400 watt on a 24 gallon

[MikePowell]

does anyone think that 400w will be too much light over a 24 gallon. i know it is alot but it would be about 12" away from the surface. also if anyone who have mh lights over thier tank, could you plase post some pics and a description of set up so i can get some mh ideas.

 

[bwest]

I'm thinking that 400w on a 24 even at 12" away from the surface would be a bit much. That's about 16.6 watts per gallon!

What are you going to try and keep in your tank? With that much light it might hurt some corals more than help.

I think on a 24 gallon tank something like a 150w would be good, and save you on the extra electrical costs of running it.

 

[sir_dudeguy]

bad idea in my opinion. Thats just way too much light (Not to mention heat). Theres nothing that even needs that much light either.

 

[dogstar74]

How many watts is the sun exactly? I forgot.

 

[Rosseau]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9665778#post9665778 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dogstar74
How many watts is the sun exactly? I forgot.

I've read that that baby puts out a healthy 3.86 billion billion megawatts at nearly 93 million miles away.

I believe you were being sarcastic and saying that these corals are used to more light than a 400W bulb could possible put out. Although light from the sun is much more diffused by the team it reaches the sea floor. I wonder what the actual wattage would be as measured from an average reef... brb - google time.

 

[dogstar74]

:thumbsup: You got it. But I do think heat would be a considerable issue.

 

[sir_dudeguy]

I wonder what the actual wattage would be as measured from an average reef... brb - google time.

i would also be curious...wouldnt just a PAR meter be of somewhat help with that? Probably not as far as watts, but just to compare the 2 in terms of how much light they're putting through the water i guess it would work.

But i still say that a 400w MH bulb even 12 inches away from the tank is way overkill. Theres' basically nothing blocking the light....the sun at least has to travel so many miles to get the light here and whatnot.

In any case, that much light is completely unnecessary IMO

 

[Mojo Jojo]

Waist of money and light. I'd say a 150 will do.

 

[SVXH6]

i'd go with a 250.. but that is just me....

 

[vijaym85]

I have 400w on my 30. I use it because I had it from Before and don't feel like buying a 250. My tank is 3ft long so a 400w bulb means the edges will be considerably well lit as compared to using a 250 or 175. I keep my bulb 18inches above the tank and never had my temp. change. It is always 78 and I have never seen it change a bit. Its next to a window so there is ventilation.

I would be very careful at keeping it at 12inches though. I keep SPS so I like a little more light.

 

[Purple Penguins]

would think there would be a heat issue unless a nice cooling system was on it

 

[Grunt]

I have two 400W 14K MH's for my 90gal which is in storage atm. I can't setup the 90 so I was tossing the idea of putting one on my 15gal. Decided not too, but 2 feet off the surface would have been enough to keep the heat down. I think
Cheers