Walk toward the light....help please

[Tarpon001]

I'm in the process of buying stuff for a 90 gal tank and I'm not sure about how much light I'll need for this tank. Things I know I want.

1. MH
2. Acctinic
3. Moon LED
4. Fan
5. Hardware to mount above tank
6. All in one hood
7. I want the option to grow clams and all corals

So, what would be the minimum light I could get away with and what is the maximum before I overpower the livestock and tank?

thanks everyone

 

[aquaman67]

I would say a 250 watt MH light would be the minimum and two 400 watters would be the most I would try without a really good chiller

 

[sufunk]

I think you can get away with 150w mh's at a minimum and still keep sps and clams, you just may have to have them higher up in the tank. I only have 150w mh's on my 180g but keep a clam and tons of sps but they all have to be high in the tank.

The upside is i dont need a chiller or heater. The lights keep the water heated enough and i just run a small fan a few hours a day to keep it chilled. With 250 or 400w mh's, i would definitely need a chiller. Also, with 250 or 400w mh's you can keep sps or clams wherever you want but you might limit where you could put lps as that may be too much light for alot of them.

 

[TKByrnes]

I have 150 watt outer orbit's with pc actinic lighting. here is a link to my 90 build... It might help you out a little.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1324052