Are you looking for the best power compact lights for reef aquariums?
Power compact lights are an older type of florescent lighting than LED lights, however they still have their uses. They produce about twice as much lumens of light per watt as their predecessor known as VHO systems. Power compact lights are useful in reef tanks because they can support a wide variety of tank inhabitants. The lighting systems narrow bulbs are folded inside the fixtures; thus, more bulb can be squeezed into a smaller area. Many people report that their corals do much better after they switch to these lights from more outdated fluorescent systems. Also, power compact lights produce less heat than other florescent bulbs fixtures, and the bulbs last longer than traditional VHO or very high output bulbs. Power compacts work well to supplement whiter metal halide lights with additional actinic blue light, they also work well in nano tank hoods because they pack a lot of light into small convoluted bulbs. Power compacts are fine, but even the best power compact lights are now considered outdared. It is getting a little harder to find complete PC systems, but the light bulbs, more accurately refereed to as tubes are still sometimes available at the time of this writing in 2018. So if you have an existing power compact system and need parts you can buy them here. However newer T 5 and t 8 bulbs are even more efficient, and LED bulbs are even more efficient and powerful than all the above. Also power compact bulbs, like other fluorescent bulbs contain small amounts of mercury, this is a highly toxic metal that can be released if the bulb breaks. Thus LED lights are brighter, longer lasting, and do not release toxins into the home of environment when disposed of or accidently broken.
Want more information on aquarium lighting visit our aquarium lighting page, or read why corals need special lights in our section on reef tank lighting.
We also give you the opportunity to purchase some of the best aquarium lights for your needs.