need lighting help for 30 gallon tank

[gfk]

so im planning on getting a 30 gallon tank dimensions 36x12x16.

i want bright lighting for it, but as of now, all i have is lps and softies, with a few blastos, hammer, and candy canes for the lps

would a 250 watt MH be too much or since its 36 inches long would i need maybe 2 175 watters?

http://hellolights.com/arocu25re.html with a 15k bulb is what i was thinking of.

can any of you recommend a better setup? im unfamiliar with T5s and vho's. i found vho's on their site but i dont understand the difference between t5 and vho.

what would a good setup be for each type of light with these dimensions

 

[Gools]

Do you have a centre brace on your tank? If not I would recommend 1-250w. T5's in my opinion are better then VHO's, I find the light they put off alot brighter. But that's just to my eye's. I have t5's on my tank, and find them very bright, and gives my tank a nice soft look, while being bright

 

[UFreefer]

i've got a 250 mh on my 30g tank, but its an sps prop tank
It's ALOT of light for a tank that size, which works great for sps but i think it would be too much for lps. The few pieces of lps i've had in there had to be in the shade otherwise they werent happy

 

[gfk]

cool thanks, i might just go with a 29 gallon and get 1 250

 

[padixon2]

i think that 250watts on a 29 will be too much for lps dominant tank.

why do you want that much light? are you wanting to keep sps and clams in there?

Also, heat WILL be an issue with that much light unless you have a chiller, or want to use a fan blowing across the surface, and that also creates more evaporation...long story short, youre gonna have problems keeping that tank stable.

As for VHOs: more expensive to use and to buy, and have to be replaced yearly

As for T5s: bulbs run from 10-25bucks depending on wattage and spectrum(and where you buy them.) They are replaced every 2 yrs. If you get the 460 nm actinic, it gives the same blue look as the super actinic VHOs.

If you really want MH on a tank that shallow, You should get no more the 175 watts, and you will still probably want to supplement with either VHOs or T5 for flouresence and to give your corals a break from the SUN! Id definatley want to put all of the lights on timers.

If it were my tank, thats what I would do anyways