Help picking 400w halide set-up

[Mark75]

I need help with a 400w pendant that will go over a 30x30x20 sps tank.

Here are my questions;

1.) SE or DE?
2.) What reflector or pendant?
3.) What ballast?
4.) What bulb?

I like a crisp white light with a touch of blue, maybe 14K?
I do not need the very best, but still want quality. I guess I am looking for the "best buy" set-up if there is such a thing.
Thanks!

[Dyraxe]

IMO
(Best)
SE
Luminarc reflector due to your 30inch wide tank
Icecap ballast
Aquaconnect (white with slight blue and good growth)

(Cheaper)
SE
Spider reflector
Coral Vue Ballast
ReefLux bulb
You can most likely buy a retro kit of some sort with all of this from coral vue and save a few bucks.

[Mark75]

I should have mention in my first post that it needs to be a pendant that looks nice without a hood as it will be hanging directly over the tank seen. Would the Lumenarc reflector look okay as a stand alone pendant?

Which Aquaconnect bulb is this you are recommending?

[Dyraxe]

the luminarc elite would look good, and the aquaconnect is the SE version they do not come in different K if I remember correctly just SE and DE.

[Mark75]

Would this bulb look good without actinics?

[SolidDetail808]

I almost got the same dimensions as you. I got a full sized lumenarc with galaxy ballast and SE 400w radium bulb. It's a little blue but I love how the colors pop under this lighting without atinics. Let me look for a picture for you.

[Dyraxe]

I like Radiums the best as far as looks go. I just figured you wanted something closer to 14k. I use Radiums because I care more about looks then growth. With the Aquaconnect you might see a tad more growth from corals but it is a whiter looking light. Remember the closer you get to 6500k the more close the K is to natural sunlight and this will produce the fastest growth (not always true but a good rule of thumb). 20k to me represents a reef in deeper waters and looks nice and blue.

[Mark75]

My thinking running a 400w instead of a 250w over this size tank was I could run a higher kelvin bulb and still get good growth. I like some blue, just not the very dim overly blue tanks.

SolidDetail, I would love to see your lighting.

[bstone]

Originally posted by Dyraxe
IMO
(Best)
SE
Luminarc reflector due to your 30inch wide tank
Icecap ballast
Aquaconnect (white with slight blue and good growth)

(Cheaper)
SE
Spider reflector
Coral Vue Ballast
ReefLux bulb
You can most likely buy a retro kit of some sort with all of this from coral vue and save a few bucks.

I would agree except for the bulb. I feel the AQ are not bright enough, and are too much blue for me. I have tried about every bulb out there and I like the 400Watt Giesemann MEGACHROME coral. Very bright, with a hint of blue, and great coral growth. And much easier to get ahold of then the AQ bulbs.
Also, MUST run on IceCap electronic ballast, I have seen these on a HQI and there looked yellow.

Well, just my 2 cents!

[Dyraxe]

I got a LFS that runs only Aquaconnect bulbs on their tanks. The 400watt looks a lot more bright and more white then the 250watt. The 250 is bluer then the 400watt and they both were on Icecap Ballasts. So if you saw a 250 it doesn't look the same as a 400.

[Mark75]

Originally posted by Dyraxe
IMO
(Best)
SE
Luminarc reflector due to your 30inch wide tank
Icecap ballast
Aquaconnect (white with slight blue and good growth)

(Cheaper)
SE
Spider reflector
Coral Vue Ballast
ReefLux bulb
You can most likely buy a retro kit of some sort with all of this from coral vue and save a few bucks.

When comparing these two options what is one giving up with the cheaper? ..... par, light spread, looks, combination of all?

How much difference in price is there?

[bstone]

Originally posted by Dyraxe
I got a LFS that runs only Aquaconnect bulbs on their tanks. The 400watt looks a lot more bright and more white then the 250watt. The 250 is bluer then the 400watt and they both were on Icecap Ballasts. So if you saw a 250 it doesn't look the same as a 400.

Don't know if that was for me. But I was compairing 400watt AQ vs. Giessmen coral

[bubbletip2]

Originally posted by Mark75
I need help with a 400w pendant that will go over a 30x30x20 sps tank.

Here are my questions;

1.) SE or DE?
2.) What reflector or pendant?
3.) What ballast?
4.) What bulb?

I like a crisp white light with a touch of blue, maybe 14K?
I do not need the very best, but still want quality. I guess I am looking for the "best buy" set-up if there is such a thing.
Thanks!

Hey Mark,

A lot of people have been interested in this combination and I have to say after doing some PAR testing on a number of bulb/ballast combinations that this is one of the best deals out there. I had two 400w kits with LumenBrights on a 5ft tank that did fantastic. I have to say acclimation to 400w bulbs is very different than even the 3-250w bulbs and 3 mini LumenBrights I have on now.

Check out this thread:

This is where it started to get interesting. You will see several tanks in the next several pages all using LumenBrights and 12K bulbs and I believe most everyone is using the Coralvue ballasts.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...&pagenumber=11

And check out this article on the LumenBrights:

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...view/index.php



The great thing about 12K's is it is exactly what you are looking for. No real need for actinic supplementation as the 12K's are a true 50/50 type of metal halide bulb. They have a lot of blue and a lot of white. I actually put some actinic T5's up to supplement and the blue of the actinics barely comes through the halides because they are kind of week. The Geismann actinic + I put on are definitely brighter but almost exactly like the 12K. So basically my tank looks virtually the same, just brighter. I really need the blue + on this tank I think if I am going to tell the difference. It is nice having some mild light for parts of the day but definitley not necessary with 12K Reeflux.

Another thing I am glad I did with the 3 - 250's is getting the dimmable ballasts. For those that want a sunny day white bulb and a deeper water blue bulb you can have it when you have a dimmable. The trick is picking the bulb to do it. I beleive Coralvue is one of the only companies selling these dimmable ballasts. I am sure there are others but I have not heard of them. If anyone knows of some please post...

It is awesome. With a 12K bulb it is very easy for me to turn the dimmable ballast up to a very white75%/blue25% then down to blue 50%/white 50%, and then blue75%/white25%. I have been experimentign with a Reeflux 10K bulb and man you can really make this bulb blue by truning it down. It is a 10K bulb you can easily make look like a 14K bulb. Sure less PAR but if you want to see your tank for a day like this, cool - more options. And besides what better way to acclimate your coral then to turn down your ballasts instead of putting sheets of screening on your tank just to rip off piece by piece every few days.

Mark,

Check this site out. Great customer service and a place you can by some pretty sweet setups.

http://www.reefspecialty.com/index.php?cPath=14_29

http://www.reefspecialty.com/product...roducts_id=209

http://www.reefspecialty.com/product...products_id=69

http://www.reefspecialty.com/product...roducts_id=231

I would recommend a Large LumenBright pendant if you don't have a canopy or a retro for the canopy. If you are goign 400w I highly recommend the dimmable ballast because you can acclimate your coral to some pretty intense light. And I don't care if it is 20K, 14K , or 12K. If it is 400watts you have to be careful, especially under a LumenBright.

[Mark75]

Thank you very much Bubbletip2, that was a very informative post. Would you recommend a mini or large Lumenbright pendant for a 30x30x20 sps tank?

It seems I will not have to spend as much on lighting as I had expected. For $340 or so I think it would be hard to beat this set-up (Reeflux 12k bulb, 400w CV ballast, Lumenbright pendant) par-per-dollar.

[bubbletip2]

Originally posted by Mark75
Thank you very much Bubbletip2, that was a very informative post. Would you recommend a mini or large Lumenbright pendant for a 30x30x20 sps tank?

It seems I will not have to spend as much on lighting as I had expected. For $340 or so I think it would be hard to beat this set-up (Reeflux 12k bulb, 400w CV ballast, Lumenbright pendant) par-per-dollar.

That is why I recommended it to you. It is a great deal and if you need to hang something you can or if you have a ncanopy you can mount one. And especially with your tank dimensions a LumenBright is ideal. In my opinion a LumenArc would spread so much light into your room that it would blind you. If you have a canopy , a LumenArc would only hit the sides of the canopy and not blind you while you are sitting there enjoying your tank. LumenArcs have there place but your dimensions call for a reflector that keeps the light in your tank and not in your living room.

I would recommend a large LumenBright because why not. You have the space to house one with 30"x30" so utilize it. With a large you will cover more of your tank which will be optimal. I would recommend a height of 16" to start and that is from the bulb to the water. So the top of your Lumenbright would be approximately 21" above the water line. I am running a large Lumenbright over a 30g cube that I recently plumbed into the main display which I believe is 20wx18lx20h and it is fantastic coverage. The more of the reflector you can reach to the ends of your tank the more angles your coral will be hit on with light. Not the greatest shot but you get the idea:

[Mark75]

The reflector will be suspended above the tank, no canopy. Is the picture of the one over the cube just as they come or have you painted it?

Well, looks like I have figured what lighting to use, now onto other equipment.

[bubbletip2]

Originally posted by Mark75
The reflector will be suspended above the tank, no canopy. Is the picture of the one over the cube just as they come or have you painted it?

Well, looks like I have figured what lighting to use, now onto other equipment.

They come already painted and their real shiny

[forensicdoc]

I would go with DE bulbs.
There are a few good choices of reflectors. Pick one based on how it fits into your setup. I am using the IceCap 250/400 HQI pendant, and am pleased with the product.
Same with ballasts. DE limits your choices somewhat. I am also using IceCap here.
I use 14K Hamilton bulbs on my 37" deep reef. I think that produces the color you are probably looking for.