Any 120 reefs out there?Pics.....
- Thread starter AMIFL
- Start date
reefer_for_life
New member
"watts per gallon" is overrated. its more about what type of light you have. depends what type of corals you want. lets say you have 500watts of VHO lighting. that wouldnt be as bright as 500watts of metal halide, but its the same watts. decide what kind of corals you want to keep long term, then decide what lighting to use.
I have a rr 120 with the same dimensions and run 2 175w 10k mh as well as 2 96w pc actinics. I have a mix of corals (frog, acro, stylophora, cup coral, leathers, mushrooms, star polyps, as well as anemones) and lighting does not seem to be an issue. That said if I didn't move the lights from my old tank I would have upgraded to 250's.
Chibils
halide loyalist
In the "I learned from MACNA..." thread, most people seriously overestimate how much light they need for their tank. That said, if you want to keep nems/sps on the bottom of the tank (assuming ssb/bb), I'd go 250. But 175s wouldn't be bad. It also depends on the reflectors, par of the bulbs, distance from the water, water clarity, etc. A 150w halide 4" from the water in a lumenarc would (I imagine) put out more light than a 175w 10" from the water in a cheap spider reflector.
People usually use the "watts per gallon" rule of thumb because almost all lights (except incandescent, which isn't really a choice) convert between 80 and 90% of their energy to heat (or 10-20% into light). It's also easier to estimate that than in lumens, which is actual light output.
In conclusion, if you plan to keep the lights, I'd add T5 or T12 actinic supplementation. That's what I'd recommend instead of buying/trading a new fixture, since MH+actinic is usually better color and equal light to stronger MHs.
People usually use the "watts per gallon" rule of thumb because almost all lights (except incandescent, which isn't really a choice) convert between 80 and 90% of their energy to heat (or 10-20% into light). It's also easier to estimate that than in lumens, which is actual light output.
In conclusion, if you plan to keep the lights, I'd add T5 or T12 actinic supplementation. That's what I'd recommend instead of buying/trading a new fixture, since MH+actinic is usually better color and equal light to stronger MHs.
fishysteve
New member
fishysteve
New member
Yes they are 150s, but they are a lot brighter than they look in the picture. My pictures always look dim.
H2OLUVSME
Premium Member
Steve. what temp are your bulbs? brand? I assume since its 150w they are DE, right?
How is your SPS growth? ie, How long did those corals take to get that big? Did you grow them from frags?
BTW, thats a beautiful tank!
Wrench, How do you keep the water line constant (and above the drain intakes) without an overflow box?
Nice tank too!
How is your SPS growth? ie, How long did those corals take to get that big? Did you grow them from frags?
BTW, thats a beautiful tank!
Wrench, How do you keep the water line constant (and above the drain intakes) without an overflow box?
Nice tank too!
fishysteve
New member
H2OLUVSME - Thank you. They are Ushio 10K bulbs. My SPS growth is pretty good. If you look in my gallery you can see how fast they grew. But I have sold a lot of frags in the past couple months, especially the yellow acro and the tortuosa, they would be a lot bigger if I hadn't fragged them so much. I'd say most of the growth has been in the last 6 months.
The drains work the same as if they had a skimmer box built around them. The only reason they're below the water line is to keep them quiet. I've also got a Durso behind each drain pipe. The setup I have on my tank eliminates the need for a ball valve on the return to match the flow of the drains. Since I'm nowhere near the maximum capacity of two 1" drains, the flow between them and the pump equalize one another automatically. For example, if I put a stronger return pump on the tank right now, the water level would rise. The increase in pressure would cause more water to drain faster and it would equalize in a few minutes. I know because I've had a mag7, 9.5 and 12 on the tank and have never had to use a ball valve. The downside to using a stronger pump is that it would cause a higher level in the tank and if something were to happen with the drains it wouldn't be flood proof.
Similar threads
