New Tank Checklist

[fishdoc11]

I edited the above post. 2 250 20K's are fine. If you want supplimental bulbs I would get VHO's NOT PC's(since you are going to run atinics in them and the URI atinics are better than anything else out there). I don't know how the fans come in those but you could easily add two fans to the hood for cheaper.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835129030

 

[doodoobrown]

if you are going to supplement actinic for the mh i would go vho as well. nothing looks better than the vho super actinics. to me they give a better blue than you can get from any pc. hellolights has a great kit for this. all you need is the bulbs and you can get them from them there too. whole setup shipped will be around 100-110. i use this same ballast and have since they came out and love it.

http://www.hellolights.com/2laaroasbaki.html

here are the bulbs

http://www.hellolights.com/superactinicr2.html

dont skimp and get the aqua d. they dont have the internal reflector

 

[spjeff69]

Well, now I'm confused. The better link you gave me is for 46.5" kit, but my tank is 48" so I went back to the 48" build your own. I selected the 250w ARO electronic ballast for each MH bulb and now I've chose 2 Lamp ARO Model 4L ballast for the VHO.

I should wait to get the bulbs until later? Or will it be cheaper now? Why do I want to wait a few weeks before adding the bulbs? Also, in order to add fans, I would need a skillsaw I guess. How would I wire these? I may have to hire one of you guys to come to Clarksville!!!!

 

[aquaman67]

You might want to call Glass Cages to get the inside dimentions of the 48" canopy. I just measured mine.

The ouside edges of the tank is 36 " but the inside if the canopy is only 35 ".

The way they build their canopies, they sit on top of the frame so the inside of the canopy will be shorter than the outside edge of the tank.

 

[theop]

I have a Coralife hood ( 2 x 65W PC). FWIW, the fans are on the top, so you could but the hood under a canopy, and in fact that is how mine is set up.

However, I have not been impressed with this hood. The fans are pretty loud, and the plastic clips which hold wires in place as they enter the reflector have come loose and fallen off. I wouldn't buy a Coralife hood again. The retrofit kits may be better quality, I don't know.

I know they do sell the MH/PC Coralife hoods at the Critter, so you could look at them there to see if they meet your needs.

 

[spjeff69]

Would 20000k and Super actnic be too much blue? or should the VHO be 50/50

 

[spjeff69]

Also, how many gallons should I have for my sump for a 120 gallon tank

 

[doodoobrown]

i think the 20k and actinic would be a bit much. if it was me i would do 10k mh and then do superactinics. you will get great growth and good color with this combo

 

[doodoobrown]

i will take pics for you later. my big tank has 10kmh/superactinic vho and my 29 zoa/frag tank has a 20k mh. big differance

 

[fishdoc11]

The 46.5" retro is what you want because the 48" will not fit in that hood. URI sells 46.5" atinics and they are the same as the 48" as far as wattage just shorter(that's what I use and my retro is 46.5"). Look at the link I posted. Just 20K is on the left and 20K with atinics is on the right. To my eye 10K with atinics looks better too DooDoo but some people like the blue look. That's why I posted the link to Joe's site. Also the pictures make it look a little bluer than it is. With the atinics you get better flourescense from the 420 nm the atinic provides in addition to the 450 nm that is predominant with the 20K's.
FWIW, Chris

 

[fishdoc11]

The size of your sump will depend on your return pump but assuming you are only going to push 600-700gph at the most through just one overflow a 30 gallon should be fine. That will give you about ten gallons for the max overflow you will need when the power goes out and give enough room for microbubbles to dissipate.
Chris

 

[eyebedam]

Aqua could you put a full tank shot stand & canopy pic on. Im thinging of getting my next tank from Glasscages.

 

[spjeff69]

What brand bulbs should I use? I guess I've decided to go 250watt 10k and the super actinic VHO.

46.5" is def the way to go. Glasscages offers a 27G sump with all of the baffles for 120. Is that good?

What size external pump am I looking for? What brand?

 

[doodoobrown]

i have used the ushios and the xms. i prefer the xms

 

[fishdoc11]

Well of course now I have to say I like the Ushio's

Which I do, had a bad experience with XM's.

See where this is going?

Lighting is full of all different opinions etc....

You might want to ask some people with glass Cages tanks how much they push through their overflows and find a pump that does that with the head loss calculated(which you can do with the head loss calculator on RC's home page)

Iwaki is the best and I would say Blueline/Pan World is second.

A 27 gallon sump sounds like a fine size but once again you probably want to check out Melevs page posted earlier and figure out if that's the type/layout you want.

Chris

 

[doodoobrown]

not the best pics but you get the idea

as-220 ballast 46.5in super actinic vho

10k xms and super vho

20k mh

 

[fishdoc11]

Good idea
2 250 watt SE 10K Ushios
2 110 watt URI atinics
2 55 watt blue PC's

250 watt DE AB 20K

 

[spjeff69]

What about sand? Does anyone have a cheap, good alternative to live sand? Any luck with southdown or anything?

 

[aquaman67]

Here's another lighting comparison article. There are two pages so look for the link at the bottom of the first page.

http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_lighting_metal_halide_bulbs_information.asp?ast=&key=

 

[Siffy]

Southdown has proven impossible to find anymore (random pallets get found every few months in OH or PA) since they stopped packaging it and sold that line. You don't need all your sand to already be live, just a bit of it.

I'm mainly chiming in to mention c_stowers runs 2 skimmers, a remora and a remora pro hanging on the sides of his refugium. They maintain about 200 gallons of water.