175w Metal Halide Questions...halide pro's help me

[phi delt reefer]

a little background info - my tank is 36"x24x12" (shallow 45 gallon). I have a 6 bulb teklight but it will only light 15-17" of the tank so I have put it up for sale to purchase a 4x39w t5ho retro (running 2 blue plus, purple plus and aquablue special) along with two 175 halide units. This will all go up in a hood so that is 11" tall but floats 6" above the tank. heres a pic to help you visualize

Questions for all you halide pro's...

1. 175w should be enough for such a shallow tank right? (want to keep my electrical bill within reason)
2. what would be the optimal setup for a true 14k look from the halides alone? (ex. single end Iwasaki 14k on eballast -would like ballast and bulb recommendations)
3. will this add alot of heat to such a small tank?
4. do i need uv glass?
5. reflector choices? I have about 20" of width to work with in the hood, 4 t5s will take up 10" give or take (based on 2.5" reflector width)
6. will this setup add too much heat (i dont have a chiller but my house temps are as follows - winter days 20 degrees, nights 17 degree, summer days 22 degrees nights 20 degrees) - tank will be in my living room where the thermostat is located.
7. should i scrape the halides and instead go with a 8-10 bulb t5ho combo?

random but related question - can those Lumatek dimmable ballasts be dimmed by a controller (ie Reefkeeper with ALC module) or is it just a manual knob you turn?

also - if you have any of the equipment i need for sale feel free to PM me. I am in Ontario, Canada but have a US shipping address .


thank you all in advance for you help.

Happy Reefing -Vince

 

[Captain Nemo]

Question, what is the temp inside your house on those days?? Or are you operating in celsius? I think that you would be fine with MH. Also as long as you have the hood vented, you should be fine on the heat aspect. You do not have to have the glass i dont think, although I have it on mine, I know some who dont. I would go with a XM, Ushio, or Phoenix for a true 14K look. And I have no idea about the ballast. Sorry bro.

 

[phi delt reefer]

those are my internal house temps in celcius (sorry i am up in Canada) I will vent the hood into the closet on the left then through the top to act as a light block.

 

[Reef Breeders]

You only need one halide pendent, that should be fine, I have 2 on a 90 gallon, both 175 watt 14k. Bit of a long bump, but consider that if you never went through with the build.

 

[Kevin Kolinen]

I am having an issue " burning" livestock as we speak with a recent MH upgrade...I and others have linked this to the missing glass cover on my fixture. Just my piece of mind...use the glass cover!

 

[mcarroll]

FYI. 175w is a single-ended bulb. Their outer glass is all the cover glass they need.

One 175 might be plenty of wattage, but I'm not sure I'd be happy with the coverage from only a single bulb...worth trying, but could be borderline at the edges.