5 ft deep tank

[xdusty6920]

well i was wondering, i know once a tank passes the 30inch depth mark.....400w mh's are the way to go. suppose i were having a tank with a depth of 5 ft being built......would 400w mh's still be adequate? i know 1000w would be more ideal but lets face it.......thats more then two 400wmh's running in one bulbs and cant imagine how much a power bill would be with multiple 1000w mh's running. so, id obviously prefer to stick with 400w mh's in luminarcs. i only plan to have echinophyllia, fungia, few brains etc on the sand bed. do you think this is possible? i really need to know if they will be capable of sustaining lps on the bottum before i buy them. any help, advice, links, info is appreciated. thanks guys your always so helpful.

 

[sabodish]

i really dont think 400 watters will reach the bottom of a 5' tank...of course, i dont have any evidence to support that. i think if you go look at sanjays tests, you can get a good idea of how PAR drops off as a function of depth.

 

[KenT]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7174957#post7174957 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sabodish
i really dont think 400 watters will reach the bottom of a 5' tank...

neither will your arms

 

[vishboy]

I would have a couple 1000w MHs to get to anything on the bottom.

Lets' say the dimensions would be 72"Lx 60"Dx36"W.

I would put one 1000w MH over the center of the tank( Or a little closer to the front, so it reaches the bottom.). Then have 400w lights for the rest of the lighting.

I'm not saying this is the way to go. You might need 2 1000w MH, or you might just avoid them altogether.

 

[ReeferAl]

I'd be concerned with 1000w MH of what it'd do to anything higher up on the rocks. The corals on the bottom would be fine with that, but if your rock work goes up very high you would have to be very careful of light and coral placement to not burn/bleach the higher corals. Depending on the other dimensions that may stillbe the best bulb. If the dank is deep front-to-back and the 1000w is over the front then corals high up but toward the back would still be fine.
A "Light Rail" might also be helpful so that the hot spot of the 1000w bulb is not always in the same place.

Allen

 

[sabodish]

good point ken...5' arms would be nice to have sometimes..i could never reach the back of my 36" wide tank when it was up.

i like the light rail suggestion...1000 watters would surely cook anything in the upper foot or two.