Newbs got questions.........

[MMERITT28]

I tried to put this all one post and it went away like I typed to much so I will ask one question at a time. First question. I am setting up a 120 gallon reef tank that I would like to stock with SPS. Should I be running MH250w or MH400w? The tank is 24" deep and I want to make sure that I get enough light down low without having too much up high that will burn things as they grow. I also want to supplement with something else and am looking for suggestions as what to use.

Thanks for your time.
Mike

 

[skinz78]

Are you dead set on MH? I highly recommend T5 lighting, it does just as well for growing SPS and does it without the heat of MH.

 

[aalvarado87]

i highly recommend LEDS although the are pricey. But if you are dead set on mh's and wanna supplement them then I highly reccomend supplementing them with LEDS i know rapidled has kits for like 75 bucks i know 75 is a lot but you have to remember that you won't have to change out bulbs these should last you a pretty long while.

 

[RonMidtownStomp]

I love 250W Radiums with Lumenarc Elites. There have been a lot of T5 vs MH comparisons and it always comes down to preference. You should have plenty of PAR with 250's as long as you use the right reflector.

 

[johnanddawn]

either will work, but i would think about your aquascape first
it is a huge factor in lighting - will it be low profile? islands? bonsai? wall?
will your placement require high and low light areas? or do you want even coverage? or shadows?
with 400's you'll prob need to reduce your photoperiod compared to 250's
LED is a great sup for color and T5's are great for spreading light around; both can be usd to extend the photoperiod
lighting is probably the most personal choice in reefing

 

[raymond]

id go with t5 lighting or leds/ t5 has more choices on color and led is more high tech and will save more money on stuff. using mh is light driving around a 1969 camero, works great, costs a little more in gas

 

[Paul_N]

You will be good with 250w, just make sure you get quality reflectors like lumenbrights or lumenmax elites.

 

[MMERITT28]

Thanks all for the replies. I am pretty sure that I am stuck on MH. Not sure why though and still am looking fo rpictures of examples. My aquascape is kind of like three islands with bridge pieces connecting them to make two (coves?) so i would definately have a high and low light area. I want pretty much full coverage with the only shadowing caused by the rock.

Aalvarado, your statement to me does not make sense about $75 being alot of money because if I understand right MH lighting will cost me more upfront than that and more to maintain and operate. So in that respect, it does not seem to be about the money but rather a preference. I must admit that I have not seen LED for that price. I have been reading on this and other boards for over a year and although I am not against LED I think I want to wait a bit until the technology is finished developing and I have more information on the subject.

Raymond you have to know that your analogy cracked me up as I work for an auto parts manufactuer and am an old car guy. Sometimes I do not mind spending a little more in gas.

Thanks again for all the replies. I think that I am stuck on MH with a T5 supplementation and would like now to know what direction to head on bulbs. I think that I like the blue look if that is what it is called.

 

[aalvarado87]

I was reffering to retrofitting leds. for supplement lighting. I know you can get t5 supplement probably a little cheaper. Than what a couple of LEDS royal blue supplements would cost you. a complete LED set up for a large tank your looking for it to be in the 1000's easily. But if your just going to get the for supplement lighting say a couple of strips they will not be all that expensive make sense?

 

[Reggie]

Several things to consider. If you are going MH, water temperature will go up when they are on. So, depending on the ambient room temperature, you might need to have fans, pointed to the surface of your tank, turn on when water temperature reaches say 82F. Folks use a controller to do this. Another option of course is a chiller, but that depends on your budget. You will not have heat problems with T5 lamps or LED lights.

MH will have a shimmer effect on the water which can be nice, which you can't do with T5s (unless maybe you add some LEDs). You will have more color options with T5s however. There are fixtures that combine the two as well, if you want to go that route.

Also, consider the cost of changing the bulbs. The effective life of bulbs/lamps is about 8-12 months. So just compute the cost of the number of bulbs you have to replace every year. The cost for LED fixtures now are high but if you factor in the life of LEDs (which is about 10-15 years), it might still end up cheaper.

I suggest you read Tank of the Month (TOTM) articles, look for inspiration tanks, and mimic their lighting setup.

 

[akabryanhall]

Hey I would stick with 250W metal halides, the extra heat is only really a concern if the temperature fluctuates too much, my tank is 81 during the day 79-80 at night, consistency is more important than keeping the temp below 80.

 

[RonMidtownStomp]

with 400's you'll prob need to reduce your photoperiod compared to 250's

Why? My understanding is that high-PAR photo period should be 4-6 hours regardless of the type of light used. Corals acclimate to the amount of light they're getting. Longer photo period they can usually deal with just fine, they just can't use the extra energy to grow more.

What I'd love to see is testing of 5 hours on 7 hours off and see if they could be tricked into increased growth.

 

[RonMidtownStomp]

I think that I am stuck on MH with a T5 supplementation and would like now to know what direction to head on bulbs. I think that I like the blue look if that is what it is called.

I don't hesitate for one instance with this response -- Radiums. I wasted a lot of money trying other bulbs. They won't fire on any ballast. Some people say they look different on Bluewave or Galaxy ballasts from SLS. I run mine on four different ballast types, all electronic, and they all look spot on identical to me. I have an ARO, a generic electronic, an Icefire and a dual Galaxy. The display tank goes Galaxy -> ARO -> Galaxy and you can't tell that the ballasts are different.

Let me just say this one more time -- reflectors are KEY. I went from large Lumenarcs to Lumenmax elites and it makes a HUGE difference. It's about 20 percent difference on a PAR meter, which I perceive to be a lot brighter visually.

 

[dougers31]

Radiums are awesome, but if you are going to also have t5's for blue supp. I might go with AB 10-14k 250w bulbs, nice crisp white with a hint of blue(great par too).

 

[aj1980]

+ led