ideal conditions to start a reef

[RyanG]

Check out TEK brand lights too. If you are going to run a canopy or are interested in one(Dont know if the bow front type offer one) a retrofit would be cheaper.

 

[lightcs4]

metal halides on your tank will make you have to get a chiller because it will heat your tank up too much, stick to t-5's, it will save you money for other things on your tank.

To be acurate, MH will *not* necessarily make you get a chiller. I run a 250 MH setup on my 46 gal tank, don't have A/C, and the temp stays around 78 in the living room (which is the coolest room in the house other than the basement). Dayton will be warmer, of course, than upstate NY.

However, T5's are still a great idea and I will likely purchase T5s if I ever need to replace the MH setup. I think they are your best bet to minimize heat and electric usage.

 

[dustin_P74]

another reason that t-5's are better then MH on that size tank is bulb replacement costs will be lower, 250W MH bulbs run about 90 bucks compared to about 15 bucks for t-5 bulbs

 

[poolshark181]

another reason that t-5's are better then MH on that size tank is bulb replacement costs will be lower, 250W MH bulbs run about 90 bucks compared to about 15 bucks for t-5 bulbs

as i recall, the decent t5 bulbs run a little higher than that. and once you swap out a bulb, you'll have to swap them all out, making it about the same if not more expensive to get decent t5 bulbs replaced.
oh and as far as the chiller thing goes, i run halides on my tank and dont run a chiller. if anything, i'll stick a regular cheapo clip on fan and blow it across the water, about as effective and a fraction of the cost.

 

[reeffreak]

alright ill check it out any other recommendations? What does everybody think about the orbit systems with the metal halides?

My sister-in-law has the Outer Orbit on a 46g.bowfront.She doesn't have any heat issues but she keeps her house like an icebox.Just be aware of possible heat issues when running MH on smallish tanks.

 

[Bifferwine]

I would recommend T5s over metal halides for a tank your size because:

A) metal halides have very good potential to overheat your water. T5s will not.
B) halide bulbs have to be replaced every 6 months vs. every year for T5s
C) halide bulbs cost 4 times as much as T5 bulbs
D) halides use more electricity