If it works for you, it works. All tanks are different, therfore, there is no 1 way.
I've tried many different peoples methods of tank set-up, all worked, all had own LITTLE problems. I've tried there set-up method, it worked, it grew, and it thrived. Every method I've tried, I learned from. It's hard to expand your knowledge with out trying something new. I, like so many other people, stumbled on their site from a list of contacts in the back of Martin Moe's Marine Handbook. I've since seen it recommended in books by Borneman, Sprung, Fenner, Delbeek, and Tullok. Those highly respected authors seem to think garf is bonafide enough to be published in their respected books. If they felt garf was bad in ANY way, they wouldn't risk printing garf's name in the book. If garf was spouting garbage, those authors wouldn't have even mentioned garf.
Like ecoman001 stated, you'll get slower growth with VHO but it will still live and thrive if other factors are met too(calcium,alkalinity, etc..). It all depends on conditions your trying to create. Your not gonna run out and buy mh's for deepwater conditions, just like your not going to run out and buy vho's for a 24" and deeper reef crest tanks that grow outa control and has high light level clams on the bottom with out a DSB. Of course sps are going to grow faster under mh's. Like Paul A. Ifkovits said:
"It is an old arguement that can be seen over and over"
You people flame garf over trying to develope promote their own way, which works VERY well for them. If I had a method I'd developed, of course I'd promote it. I'd want to tell the world. By the way, I don't see to many clams on their site, or even mentioned at that. Garf is not saying there way is THE WAY, they are providing you with a way they have found to work, and has worked for many other people.
Selling items, and making money, is not new to non-profits. Most all sell something in a way, ie. Green Peace calanders. I hear they do eco-tours too, and of course they have to charge for it(bills=need for income). You can't survive on grants and donations alone(a few do, more power to them). Looks to me, like they are trying to survive and to fund a public aquarium in Idaho. Since they do sell stuff, OF COURSE THEY ARE GOING TO PROMOTE THEMSELVES, it would be stupid for them not to. I've not been to a business site yet that doesn't promote themselves. And yes, non-profits are a business. Aren't most web site promoting something?
I think its great some one is selling sps corals that are acclimated to VHO's, what a great way for some one to have a sps tank on a budget, and have it be aquacultered. You know what conditions they came from, try and figure out what lumen strengh a wild coral had, it would only be a guess. No one in the south pacific is going to write down what depth, water clarity, and position on reef the coral they collected had. To them, that one coral doesn't count, it's the days catch that matters.
Some things they do may be goofy to you, but telephones, TV's, computers and cars were goofy to people when they first arrived. Think what might of happened if know one ever belived in those people whom thought up those idea's or if they'd never "promoted" them. Well I invented the car, but I hate promoting, guess I'll move on to the next one and shelve it.
