Lighting Decisions... HELP!

I'll go with the MH...

I'm gonna go for the coralife 150w that clips on the tank...

Unless someone has a better suggestion for about $250...

Should i put it in the center of the tank? or from the side on an angle? the tank does have the devider in the middle so if it was in the middle some light would be blocked...
 
LordsSoilder said:
I'll go with the MH...

I'm gonna go for the coralife 150w that clips on the tank...

Unless someone has a better suggestion for about $250...

Should i put it in the center of the tank? or from the side on an angle? the tank does have the devider in the middle so if it was in the middle some light would be blocked...
Click to expand...
its best in the center. have u looked at full length systems?
 
Blah! I have no idea why its so stinkN hard just to buy a light...

What im think'n now is...

175w MH ... That i know

I'm thinkn that I'll do a retrofit and buy a canopy (like an all-glass with the slit-top for venting) then I can mount my actinic PC's on the sides and the MH in the middle...

Does this sound good? or will it get too hot?

I really need advice here...
 
does the retrofit come with a fan? They dont have to be in the center of course, the anemone will move itself to the place where there is the best amount of light (high or low, depends on the anemone). Just that in the center it looks the best
 
One down and a few more to go...

I went and bought a canopy and its in the truck... I'll Install the PCs in it tonight.. (I hope) and I'll try to find a nice MH to get eventually I want to have 2 MH's because its recomended to have 1 per 2ft or tank...

Still havent heard any suggestions on where i should buy the lights...

drsfostersmith.com is one place i've looked and also ebay, ebay express etc...

Just hopn someone knows where to get the best light for my budget...

Thanks again for the help,
-LS
 
All the talk you always hear needing MH light for anything and everything is BS!!

T5 lighting is capable of providing enough light to keep anything in a reef tank thriving. It's is catching on in SPS tanks as a viable alternative to MH and it's posting the PAR to prove it. And you don't have to deal with all the MH strings attached. T5 is more efficient, cheaper and won't get so hot that it threatens to burn your house down :).

Here's a pic of an SPS tank lit only by t5 :eek:

Iwan's T5 tank.jpg
 
MH lights can be cheaper in big tanks, lets say you have a.... 90 gallon tank and you want 800 watts of light, getting 2 400 watt MH lamps costs about 800 dollars if you buy it online first hand, to get the same amount of light that the MH can give your looking at a 14 tube T5 fixture which will probably cost more than 800 dollars if you can even find one. Sure T5 is great and costs less in smaller tanks but for big tanks, MH would be best. Also MH can penetrate water easier while T5's dont penetrate as well. Big tanks are normally taller therefor should have MH to get strong light to the bottom of the tank.
 
first of all, you're making a mistake going by wattage. T5's are more efficient and the antiquated watts/gallon rule hardly applies. You couldn't even fit 500 watts worth of T5s on a 90 if you tried, much less 800. 6 bulbs the lenght of your tank with each one overdriven with an icecap ballast would net you 480, even that would probably be more light than you would want to have in a average 90 as all but the most light intensive corals would not do so well.

A 4' T5 bulb has no problem penetrating to the bottom of a 90 (25") and if it was overdriven it would penetrate even more easily.

Especially on large tanks, T5's are more cost effective than MH because it is the ballasts and not the bulb length that is the most expensive part.

You're looking at $300-450 for a brand new complete hood system T5 setup for a 90. Not talking DIY or retrofits. MH doesn't compare in price.
http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/Sunlight_Supply/Tek_Light_Fixtures/
 
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