Can someone please tell me which light is better? I would like to upgrade my lighting and the more I research the more I find how one is better than the other. Thanks for your time.
Do some research on prices from various vendors like Marine Depot, Premium Aquatics, Aquarium Hobbyist Supply... See what fits your budget. AHS has some nice easy-to-install complete PC kits. URI makes nice VHO bulbs with built-in reflectors and the people at MD or PA can help set you up with the right ballast and parts.
I agree the VHO looks better. I have PC's on my 55 reef and they are acceptable. I have VHO on my 180 reef and I love them. The actinic is better than the pc. If I had to do it over again I would have gone with the IceCap 660 ballast and the VHO's like I did on the 180. Plus if you get the IceCap you can run PC's on them if you end up not liking the VHO's. Or a combination of both. I think replacement life is suppose to be 12 mths on the VHO and 14-16 mths on the PC's. Bulb pricing are about comparable on both also.Just my 2 cents though.
