Old school lighting questions

[michael.lemke]

My current lighting is 2 250 watt mogul halides in 14"x14" reflectors and a dual PFO ballast. I also have a couple reefbrite strips for am and pm. I also have 2 54 watt t 5.

I'm thinking of getting THREE Hamilton Bimini 150 watt HQI with Phoenix bulbs. Then using the led's I love the Phoenix bulb color! How different is the light output going to be? Does the HQI put more par per bulb watt than the mogul or is this a wives tail? Would the spread with three of these be the same or better than my current reflectors?

I love the color of the Phoenix bulbs as well as the look of the smaller Hamilton fixture. It would allow me to remove my bulky hood and open up my family room a bit which is a big concern for both my wife and me. It would give the tank a cleaner look and be much easer to clean as well as view from the top.

Just looking for some opinions based on some personal experience. I am looking for the same or better lighting results. Could I go with two? And NO don't suggest led because that's not happening for me now and I don't want to go down that debate at this.

The tank is mixed but SPS heavy and 60"x30"x22"

Another option would be to do two of the 250 watt Bimini lights for approximately the same price.

 

[michael.lemke]

Here's Hamilton's response to this question. My worry is spread and light penetration.

Thank you for your interest in Hamilton Technology.

Yes, I think it would be similar yes.

3 x 150 Watt for a 5 ft reef tank would be a great choice for that tank.

This should allow you to keep really any type of coral, lps or sps.

I do like our new 20K HQI bulbs. If you do go with this set up and you do
like to draw out
a lot of color from your corals or give your reef tank a lot of "pop" then I
would suggest
our new 20K HQI bulbs. They look just like a Phoenix bulb but with slightly
higher PAR.

Overall I think Bimini is a great lighting choice especially considering the
price we
have it available at right now.

If you have more questions about Bimini or any of our other lights, please
email back or
give me a call direct at 800-447-9797.

 

[shifty51008]

For depth i would go with the 250's. Not sure if 150's will be enough light 22" down

 

[michael.lemke]

For depth i would go with the 250's. Not sure if 150's will be enough light 22" down

Just measured. The tank is only 20" deep.

 

[michael.lemke]

Just measured. The tank is only 20" deep.

To clarify, 19 to 20" of water to the surface of the sand. Seems like people like the 250 watt option best. Would that opinion change with a better reflector like the cayman sun?

 

[shifty51008]

There are more bulb choices with 250's which is why alot of people like them.

Now with useing a good reflector you will be fine useing 150's phonex bulbs have good par also. But keep in mind your par will drop the more closer to 20k bulbs you get but should still be ok if you plan on going with the 14k

 

[michael.lemke]

I'm actually looking at the better reflectors now. A bit more $ but don't want to do this again. lol The cayman sun fixture with an electronic ballast. I'll use the phoenix 14K which I love and looks more like a 20K IMHO or go with the new Hamilton 20K which they say appears almost exactly like the phoenix with slightly more par. I have had good luck with my hamilton bulbs for the past 2 years. I ran my 14K for 18 months before replacing. I'd probably go a bit less this time as my corals suffered after about 15 or so months.

I want to go with three fixtures as that will give me the best spread but still am undecided about the wattage. I'd definitely do the 250 if I was only doing 2 fixtures but with three the 150 will do nicely without the power consumption 450 watts or 750 watts. I do only run them for 4 hours a day. Heat is no issue as I have a very large sump in my basement and an open top. Heat Is actually welcomed 97 yesterday and my heaters ran for much of the day!

 

[shifty51008]

I have been running hamiltons for the past 2 years and love them actually. My next bulb replacemwnt will be with their new ones however im running se bulbs so not sure if i wanna switch.

Im in the same boat though with heat, even on days with 90+ my heater usually still runs so no issues with that.

You will deff have to let me know how those hamilton bulbs work out if you go that way.

 

[michael.lemke]

I'll definitely let you know if I get the new Hamilton's. I can say that they are willing to bend backwards to help a guy out and answer questions. They even referred to this thread in a phone conversation I had yesterday. Lol they have earned my future business with at the minimum bulbs. Not common in today's world.

 

[michael.lemke]

Really curious if I can get a bit more input here. I know it's a really small change but would love to hear what others are doing. Anyone else with a 5 foot tank and using halides?