Help Me choose lighting

Tyler6508 · 07/14/2009, 08:25 AM

I have a 125g tank (dimensions: 72 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 23 3/8) i'm need help deciding on lighting. I want MH and i want to retrofit them. I want to be able to keep LPS so i cant have like 400 watt lighting it will bleach everything out.

help?

Korrine · 07/14/2009, 08:28 AM

What about 3 250 watt halides? If you're retro fitting you could put a couple of actinic T5's or PC's in the hood also??

Tyler6508 · 07/14/2009, 08:33 AM

i need help with the brands and stuff as well. could i mix it and have like 250s on the sides and a 150 in the middle? but another thing is i have a center brace thats black. its not clear.

Korrine · 07/14/2009, 08:33 AM

Just one center brace? Not two braces?

Korrine · 07/14/2009, 08:36 AM

Lighting is NOT my strong point. I've no idea on brands, but I think you'll be safe with 250watt lights. 24" is a lot of water to penetrate. I wonder what the PAR will be at the bottom of the tank with the 250s vs 400w. You may be surprised.

der_wille_zur_macht · 07/14/2009, 08:40 AM

How wide is the brace? If it's big at all, I would suggest going with two MH bulbs in really good, wide reflectors (lumen max or lumen bright) as that'll keep you from having a bulb directly over the center brace, which is both bad for the brace and wasteful.

I like hellolights.com for DIY MH. If you are on a budget, you can get magnetic ballasts, cheap spider reflectors, and cheap bulbs from them, at about $180 per bulb. So for three bulbs, $540. If you go with two bulbs in Lumen Bright 3 Wide reflectors, it'll be about $250 per bulb (the lumen brights are expensive but worth it!) so $500 for everything.

With the two bulb setup in better reflectors, you'll be at fewer watts overall, so it'll be cheaper to run, and less heat in your system. The lumen bright reflectors are good enough compared to regular "spider" or parabolic reflectors that you'll be close to the same amount of light actually reaching your tank.

der_wille_zur_macht · 07/14/2009, 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Korrine
I wonder what the PAR will be at the bottom of the tank with the 250s vs 400w. You may be surprised.

It depends on a lot of factors - bulb choice, ballast choice, reflector choice, if they are single-ended or double ended. . . Some of the more powerful double-ended 250w bulbs in good reflectors are brighter than most 400w bulbs.

For most people, 400w is probably overkill, unless you are keeping very demanding SPS or using a really wide reflector to spread the light over a large area. 250w gives you very good performance, and really good bulb choice.

Tyler6508 · 07/14/2009, 08:50 AM

nevermind you were right. i could do 3 lights. i have 2 center braces. cuts the tank into 3rds

der_wille_zur_macht · 07/14/2009, 08:57 AM

So, three bulbs it is.

If you are on a budget, cheap magnetic ballasts are OK, like this one:

http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=174

Then you'll need a reflector. Spider (aka parabolic) reflectors are fine on a budget, especially since you'll have three bulbs:

http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=530

Then you'll need a bulb. Bulb choice is pretty personal, and depends on if you'll have supplemental lighting. As someone else mentioned above, many people choose to include PC or T5 bulbs in their retro rigs, with actinic blue bulbs installed in them. If you go that route, you can choose white MH bulbs, i.e. something in the 10kk range. If you do not go that route, you might want to stick with something a little bluer, in the 15kk - 20kk range.

Personally, I really like XM's 10kk and 20kk bulbs:

http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=155

http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=158

Again though, bulb choice is pretty personal. And, I'm linking to hellolights purely because I've used them in the past, there are lots of other good vendors out there.

Tyler6508 · 07/14/2009, 09:25 AM

I'm on a budget but let me put it this way. I get the tank in 2 weeks. Cycling with no lights for about a month. Im collecting everything i need before i even fill it up because we are gonna be moving cause my parents split eventually and i figure by the time i get everything together we'll be moving all i'll have to do it set it up at the new place. Its a hectic situation cause i dont know if we will lose our house or not or when but either way I'm determined to set this tank up.

der_wille_zur_macht · 07/14/2009, 09:28 AM

Well good luck with your situation.

Personally, I don't like to cycle new tanks in the dark, since it can kill off some of the good life on your rock (coralline algae, for instance.) But otherwise your plan sounds good.

Tyler6508 · 07/14/2009, 09:36 AM

oh no im going with Key largo dry rock from marco rocks. its that economy rock they make. i have it in my 55 now. its great! so i'm goin to cycle with the lights off. 2 cocktail shrimp oughtta do the trick.

Tyler6508 · 07/14/2009, 09:38 AM

the coraline covers it within 2 months if u have good water quality

07/14/2009, 08:25 AM	#1
Tyler6508 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Salem, Va Posts: 136	Help Me choose lighting I have a 125g tank (dimensions: 72 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 23 3/8) i'm need help deciding on lighting. I want MH and i want to retrofit them. I want to be able to keep LPS so i cant have like 400 watt lighting it will bleach everything out. help?

07/14/2009, 08:28 AM	#2
Korrine You could get a ticket!! Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Upper midwest Posts: 4,288 Blog Entries: 1	What about 3 250 watt halides? If you're retro fitting you could put a couple of actinic T5's or PC's in the hood also?? __________________ Try to keep in mind that we are all human...mistakes do happen! Be kinder than necessary because every one you meet is fighting some kind of battle. Current Tank Info: 40 breeder - started 9/2011 - platinum perc and sanjay's black photon clownfishes; sps and lps, and soft corals; 250w MH, 20 long sump w Bubble Magus Nac 3.5 skimmer 12g nano cube -serpent star, mini carpet anemones, w 6 sexy shrimp, 150w MH, maxi je

07/14/2009, 08:33 AM	#4
Korrine You could get a ticket!! Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Upper midwest Posts: 4,288 Blog Entries: 1	Just one center brace? Not two braces? __________________ Try to keep in mind that we are all human...mistakes do happen! Be kinder than necessary because every one you meet is fighting some kind of battle. Current Tank Info: 40 breeder - started 9/2011 - platinum perc and sanjay's black photon clownfishes; sps and lps, and soft corals; 250w MH, 20 long sump w Bubble Magus Nac 3.5 skimmer 12g nano cube -serpent star, mini carpet anemones, w 6 sexy shrimp, 150w MH, maxi je

07/14/2009, 08:36 AM	#5
Korrine You could get a ticket!! Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Upper midwest Posts: 4,288 Blog Entries: 1	Lighting is NOT my strong point. I've no idea on brands, but I think you'll be safe with 250watt lights. 24" is a lot of water to penetrate. I wonder what the PAR will be at the bottom of the tank with the 250s vs 400w. You may be surprised. __________________ Try to keep in mind that we are all human...mistakes do happen! Be kinder than necessary because every one you meet is fighting some kind of battle. Current Tank Info: 40 breeder - started 9/2011 - platinum perc and sanjay's black photon clownfishes; sps and lps, and soft corals; 250w MH, 20 long sump w Bubble Magus Nac 3.5 skimmer 12g nano cube -serpent star, mini carpet anemones, w 6 sexy shrimp, 150w MH, maxi je

07/14/2009, 08:40 AM	#6
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	How wide is the brace? If it's big at all, I would suggest going with two MH bulbs in really good, wide reflectors (lumen max or lumen bright) as that'll keep you from having a bulb directly over the center brace, which is both bad for the brace and wasteful. I like hellolights.com for DIY MH. If you are on a budget, you can get magnetic ballasts, cheap spider reflectors, and cheap bulbs from them, at about $180 per bulb. So for three bulbs, $540. If you go with two bulbs in Lumen Bright 3 Wide reflectors, it'll be about $250 per bulb (the lumen brights are expensive but worth it!) so $500 for everything. With the two bulb setup in better reflectors, you'll be at fewer watts overall, so it'll be cheaper to run, and less heat in your system. The lumen bright reflectors are good enough compared to regular "spider" or parabolic reflectors that you'll be close to the same amount of light actually reaching your tank. __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

07/14/2009, 08:50 AM	#8
Tyler6508 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Salem, Va Posts: 136	nevermind you were right. i could do 3 lights. i have 2 center braces. cuts the tank into 3rds

07/14/2009, 08:57 AM	#9
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	So, three bulbs it is. If you are on a budget, cheap magnetic ballasts are OK, like this one: http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=174 Then you'll need a reflector. Spider (aka parabolic) reflectors are fine on a budget, especially since you'll have three bulbs: http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=530 Then you'll need a bulb. Bulb choice is pretty personal, and depends on if you'll have supplemental lighting. As someone else mentioned above, many people choose to include PC or T5 bulbs in their retro rigs, with actinic blue bulbs installed in them. If you go that route, you can choose white MH bulbs, i.e. something in the 10kk range. If you do not go that route, you might want to stick with something a little bluer, in the 15kk - 20kk range. Personally, I really like XM's 10kk and 20kk bulbs: http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=155 http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp...ROD&ProdID=158 Again though, bulb choice is pretty personal. And, I'm linking to hellolights purely because I've used them in the past, there are lots of other good vendors out there. __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

07/14/2009, 09:25 AM	#10
Tyler6508 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Salem, Va Posts: 136	I'm on a budget but let me put it this way. I get the tank in 2 weeks. Cycling with no lights for about a month. Im collecting everything i need before i even fill it up because we are gonna be moving cause my parents split eventually and i figure by the time i get everything together we'll be moving all i'll have to do it set it up at the new place. Its a hectic situation cause i dont know if we will lose our house or not or when but either way I'm determined to set this tank up.

07/14/2009, 09:28 AM	#11
der_wille_zur_macht Team RC Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: NY Posts: 17,749	Well good luck with your situation. Personally, I don't like to cycle new tanks in the dark, since it can kill off some of the good life on your rock (coralline algae, for instance.) But otherwise your plan sounds good. __________________ Inconveniencing marine life since 1992 "It is my personal belief that reef aquaria should be thriving communities of biodiversity, representative of their wild counterparts, and not merely collections of pretty specimens growing on tidy clean rock shelves covered in purple coralline algae." (Eric Borneman)

07/14/2009, 09:36 AM	#12
Tyler6508 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Salem, Va Posts: 136	oh no im going with Key largo dry rock from marco rocks. its that economy rock they make. i have it in my 55 now. its great! so i'm goin to cycle with the lights off. 2 cocktail shrimp oughtta do the trick.

07/14/2009, 09:38 AM	#13
Tyler6508 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Salem, Va Posts: 136	the coraline covers it within 2 months if u have good water quality