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Re: MH Lighting
> From: (Dirk)
>
> I recently saw an ad for a company selling 175watt MH "retrofit" kits for
> $75US. Included is socket, mounting bracket, cord, plug, lamp and ballast,
> and a one-year guarantee. On a watt-per-dollar analysis, this would seem
> much cheaper than a fluorescent setup with electronic ballasts, etc. Two
> of these would produce more than 4.5 watts per gallon for a 75gal tank, and
> would make for a hood much easier to construct than one containing, say,
> fl. tubes. Where is my logic wrong here and what questions/issues should I
> be considering?
If you build a hood, it needs to be large enough and should have provision
for ventilation. I prefer the pendant design with a large parabolic
reflector (same as the kind used for industrial lighting, football fields..)
The numbers you quote sound accurate for price. Remember that for a
product to be profitable, the retail price is often 200-400% of the
cost of materials and assembly.
> P.S. Just wondering. . . . If PMDD ought, ideally, to be refrigerated and
> kept in darkness, why don't the commercial products have to be . . . or
> should they be and the companies just aren't telling us?
They may contain preservatives, in particular, I think HCl was mentioned.
Flourish has a label indicating it should be refrigerated after opening.
Makes sense, eh? A concern would be to ensure kids don't drink it by
mistake. Quite poisonous I expect.
Steve Pushak spush at hcsd_hac.com Vancouver BC Canada