i have crabs
03-12-2009, 01:39 AM
i picked one of these up to put over 1 half of my 300g which is a predator tank with a few softies, before i put it on the tank though i decided to do some testing with the par meter vs. the 48" 8 bulb tek light i have on another tank.
the tek unit puts out a par of about 500 in the middle halfway down and 300 at the bottom middle, the current usa light put out sad 280 middle and 210 bottom with both the stock bulbs and the bulbs from the tek light both sets of bulbs tested almost the same.
now a result of 200-300 is still quite good and about the same as a few 250w halide's ive tested at simular depths but i think the big difference is the parabolic reflector in the 8 bulb version of the nova light vs the single bulb reflectors in the tek,
the good-
tek light has single reflectors, huge par numbers, can be hung, is wider giving more coverage, better quality endcaps
the nova-quite a bit cheeper since it comes with bulbs and legs, 4 white lunar lights built in, built in lens cover, cooling fans,
the bad-
tek- bit expensive, lens cover and legs will run you another $120, no moon lights
nova- crappy reflector kills the quality of light, no hanging kit, kinda cheep endcaps compared to other fixtures,
over all i like the light but im a bit annoyed with the reflector and i bet the 6 bulb version that does have single reflectors would put out higher par for less money and electricity but even with the numbers it puts out i will be able to keep any softy or lps i want and could probably keep most sps in the top 12" of the tank
the tek unit puts out a par of about 500 in the middle halfway down and 300 at the bottom middle, the current usa light put out sad 280 middle and 210 bottom with both the stock bulbs and the bulbs from the tek light both sets of bulbs tested almost the same.
now a result of 200-300 is still quite good and about the same as a few 250w halide's ive tested at simular depths but i think the big difference is the parabolic reflector in the 8 bulb version of the nova light vs the single bulb reflectors in the tek,
the good-
tek light has single reflectors, huge par numbers, can be hung, is wider giving more coverage, better quality endcaps
the nova-quite a bit cheeper since it comes with bulbs and legs, 4 white lunar lights built in, built in lens cover, cooling fans,
the bad-
tek- bit expensive, lens cover and legs will run you another $120, no moon lights
nova- crappy reflector kills the quality of light, no hanging kit, kinda cheep endcaps compared to other fixtures,
over all i like the light but im a bit annoyed with the reflector and i bet the 6 bulb version that does have single reflectors would put out higher par for less money and electricity but even with the numbers it puts out i will be able to keep any softy or lps i want and could probably keep most sps in the top 12" of the tank