 4000K and are very inefficient. They produce quite a lot of heat -- infrared. They are cheap because they don't last long.

I don't know what to tell you if this lamp is supposedly 10,000K. Manufacturers have been known to assign Kelvin ratings that bear little or no relationship to reality. Even with 10,000K metal halide lamps of the same wattage by different manufacturers, the PAR measurements often vary significantly and the spectral distribution charts are often quite dissimilar.

Sometimes it is possible to look up specifications on the manufacturer's website if you know the product code, etc. Some manufacturers provide a lot of information and others provide virtually nothing.

Remember the old saying: "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

P.S. -- On the good side, people who have tried halogen lamps report no problems whatsoever growing lots of algae to keep their tangs and angelfish happy!

[saltjunkie]

P.S. -- On the good side, people who have tried halogen lamps report no problems whatsoever growing lots of algae to keep their tangs and angelfish happy!

[Arctic Fox]

well I suppose if you want a tang and angelfish tank the halogens would be a great idea.
I mean, they are really beautiful fish...
;)