Lighting a cube

AGM1 · 07/07/2010, 02:31 PM

Hi,

I was thinking of getting a CAD artisan cube (24x24x20) 50 gallon tank. I want to keep a mix of lps, sps, and softies. The stock light is a 150 watt MH with 2x24 T5. Should I go to a 250, keep the stock fixture, or go with a 6x24 watt ATI sunpower?

thanks

AGM1 · 07/07/2010, 10:55 PM

bump

jgrog76 · 07/08/2010, 11:58 AM

One of the best reasons to get a cube tank besides they are cool now is ease in lighting. You can't have a better footprint for a single 250 halide. Get a good reflector (makes all the difference in the world) and you can keep anything you want in that tank. The corners and edges will be perfect for lower light corals and the center for sps. I have a tank that is 28x28x20 with 1 icecap 250w de halide in the center of the tank. I have had no trouble growing any lps anywhere and am just starting into sps with this tank. If you want more lighting at some point you can always switch to a 400w halide.

AGM1 · 07/09/2010, 09:50 AM

Would you recommend a single 250 watt MH, or a 150/250 MH with a pair of 24 watt T5? Ive seen some people keep just MH, and use 20k to get the blue and therefore avoid using T5 as accent lighting.

autodave · 07/09/2010, 01:31 PM

I have a 30x30 cube and am using a 1 Lumenmax Elite reflector w/ a 250w Phoenix 14k,I have a few shady spots but it has more than enough light,I have sps,lps and a few softies.I plan on putting on 2 t-5s,front & back just because I have them laying around,certainly does not need it though

07/07/2010, 02:31 PM	#1
AGM1 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 141	Lighting a cube Hi, I was thinking of getting a CAD artisan cube (24x24x20) 50 gallon tank. I want to keep a mix of lps, sps, and softies. The stock light is a 150 watt MH with 2x24 T5. Should I go to a 250, keep the stock fixture, or go with a 6x24 watt ATI sunpower? thanks

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07/07/2010, 10:55 PM	#2
AGM1 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 141	bump

07/08/2010, 11:58 AM	#3
jgrog76 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 430	One of the best reasons to get a cube tank besides they are cool now is ease in lighting. You can't have a better footprint for a single 250 halide. Get a good reflector (makes all the difference in the world) and you can keep anything you want in that tank. The corners and edges will be perfect for lower light corals and the center for sps. I have a tank that is 28x28x20 with 1 icecap 250w de halide in the center of the tank. I have had no trouble growing any lps anywhere and am just starting into sps with this tank. If you want more lighting at some point you can always switch to a 400w halide.

07/09/2010, 09:50 AM	#4
AGM1 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 141	Would you recommend a single 250 watt MH, or a 150/250 MH with a pair of 24 watt T5? Ive seen some people keep just MH, and use 20k to get the blue and therefore avoid using T5 as accent lighting.

07/09/2010, 01:31 PM	#5
autodave Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Menifee,Ca. Posts: 484	I have a 30x30 cube and am using a 1 Lumenmax Elite reflector w/ a 250w Phoenix 14k,I have a few shady spots but it has more than enough light,I have sps,lps and a few softies.I plan on putting on 2 t-5s,front & back just because I have them laying around,certainly does not need it though