More MH vs T5

RyanG

RyanG

Reef enthusiast
Ok I was going to get the Constellations that Reef had held my hand and pointed me towards but Im get three very nice reflector with the hood for my tank. They retail for approx 150 each. So I think Im going to go with the Halides because I have a head start going. So should I go with 3x250 watt or go 2x250 watt with a 400 watt in between them? Im also going to do a retro of PC or T5 whichever you guys point me toward to run actinics. Thanks for all of the help. Sorry for more lighting discussions Reef.
 
I dont want to get into the which is best debate. Been there done that...haha. Bobby your a DIY guy what do you think I should go with for T5 actinics? I am looking at a couple of 60" retros that will run 2x80vhos will one of these be sufficient or do I need to have two of them in your opiinion?

Also which do you think would be a beter choice for them th TEK 2 kit or the Icecap Kit
 
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I don't know much about atinics. I hav'nt added any to my tank. If you get the right bulbs then you wont need them either. I first bought a 10k XM bulb and it was very yellow, then I bought the 14k cheapy off of ebay and absolutly love it. When I need more bulbs thats were I'm going. I have read that Ice cap has the best reflectors though, and I think hellolights has retro kits on sale right now. They're 100.00 for a 2 bulb kit.
 
bobby said:
I don't know much about atinics. I hav'nt added any to my tank. If you get the right bulbs then you wont need them either.
Click to expand...

Bobby do you get that glowing effect with your corals without them?

Daugherty I could go either way at this point, what do you think the "best" option is?
 
With the 14k I do have slight one but not like the pics I see. IMHO it is just about perfect, but atinic would make it pop even more.
 
how deep was the tank again and how deep is the sandbed is going to be and how high are you going to get the halides from the water?
 
The tank is 2ft deep I was going to shoot for a 2inch sandbed and Im guessing the lights are a foot to 15 inches above the water. Ive yet to gain possession of the tank until friday.
 
i think you would be fine as long as you started every thing off the bottom. i use a 14k mh it is a crisp blue almost white. i love it when i get the money i am going to get 2 250w so i can get rid of my PC's. but you could run all 14k mh's and add a 2 10k vho's or t5's and it would be a crisp white like going outside. if you look at my 50 build you can see what i have and it is a very crisp white with a tint of blue
 
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I was going to go for the 14k MH not really sure what Im going to do for the actinics as Im not really familiar with the marine spectrum yet, other than its WAYYYY opposite of the planted tank spectrum. Ill get it figured out by the time Im ready to purchase.
 
Compare VHO's to compact flourescent and you will see why the compacts are used more often. Compact are efficient, cheap and the tubes last longer without degeneration. A step up would be to the T5's for your actinics. Pendants put out better lighting than horizontal fixtures. So many choices and appearance is a big factor. I do not care for a pendant and only use them on 400 watt halides. Myself, I typically run 10K HQI 250 watt every 2 ft for 24 inch depths and do not increase to 400 watt until a 30 inch or deeper tank. I use Power Compact 96 watt for Actinic. I run two 250 watt halides for a 120 tank and three for a 125 or 180. In addition to the halides I would run two 96 watt actinic PC for a 120 and four 96 watt actinic PC for a 125 or 180. I would consider the 180 gallon a tank for SPS mother colonies and as a display tank. I would consider using three 400 watt 10000K halides, possibly I would go with 6500K instead of 10K on it if I was going to use it as a frag grow out tank (however I would prefer the 210 gallon tank for this), and I would not supplement with actinic in it as a frag grow out tank. But, again thats me.
 
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I basically want the lighting to look the best it can in a display tank Im not going to worry about coral propagation until I figure out if I can keep one alive,lol. I do like the looks of SPS corals but am mostly wanting a mixed reef as I like the look of soft and LPS swaying in the currents. I want to maximize growth and color. Im thinking that the 10k frequency is probably my best options to get the best of both worlds?
 
Almost all the tanks I set up and the display tank in my apartment are all Aqualight Pro 10000K HQI with actinic PC's and moonlights. I would prefer a fixture with the same HQI halides and T-5 actinics, but I get a very good deal on the Aqualight fixtures as I buy from the supplier not a retailer. I have not been able to establish a commercial contract with the supplier of Outer Orbit lights which supply a 72" fixture with three 250 watt HQI halide and eight 39 watt T-5 actinic which I think would make an excellent fixture. They also make a fixture I would like to try which is their 48" with two 250 watt HQI halides and four 54 watt T-5 actinics. The wattages are not significantly different between the top end Outer Orbit Pro Series and the Aqualight Pro but the differences between the performance of the PC's and the T-5's would be interesting to see. I do not think the growth rates of frags would be increased but I think the color for viewing would be improved and the Outer Orbits are $200 cheaper per unit (retail).
 
with the height of the lights that far from the water you should be ok. I would go with reflux 12K for your MH bulbs. I just switch a week ago and been liking it. it gives out a crisp white shimmer
 

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