How much VHO lighting for a 75 gal

[blange3]

All the recent lighting discussions have steered me back to VHO only for my soon to be 75 gallon LPS dominated tank.

So how much should I get, oh wise LPS/VHO gurus?

I have 440 watts on my current 55 gallon LPS/Softy tank now.

Do I stick with 440w centered nicely over the rockwork. Or do I try to squeeze another 220 watts in?

I feed 2x week so the corals will not be depending on the light only.

For this tank I'll be using URI 50/50 bulbs and super actinics only.

I do have an AquaSun on the other tank because the pink does make the collection of Xenia, Anthellia, Colt and Kenya Trees look nice.

Thanks in advance for the advice!

 

[ri]

I would go with the longer/higher wattage bulbs.

In my old 94 and my current 180, I've only used VHO lighting. LPS/leathers have done very well.

ri

 

[Amphiprion]

440 watts is plenty for any LPS you would want to keep. If you decided to do SPS at some point, that is entirely possible under this ligthing as well.

 

[waterfaller1]

I interested in switching from my PC's over my 65 LPS tank to VHO's. Do you really have to change the bulbs in 6-9 mo. ?

 

[mikeatjac]

440 watts would be great. If you want to go SPS later just change out some of your bulbs for lower K values.
Yes, VHO max life is about 9 months.

 

[waterfaller1]

Can you recommend the best place to shop for a retro kit?

 

[blange3]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.

Waterfaller1, I got my first set from Hello Lights and that's where I will buy from this time as well.

I got the AR220 DIY kit.

 

[Jacob D]

Have you guys considered T5 lighting as an alternative? IMO there are a couple of advantages over VHO, namely: less heat, the bulbs last 12-18 months, and there are a lot of possible color combinations. Some would also say that T5 is more intense w/ proper reflector; that is largely unproven but there are some very nice looking T5 lit tanks out there.

I have 320w of T5 over my tank, which is leaning to the side of LPS dominated. Everything is growing pretty fast and has good color - including SPS.

 

[waterfaller1]

Someone else was trying to talk me into T-5's. My only experience with them was at the shop I worked for up until this new year. Frankly,I hated those..but it could just be that particular set-up. I could take a coral from the back{w/ halides and VHO's} and place it under the T-5's and it looked like mud.
Thank you Bill..I have been combing sites for the best deal.

 

[blange3]

Hey Mothra,

I was all set to go T5's, but the color is much better with a couple of URI super actinics for the kind of coral I want. I did like the idea of saving a few watts, but it didn't seem worth it to spend all that money on a tank and coral and loose the best possible look for a few bucks a month.

 

[Jacob D]

Waterfaller - There are different bulbs and reflectors out there, so it's possible you guys had a cruddy set up. My experience is that most SPS will color up better under MH (that's a pretty general statement). All my LPS look great under T5 and I definitely would not switch. I've had mixed experience with SPS, the SPS I have now looks nice, but it would look even better with MH (most of my pieces came from friends that have MH). I don't know too many people running VHO only any more but my guess is that the corals would color up better under the T5's.

Blange - If you like the actinic look then I'd concur that T5 is not the best option. I think the difference between a typical T5 setup and VHO w/ Actinic is similar to 10k vs 20k halides - one will bring the true color out of the corals, the other will show off the flourescing pigments. Both can be equally beautiful. Your opinion is the most important one so you're making the right choice.

 

[DesertBandits]

If you do your own hood you can do both. T5 for the aquablues (your white bulb) and VHO for actinic (blues). Both are great looking light bulbs.

 

[David Grigor]

In most instances your not going to see any significant improvements in your corals by going from a 4 bulb setup to 5+ bulbs. I run a 5 bulb setup only because 2 actinics and 2 days are still too blue for me so I go with 3 days and 2 actinics.

For VHOs what ballasts are you using to recommend every 9 months ? I've used Icecap ballasts for 11 years now. I have never changed a bulb sooner than 12 months and have times let my bulbs go for 18 months. While certainly brighter after changing, I've never had any LPS skip a beat because of the life of the bulb. Anything sooner than 12 months on an Icecap is a waste of money IMO.

To answer the question why not T5s ? To each his own on LPS and T5s but my experience is that T5s on a LPS dominate take did not yeild as good of color and results as VHOs so after running T5s for about a year I switched back. So in my book T5s aren't the greatest setup for a LPS dominate tank.

 

[blange3]

Thanks to all for your input.

I think I'll go with 440w VHO since I'm accustomed to that on my other tank and there are others who have run this successfully on a 75 gallon.