SBreef lights - 16 or 32 inch?

[Waterbourn]

think I have settled on SB Reef LED lights for my 6 foot 125 gallon tank. However I am still confused on whether I should get 3 16s or 2 32s. Those 2 32s seem like they give a lot more coverage, but I also have 2 braces on my tank. the website says 3 16s will work, but if I spend the money I want to make sure I can grow most things.

Anyone had good luck mounting these lights with the type of braces I have on my tank?

 

[Ron Reefman]

Without knowing how wide your braces are or how high you expect to hang the fixture above the braces, it's pretty difficult to give you a serious answer.

IMHO, both will work. Unless your braces are extra wide, I don't think shadowing will be a big issue. But if you have concerns, then the 3 fixture approach should solve the dilemma. The pair of 32" will give more coverage and more light. If you are considering lots of sps corals, I'd either do the 32" fixtures or even go for 4 of the 16" fixtures.

An advantage to the 3 or 4 16" fixture plan is that if 1 fixture should fail, your tank will still have enough light from the remaining fixtures to keep things going while you solve the problem. If 1 of the 2 32" fixtures fail, you'll want something to add light while you solve the problem as 1 32" fixture isn't even close to enough light if you have a tank full of coral.

 

[Waterbourn]

Thanks for the info! You have a good argument for the 16s. I really did not want to hang them. I wanted to use the mounting brackets that come with the lights.

 

[Ron Reefman]

Those braces are pretty substantial. I think I'd go with 3 fixtures. I think the SB Reef fixtures are strong enough, just like most of the other black box 16" fixtures.