400W MH on 36" Reflector?

[OceanLuv]

Hi all!

This is my first post here and I'm hoping you can help me. I am upgrading my current tank to a 210G (6ft x 2ft x 30"tall). Because it is 6 feet wide I would like to retrofit my MH lights into the canopy (which is 9" about the top of the glass).

I was going to go with 2 36" reflectors (so I could divide them into one on each side of the canopy) with each reflector housing a 400W MH. I know generally a MH bulb will cover 2 sq feet, but I was wondering if anyone has tried a 3 ft reflector?

I am moving up from PCs so I have no personal experience with MH, so any advice you can give me would be great. FYI, I will supplement with 4x96W 50/50 PCs.

 

[Harville]

If you have a 36" reflector it will light up 36".

I'm using a Single 250w (plus actinics) on a 40 gal breeder with a 3 ft reflector and it lights it up perfectly.

Of coarse, that tank isn't as deep as yours. But I think if your looking for kind of a mixed reef with less high light demanding corals I think it will work just fine.

For the most part though, between the 2 reflectors, I think they would "bleed' enough light over to spread through the whole tank. From there it would just be about placement as far as corals go.

 

[HornetMech242]

I am in the planning for my tank. It is going to be an SPS tank so i am going with 3 250 watt XM 10,000k on Icecap with Lumenarch III reflectors. Tank is going to be 72Lx30Wx24T.