some lighting questions

M

my03

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Jun 27, 2004
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hey guys, im goigng to be running a 3ft by 2ft by 2 ft tank, which is about 324 liters, the plans is to put live rock and dsb, and eventually a skimmer, it will have a sump full of bioballs being fed water through a weir.

i saw this lighting unit in australian ebay, its brand new, aqua one with twin flourecent tubes, and one metal halide the guy said that halide can run whatever k bulbs, but they come with 5000k bulbs.

so my question is are metal halide lights compatible with different k rated bulbs? and will 5000k 150 watt metal halides and two flourecents be adequate with my size tank?

i evetually want to keep some hardy corals/anenome but the tank is ppanned to have both fish and corals in it.

thanks
 
It depends on the corals, but I'd go with 250 watts for a 2 foot deep tank.

5000 K is very low color temperature for a reef tank. It will look yellow, and may not be as good for coral growth. Is it an electronic or magnetic ballast?
 
thanks for the reply, ive asked the supplier if theres magnectic or electronic ballast, so basically thew light can run any k bulb, right? 5000k or 20 000k? what rated bulb would yourecommend?
 
It's fine. The reason I asked is that electronic ballasts are "smart" enough to deal with a wider range of bulbs. With a magnetic ballast, you have to be more careful about the kind of bulb you get. Yours can probably run a higher K lamp, but you should ask the guy which ones to get.

From what I can tell, many if not most reefers like the higher color temp (20000 K) bulbs because of the way the bluer light brings out the colors of the corals. 10000K bulbs give a crisper white color, and generally higher levels of photosynthetically available radiation (PAR), and you can get the blue by using true actinics in your fluorescent fixture.

Interestingly, the bulbs with the highest PAR values, and which give the best growth rates, are Iwasaki 6500 K lamps. A lot of people complain that they look too yellow, though. XM 10000K lamps have similar PAR values.
 
thanks alot morgurnda, he said he could get me 14000k bulbs for 150aud(about 80-90 bucks us) do u think this is worth it?

do u think that it would be ok if i used the supplied flourecent tubes and 5000k bulb for the first year? will this setup be sufficent for a few corals and anenome's to live?

the plan for the tank is to only keep a frew pieces of coral, one or two anenome for my clownfish and the rest will be fish and live rock, and whatever comes with the lr.

thanks.
 
The guy isn't robbing you for the 140000 K bulb, but it's not the deal of the century. It also depends on the manufacturer. Most have a good spectrum, but then there's junk like CoralVue. The 5000 K bulb will probably be OK, but it's hard to judge how much blue (which corals need) they have just by the color temperature.

Whether it will work will also depend on the corals and anemones. 150 watts, plus the fluorescents, will not be that much light for a 90 gallon tank. You will be limited to mushrooms and maybe some soft corals if they are kept close to the light.

Most anemones will need a lot more light than that, along with excellent water conditions. The clowns will not need an anemone, and will frolic, breed and be quite happy without one.

If it were my tank, I would pass on the deal because the intensity and spectrum of the setup is less than adequate to have a nice reef with your tank. It just seems like you will ultimately get frustrated with the limitations. If you do go with it, there are species that will do reasonably well, and placement can make a big difference.
 
thanks for the nformative reply.

so to be able to keep a few corals, what exactly do i need to keep them? how many watts flourecent, metal halide etc?

could i, purchase this lighting, and then put another cheaper 150watt pendant bell type light behind it in the future and it will be enough?

another question is- do corals and anenomes only need metal halide lamps? will the flourecent tubes play a role in its growth, life etc?

one more question is, what lighting unit would you recommend? im running a open tops so suspended above the tank type of lighting would be prefered, and i wouldnt mind a all in one unit- MH, and fluro. u see i don t have much money, and this unit was 450 (aud) brand new with 1 year warenty from ebay. just thought it would be a good deal
 
I tihnk that rather than fudging around , adding cheap bits together you'll save long term by just buying a single 250 or 4000 watt halide of the correct 'temperature', say a 10000 or more.

The problem with the 5000 is both appearance, in that your tank will look yellowy, and also some people believe this 'yellow/red' a bulb encourages nuisance algae.
You get the most light for your watt from 6500K's , but again they look yellow. If this is a problem people move further up spectrum, or add extra blue or actinic with add on fluorescents. I have 10K's myself, and my tank still isn't very blue.
The best way to judge the colour you want is to go look at some 2 fot deep tanks and seee what you like. If you can't do that 10000 or 14000 are good places to start.
You can light most things with fluorescents if you have enough, but the light from fluors. is dispersed more than the 'point' of light from a halide so they have less 'punch' at depth. I use T5 fluorescents, but I only have 15 inches of water, and keep high light animals in the top half. I think with 2 foot of water you're best served with halides
 
thanks for ure reply wayne, could u pint me in the direction of some products that u would recomend? its gioing to be a open top 4ft by 2
 
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