Halide Q & A

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14066254#post14066254 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cybrsufr
I could not agree more. I ran my 90G reef with 2x250DE 20K bulbsand the SPS grew and that is about all I can say. When I moved to my 180, I went with 3x400W Radiums and the Colors shifted very dramatically for the better, Growth EXPLODED literally (corals that grew 3" in a year while in the 90G, grew 3" in 3 months in the 180G). Granted there is more water volume, flow etc, but the lighting is so much better. Coverage is better with less shadows and dead spots. DE bulbs are a point light source and therefore produce a narrower beam of light when compared to a SE bulb.
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I have a question regarding your 180. I am in the middle of setting up a 180 and havnt decided on lighting yet. I love the look of MH's so I am going to go with those, However I really dont want to get a chiller at this point so I dont want the water to get to hot. How High above the water do you keep your 400's, I was thinking I would get 250's since the tank is only 24 deep.. Do the 400's really put off less heat?? I was also planing on supplimenting the 250's with t5's, are you doing this.
 
the 400s still put off some heat-quite a bit actually. I think what he meant was that the 250 DE fixtures get quite hot, DE fixtures are enclosed. they heat up inside the canopy. SE fixtures generally don't have glass so the heat escapes and is a little easier to exhaust using fans.
 
As for me I think SE Reeflux 10,000k combined with actinics supplement. light looks the best! Just my opinion!
 
i have a 144g half circle thats almost 30inch's deep. 4inch sb and my light hangs 8 to 9 inch above the water. i have a coralife pro with 2 250w MH and i keep them on for a seven hour period and my sps and lps love it.
 
I have 175w Reeflux 10k one at each side and 400w Reeflux 12k in the center. To be honest, I don't like the color of 12k Reeflux. But maybe it's just me. The depth of my tank is standard 24" with 4" sand bed covering 1" plenum. I don't have SPS at the bottom, but whatever I have is growing up pretty good! BTW I was looking at the pictures of different brand and color bulbs on some websites, but looks that it doesn't show how everything in tanks looks in real life! Or maybe it's just me...
 
I have a 24G Aquapod and i purchased a 150W Sunpod Fixture (double ended MH). The tank is 20" deep. I'm considering going with SPS only. I have no experience with MH, as I've always had T5. What would be the best bulb (including brand) for color and growth?
 
Hi all! First post and it is a lighting question. I am setting up a 46 gallon tank (36"L x 20" H x 16" W) and considering picking up this Coralife Pro MH HQI Clamp-On DE 150W 14k used for a reasonable price. Would this sufficiently light up my tank? I am planning on keeping a couple of fish, live rock and a few softies. Would it be bright enough for LPS?
 
i would think so, you may want to go with a different kelvin rating on the bulb, but i would think it would do a pretty good job, just keep your light lovers as close to the middle of the tank as possible or directly below light. softies should do well in this setup.
 
Thanks! I will make the deal for it.

i would think so, you may want to go with a different kelvin rating on the bulb, but i would think it would do a pretty good job, just keep your light lovers as close to the middle of the tank as possible or directly below light. softies should do well in this setup.
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I had a question for somebody. I have 4 T-5's over my 54 gal corner bowfront now, a 12k, reef blue 10k, 460, and 420. Color is much better with this combination than with the 2 10k's and 2 460's that came with the fixture. A lot more reds, oranges, and purples came out with the newer bulbs, but i still love how the tank looks with just the actinics on. I am building a 250 watt s.e. MH fixture this weekend and i would like the tank to be as blue as possible. Which MH temp would give off the bluest look? I've heard that 20k's are good for the blue color but i've only seen the tanks in my LFS. Thanks guys!
 
20ks are really blue, there are also no rules as you can tailor what you like usting your t5s for suplimentation.
 
awesome! I love the look of the tank when it's not so white with the daytimes on. I can't wait to finish the new light. Thanks man!
 
How high above the water?

How high above the water?

My tank is 24 inches deep and 30 Gallons do you think I could put a 150, 175 or even 250 watt metal halide over it?
I have a hood with a fan. The light will be suspended about 6 inches over the water. My filter is in the garage and I live in a fairly cool place so I have allot of cooling capacity.
Any suggestion would be great.
Thanks
 
Never run MH before

Never run MH before

In the initail stages of planning a standard 125 gallon tank and looking into lighting options. I want to be able to keep about anything but most likely a mixed reef. Now if I choose to run 2 400w SE with supplimental antic lighting ... what are the chances I will have to run a chiller to cool the water? The sump will be around 30 gallons and the refungium will be a 100 gallon with flourcent bulbs. Oh I live in the southern US too.
 
Im in the planning stages of what will be a 225g (72x24x30) tank.

I would like to be able to set the tank up for a full reef tank including sps & lps corals. What would be my best route to go for lighting?

Thanks
 
Re: How high above the water?

Re: How high above the water?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14336460#post14336460 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Ion Innovations
My tank is 24 inches deep and 30 Gallons do you think I could put a 150, 175 or even 250 watt metal halide over it?
I have a hood with a fan. The light will be suspended about 6 inches over the water. My filter is in the garage and I live in a fairly cool place so I have allot of cooling capacity.
Any suggestion would be great.
Thanks
Click to expand...

I have a 24 inch deep tank as well and i have 400 watt mh over it, 250 will work, but you will limit your sps to the top 1/3 of the tank i would think.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14346238#post14346238 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MBVette
Im in the planning stages of what will be a 225g (72x24x30) tank.

I would like to be able to set the tank up for a full reef tank including sps & lps corals. What would be my best route to go for lighting?

Thanks
Click to expand...
If we are assuming the tank is 30" top to bottom, I wouldn't go less than 400 watts mh, if the top to bottom is the 24" i would still suggest 400, but you could get the 250 depending on what you want to keep and location in the tank.
 
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