MH lights help
- Thread starter teena
- Start date
joeycadre
New member
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=13975&N=2004+113352
look at the 48" fixture.
look at the 48" fixture.
Siffy
New member
I often forget if those come in multiple sizes. And it's 20" tall... So you could get away with 175watt MHs or could go ahead and used 250watt ones. But you'd want 2 for a tank that long. Typically people recommend 1 bulb for every 2 feet.
Your standard recommended color options are 10,000K, 13.5-15, and 20. People like the lower temp bulbs because they give a higher PAR (intensity of the output) per watt. But they then supplement with actinic bulbs. Not only for the corals' health but an attempt to offset the yellow tint a 10K bulb produces. Others like the 20K without supplementation, but often this temperature produces a bad PAR so they end up running a higher wattage MH setup that's less efficient. It's also too blue in my opinion. Several bulb manufactuers have produced a middle of the road option in the temps 13.5K, 14K, or 15K. I like this option. It's middle of the road on the appearance and PAR. On my 29g I had a 15K bulb (175watt Iwasaki SE, that's Single Ended/Mogul screw type) with 2 24" VHO Actinic 03 supplementation.
As far as supplementation, I would recommend removing the current PC setup instead of switching it from 50/50 to actinic. Here's why, you do already have a ballast for these bulbs but... It would cost you about $88 to replace all 4 of them with actinics but you could switch them to VHOs for not much more. 2 48" bulbs at $22 each and $60 for a ballast to run them, or $104. Add another $30 for a reflector and $16 for 2 mogul sockets mounted on it and you that brings the cost up to $150. All you'd need after that is the MH ballasts, bulbs and a way to hang it. These are just quick prices I've gotten off hellolights.com . You may want to try to get all this in on the group order. You could also go with T5 instead of VHO, but VHO's in my opinion produce the nicest (aesthetic) actinic output. I just mention T5 because hellolights has their Tek Light T5 Retrofit kits on sale right now and it would save you about $40 after bulbs.
There's also ballasts to consider. Probe, pulse, magnetic, electronic, etc. Your best bet right now is to find a used pulse start magnetic ballast. Electronic if you can find it used, but that's harder to do.
Um, I've typed enough for a bit. Any questions or are you more lost due to options than before?
Your standard recommended color options are 10,000K, 13.5-15, and 20. People like the lower temp bulbs because they give a higher PAR (intensity of the output) per watt. But they then supplement with actinic bulbs. Not only for the corals' health but an attempt to offset the yellow tint a 10K bulb produces. Others like the 20K without supplementation, but often this temperature produces a bad PAR so they end up running a higher wattage MH setup that's less efficient. It's also too blue in my opinion. Several bulb manufactuers have produced a middle of the road option in the temps 13.5K, 14K, or 15K. I like this option. It's middle of the road on the appearance and PAR. On my 29g I had a 15K bulb (175watt Iwasaki SE, that's Single Ended/Mogul screw type) with 2 24" VHO Actinic 03 supplementation.
As far as supplementation, I would recommend removing the current PC setup instead of switching it from 50/50 to actinic. Here's why, you do already have a ballast for these bulbs but... It would cost you about $88 to replace all 4 of them with actinics but you could switch them to VHOs for not much more. 2 48" bulbs at $22 each and $60 for a ballast to run them, or $104. Add another $30 for a reflector and $16 for 2 mogul sockets mounted on it and you that brings the cost up to $150. All you'd need after that is the MH ballasts, bulbs and a way to hang it. These are just quick prices I've gotten off hellolights.com . You may want to try to get all this in on the group order. You could also go with T5 instead of VHO, but VHO's in my opinion produce the nicest (aesthetic) actinic output. I just mention T5 because hellolights has their Tek Light T5 Retrofit kits on sale right now and it would save you about $40 after bulbs.
There's also ballasts to consider. Probe, pulse, magnetic, electronic, etc. Your best bet right now is to find a used pulse start magnetic ballast. Electronic if you can find it used, but that's harder to do.
Um, I've typed enough for a bit. Any questions or are you more lost due to options than before?
Siffy
New member
What about this? You may want to browse through lots of TOTM (Tank of the Month) articles over at reefkeeping.com magazine and keep note of how the tank lighting looks to you, whether you like it or not, and what that lighting is. It should give you a pretty good idea where to go from there. As there are many many options and combinations, pictures are better than trial and error. I think you could easily spend $10k to try everything out and still not get something you just love. Makes it a shame most pictures don't represent lighting appropriately. Or you could PM people whose tanks you've seen in person and know you like their lighting and ask them what they run.
teena
New member
i like the blue look, but from what im seeing its more than just buying a light, if i get this i need that to go with it, if i dont get that then this woulnt be enough, i was in hopes to find one thats ready to go on the tank, less risk on me buying one right thing & two wrong ones
Siffy
New member
Sanjay may be of help as well.
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/sj/index.php
He has written numerous articles on lighting. And he has an incredible database of spectral analysis on about a hundred MH bulbs on his website.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=212
Check out the first thread by him pinned at the top.
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/sj/index.php
He has written numerous articles on lighting. And he has an incredible database of spectral analysis on about a hundred MH bulbs on his website.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=212
Check out the first thread by him pinned at the top.
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