need help choosing the right metal halide

stykthyn

New member
I have a cube that is 20x20 and 32 inches deep. I want to go metal halide b/c of the smaller canopy. what kind should I get and how many watts?? I want that really cool silvery look that just makes everything pop. I currently use VHO's on my 55, but all the corals are going into the new tank. I want to get away from the flourescent lighting look. Thanks guys!
 
A single 400w in a Lumenarc would be my vote. Pick a bulb that looks good (this will end up being your personal preference) without supplementation and you're set.
 
Lumen arc is a type of reflector. Personally I would go w/ a lumen bright reflector mini. Just changed from arcs to the bright. The brights focus the light more and will allow greater penetration where the arcs allow for more spread. As far as 250 or 400, depends on what you want to keep and where. 250=sps top half of the tank
 
I have a rather large frogspawn that my clowns host, a bunch of assorted mushrooms and leathers, and basket ball size bubble coral, but I am not sure that I am going to keep that one. the frogspawn is large enough that in the cube they will be fighting each other.

what is the difference of a lumenarc vs a spider reflector?
 
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The reflector design alters the amount of reflectance of the bulb. In other words, how much of the light is usable vs wasted. Both reflectors are made of polished metal and bent to refract the light. The difference is the facets reflecting the light and where the facets direct the light. An example would be a flashlight. A flashlight has a single bulb w/ a focused beam of light. That light is focused b/c of the reflector. You change that reflector to lets say a flat piece of polished metal and that blub will no longer give you a focused beam. Most of the light is scattered, no longer focused to light your path. Another way to look at it is efficiency. The lumen arc is more efficient at reflecting light than the spider.
 
Given the corals you are keeping a 250 in lumen bright would be perfect. Plenty of light for the mushrooms down at the bottom.

GL

Garrett.
 
so 250 is fine? If I was to get the itch for some SPS or a clam would they be fine towards the top of the tank?
 
Middle to top half of the tank would be ok. You would have to see if you could do clams on the bottom depending on what reflectors you go with. The major concern that I see is heat. 250 on a 55 may increase the heat in the tank to the point where you may need a chiller, unless you have the ability to use a few fans
 
it's not a 55, the 55 is the old tank, the new tank is a cube.
it's 20x20 and 30 inches tall. employing fans wont be an issue, I just dont know if I could fit PC's into a canopy that size and to be honest I really like the look that MH's give off. If PC's are a better option I would be open to those as well.
I am moving to a smaller place and dont want something as bulky as the 55. the new cube will easily fit into a corner and is only a few gallons smaller than my current tank. I just had no idea how I was going to supply light to my corals.
 
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