MH over a 20H Whada ya think?

[dogstar74]

250 Mogul base,
175 mogul base,
or 150 DE?

I am really concerned about cost of these things. I am trying to build a DIY light set but I am unsure about the 175 or 250 MH. I am really leaning toward the 250 But I just don't know how much heat that will put into the tank. I am a little scared because I live in Tucson, and I don't have a chiller. I would hate to raise the temp too many degrees. But the cost difference is only about 20 bucks to get the 250 set up rather than the 175.

The 150 would be ideal for the size, but the costs are outrageous, for some reason they must think these things are made of gold. Also, I don't like the whole, "gotta have a UV protective light" crap that goes along with the 150s. If I were buying a comercial set up, then perhaps I would consider it. But since I am DIY, it will just cost more for parts.

Well thanks for the help. Just wondering if 250 is too much for the 20H.

PS. I'll be adding VHO actinics in the future, but for right now, it's gonna be the MH for point source lighting.

 

[phenom5]

whats up dogstar.

personally i'd go 150W depending on the height of the tank and what you want to keep. 175W would work also, but will give off a little more heat then a DE.

i got a MH retro from illuming.com. good prices, good quality, great customer service.

on another note...

have you been by the Tucson/ Sierra Vista club forum?

 

[steelreef]

I have 150 DE over my 20H, it works great for me!

 

[Mikeeal]

175W over my 20H, I love it.

 

[brainiac]

150w hqi.........love it.

 

[majestic sea life]

Sweet one more tucson person. phenom5 is the retro over your 10gal?

~Brian

 

[phenom5]

phenom5 is the retro over your 10gal?

yup. :smokin:

 

[dodo99]

400w SE DIY over my 29 gal. Future SPS/Anemone tank, restarted on 02/01/06. Lots of heat, but manageable.

 

[dogstar74]

WOW Phenom! Where have you been all my life!? That is nearly a perfect set up. Nice find! Beats the hell out of anything I have been able to find! "Bookmarked!"

Majestic, thanks for the warm welcome.

Phenom, I have poked around the Tucson club forum. Even put in my .02 from time to time. But is always seemed a little like the threads distilled down to the next meeting time, or some kind of group frag swap, and I don't have anything to swap right now. And most of the mtgs were on Sundays and I have other commitments on mondays. So I bailed for the most part. Man I shouldn't have since this is where all the great info is! I didn't really need to search all around the several forums, I shoulda just stayed home!!

Dodo,
400 W :eek1: Holy crap man, I think I'd have soup with that much wattage. But whatever make the sps grow for you man. I just think that in Edmonton Canada you could probably just run a tube out a window to keep that cool, but in Tucson, I'd have to fire up a nuclear power plant to run the chiller I'd need to keep cool after that. Thanks though. It's nice to hear some are doing it and having success.

Mikeeal,
thanks for responding. See I was really concerned if someone had done this. I am able to find Mogul based MH setups for pretty darn cheap, I'm just wondering, why didn't you spend the 20 bucks or so more and go with 250 watts?

And that question goes for anyone. Too hot? Not needed? And for those of you using the HQI DE 150's, are you able to keep high powered SPS?

Just wondering. And thanks everyone.

 

[dodo99]

LOL, it's not that bad. without the light on, temp runs around 80.9F, with the light/fan on it drops to 80.2-ish. The only annoying thing is the make-up water. An auto top-off would help out alot.

 

[phenom5]

WOW Phenom! Where have you been all my life!? That is nearly a perfect set up. Nice find! Beats the hell out of anything I have been able to find! "Bookmarked!"

glad i could help.:thumbsup:

Phenom, I have poked around the Tucson club forum. Even put in my .02 from time to time. But is always seemed a little like the threads distilled down to the next meeting time, or some kind of group frag swap, and I don't have anything to swap right now. And most of the mtgs were on Sundays and I have other commitments on mondays. So I bailed for the most part. Man I shouldn't have since this is where all the great info is! I didn't really need to search all around the several forums, I shoulda just stayed home!!

yeah, i know what you mean about all the treads going back to the next meeting...and its funny that i mention the club to anybody since i've yet to make a single meeting. i guess i'm just excited b/c i may actually be able to make the March meeting, and i'm hoping to get some sweet SPS frags.:smokin:

 

[majestic sea life]

Well glad phenom5 can make it to the next one. dogstar74 are you going to make it. Also dont forget it you can take not only corals but swag and stuff. I may take a few tanks and some supplys. dogstar74 what side of town are you on? Im the only one on the SW side lol.

~Brian

 

[alien9168]

dog- go with the 175w MH. and get 2 fans. one pulling air in, one pulling air out.

I dont think youl have any problems.

-alien

 

[blackdak]

Personally I would go with the 250 and DE at that. I have a 250 DE on my tank, all DIY. I got my lamp from illuming.com 14k phoenix and that is my only light. (see my thread from a week ago) Other parts wrere obtained locally. Since you are lucky to live in the desert where humidity is low, a couple of fans should be perfect for cooling/evaporation. I disagree with alien with 1 fan in 1 fan out, I would just have both going in because it will move more air through the hood. I have 4 on my fully enclosed hood.

The UV thing may or may not be an issue. If you are concerned, a piece of acrylic is much more efficient at removing UV than glass is. I ran my 20k with no shield for a while with no ill effects.

All things considered, the 250 lamp will be highly versatile and can work on any tank if you ever upgrade.

 

[dogstar74]

Magestic,
I live on the NW side. So just about all the fish stores are a huge drive for me. I do frequent the MSL store on Campbell. But the others require a "trip"

Alien:
Originally, I was thinking of going with the 175, Just because the ballasts are about 32 bucks, the bulbs are 60 bucks and wiring is next to nothing. But I really feel the smaller DE bulbs would work better in the hood I would like to design for the 20H.

Blackdak,
I am originally from Utah as well, I travel up there from time to time, could you point me toward any cool Fish stores?!
I too think that 250 would illuminate just about any tank that I may upgrade to. So it's nice to hear others are running them. 4 fans. WOW, I'd probably get a couple but I think four is a bit much. But then again, we'll see, after all this is Tucson.

As far as the UV thing, that's something I have really had a question about. I mean, we worry so much about the UV, but isn't that the spectrum that promotes photosynthesis? Also don't we buy glass to sheild the UV then supplement with Actinics!? Does this not make any sense to anyone else out there or am I missing something. Now if you're buying the glass to protect the lamp from splashes, then I am on board, but if it comes down to the light giving me a suntan, well I'm not buying it. Thanks all for the input.

 

[phenom5]

I live on the NW side. So just about all the fish stores are a huge drive for me. I do frequent the MSL store on Campbell. But the others require a "trip"

i'm on the NW side as well, and i know what you mean. anything other petsmart is a bit of a drive. FWIW, Southwest SW on Speedway is worth the drive...and MSL...well, i can't really recommend them. i've gotten a few pieces from them, but their prices are high, and their tanks are filled with aiptasia...

 

[majestic sea life]

wow lucky mofos lol. Im all the way on the SW side by the casinos. Yea thats right by the mission lol. Its a 25min drive to any lfs by me cept for a petsmart thats 7 to 10mins away. I will be moving this summer to fountain hills near phx.

~Brian

 

[blackdak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6835831#post6835831 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dogstar74

Blackdak,
I am originally from Utah as well, I travel up there from time to time, could you point me toward any cool Fish stores?!
I too think that 250 would illuminate just about any tank that I may upgrade to. So it's nice to hear others are running them. 4 fans. WOW, I'd probably get a couple but I think four is a bit much. But then again, we'll see, after all this is Tucson.

As far as the UV thing, that's something I have really had a question about. I mean, we worry so much about the UV, but isn't that the spectrum that promotes photosynthesis? Also don't we buy glass to sheild the UV then supplement with Actinics!? Does this not make any sense to anyone else out there or am I missing something. Now if you're buying the glass to protect the lamp from splashes, then I am on board, but if it comes down to the light giving me a suntan, well I'm not buying it. Thanks all for the input.

If you are in the salt lake city area, there are some really good fish shops here. Marine Aquatics, Fish4U, Desert Reef Aquatics are some of my favorites. In the southern Utah area, I dont know much. The local club, Wasatch Marine Aquarium Society is excellent check their website for other good local stores.

I run 4 computer fans mostly because my hood is fully enclosed except for an access panel/vent on the top. I can post pictures if you like. I only ran 2 of the fans with the 20k lamp, but i need all 4 for the 14k.

The UV thing has been debated in our local club a few times. here is my take on all of it. Yes the lamps do produce UV, some more than others.. all of the mogul base lamps have a shield of glass around the source to block UV so an extra shield is not necessary, while HQI are quartz and transmit more of the UV so they would require a sheild to help knock out some UV. UV-A light (320-400 nm) is beneficial to a point and its produced by our halides. A shield will cut down some of the intensity. The UV-B and UV-C light (200-320) are harmful to any life. I dont know what our MH lamps put out below 300 nm, but its a safety thing not just for your corals but also for you. Actinics are generally peaking at 420-440 nm (if i remeber correctly) at that isnt UV, just blue and is makes the look of the tank more pleasing.