Lighting for a standard 210

[bignick]

Hi,

I am trying to decide what type of lights to go with to light my mixed reef which will soon have more SPS than anything else. As of right now i run a 48" hamilton dual 250 light system that lights my tank but the ends of the tank are shadowed. I am planning on purchasing a 72" light from hamilton but am not sure wether to go with 250w HQI or 400w HQI? The Hamilton Fixture has three bulbs in it which should line up perfectly over the braces on my 210.

My tank dimensions are 72"x24"(W)x30". I keep my 210 in an air conditioned basement that is never more than 70* year round. I also use a controller on the tank that can shut off the tank lights if the tempature gets too high. My dilema is that i am afraid that if i run 400w i will need to get a chiller or my lights will be off all the time. Plus i have no room for and cannot afford a chiller. So do you think it would be wiser to go with a 250w HQI or a 400w HQI?

Thanks

 

[bignick]

Oh come on?

 

[am3gross]

i am going with the 250 watt mh on mine... it is an inwall setup and the room will have a window ac in there to keep it cooler on these hot days. i will be doing 3 of these fixtures. i think that 250s will do teh job but obviously 400 watts and you would have no doubts. sorry i cant help you out more but this is what i am going to try.

 

[bignick]

Well its a start.

Thanks!

 

[George Gouveia]

well, for my 149 gal setup that i'm planning i'll be using 8 x T5's. mainly because of the decreased maintenance cost and heat exchange.

 

[ben&bobbi]

(3) 250w XM 10K metal halides (1 double and 1 single ballasts - middle light will turn on before the outer 2, then off after them.

(2) 6' super actinics VHO's (on icecap 660 - also runs 2 24" vho's on refug) VHO's on first and off last.

DIY in a set of PFO parrallel reflectors

 

[bignick]

I was thinking about doing something similar to this months TOTM.

Having 250s on the outside and a 400 in the middle. I wondder if Hamilton can do that for me?