Lighting confusion

potterjg · 02/19/2006, 03:34 PM

This lighting stuff is driving me nuts. I am getting my frst reef tank. I have on order a 36x24x31 tank, and a 4bulb T5 sunlight supply unit with the individual reflectorsfrom reefgeek.com. I have been told that this is not enough since my tank is going to be so deep. Should I add a 175W 10K to this setup or is it okay for now. I will start out with some easy stuff as far as coral but can afford to go ahead and get everything I need now as far as equipment. I am looking at this http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merc...egory_Code=PFOr or maybee i need to go 250w becaause of the depth. Just give me some ideas. I can't seem to find any threads with similar depth tanks to compare. This is the one I ordered http://www.reefgeek.com/products/cat...ng/104064.html

bassnman11 · 02/19/2006, 05:16 PM

With a tank that wide, you could go for 4 more t5s to give better coverage. With MHs you run into the heat problem and may need a chiller. The t5s should be sufficient for all but the most demanding sps.

Saaack · 02/20/2006, 02:10 PM

Susan,

Don't believe as the BS people feed you on metal halides overheating aquariums. There are many variables that determine heat in an aquarium, such as water surface area (tall tanks have a low surface to volume ratio and tend to retain more heat), ambient room temp, radiated heat from lights, heat induced by pumps, ect. I have used both flouescent and MH lighting and speak from experience.

As for lighting, your T-5 setup should be OK to start with, soft corals, inverts, fish. If you progress to more light demanding corals, you will need lighting that penetrates deep into the water. If you look around the internet at sucsessful large aquariums, you will see the trend is with daylight spectrum metal halides supplimented with actinic flouescents. This looks and is the most like natural sunlight. A 250 watt 10K MH combined with some actinic flourescents is what I'd choose.

Zigzag Man · 02/20/2006, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Don't believe as the BS people feed you on metal halides overheating aquariums.

Halides producing heat that has to be compensated for is not 'BS'... as you put it... the thing most people don't figure with halides is that they produce 'radiant' heat (you know, the kind produced by a heat lamp), whereas fluorescents don't.

This is heat that has to be compensated for... and trust me, I speak from experience too. I have 1300w of halide over my tank, and my hood is vented with a 400cfm squirrel-cage fan, yet even in the wintertime my chiller kicks on occasionally (with inside ambient temps of about 68-degrees F).

With a tank that deep, I'd lean more toward 400w halides rather than 250w, but that's just me... 250's should do alright as well, just not all the way to the bottom (for light-loving organisms anyway).

supertech3 · 02/20/2006, 04:16 PM

I agree with zigzag, about heat and if you do not go with the mh lights now you will probably pay again later because you are not happy with what you can keep in your tank

potterjg · 02/20/2006, 07:22 PM

So would the T5's work if I supplement with a 250w MH 10k???

ufans · 02/20/2006, 08:43 PM

I agree with ZigZag. 2-3 250Watt MH or 400s would be better based on the depth. If the canopy/hood isn't fully enclosed then a simply fan will eliminate any heat problems. Florescents are very expensive in the long run.

Zigzag Man · 02/20/2006, 09:12 PM

Quote:

So would the T5's work if I supplement with a 250w MH 10k???

This is the system I'm switching over to, though my tank is only 24" deep.

I'm going with eight T5HO's (six Actinic Blue+ and two 11K Aquablue), and a single 10K 250w HQI XDE bulb in a PFO mini pendant. I'm sticking with a little bit of halide because I like the shimmer it produces, and I also like the growth rates I get with 10K... of course I have no experience with T5HO yet, so the 250w of halide might be redundant.

Of course you can go with T5 just for actinic supplementation, and go with 250w halides for your primary lighting. Just keep in mind that heat will be an issue, though Saaack did have a point as to how much of an issue it will be depends on a lot of variables.

02/19/2006, 03:34 PM	#1
potterjg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Muscle Shoals, Alabama Posts: 86	Lighting confusion This lighting stuff is driving me nuts. I am getting my frst reef tank. I have on order a 36x24x31 tank, and a 4bulb T5 sunlight supply unit with the individual reflectorsfrom reefgeek.com. I have been told that this is not enough since my tank is going to be so deep. Should I add a 175W 10K to this setup or is it okay for now. I will start out with some easy stuff as far as coral but can afford to go ahead and get everything I need now as far as equipment. I am looking at this http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merc...egory_Code=PFOr or maybee i need to go 250w becaause of the depth. Just give me some ideas. I can't seem to find any threads with similar depth tanks to compare. This is the one I ordered http://www.reefgeek.com/products/cat...ng/104064.html __________________ Susan Current Tank Info: 65g sw FOWLR emperer pump with biowheels (came with the tank)and skimmer

02/20/2006, 07:22 PM	#6
potterjg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Muscle Shoals, Alabama Posts: 86	So would the T5's work if I supplement with a 250w MH 10k??? __________________ Susan Current Tank Info: 65g sw FOWLR emperer pump with biowheels (came with the tank)and skimmer

02/19/2006, 05:16 PM	#2
bassnman11 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Corona Ca. Posts: 674	With a tank that wide, you could go for 4 more t5s to give better coverage. With MHs you run into the heat problem and may need a chiller. The t5s should be sufficient for all but the most demanding sps.

02/20/2006, 02:10 PM	#3
Saaack Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Tampa Posts: 57	Susan, Don't believe as the BS people feed you on metal halides overheating aquariums. There are many variables that determine heat in an aquarium, such as water surface area (tall tanks have a low surface to volume ratio and tend to retain more heat), ambient room temp, radiated heat from lights, heat induced by pumps, ect. I have used both flouescent and MH lighting and speak from experience. As for lighting, your T-5 setup should be OK to start with, soft corals, inverts, fish. If you progress to more light demanding corals, you will need lighting that penetrates deep into the water. If you look around the internet at sucsessful large aquariums, you will see the trend is with daylight spectrum metal halides supplimented with actinic flouescents. This looks and is the most like natural sunlight. A 250 watt 10K MH combined with some actinic flourescents is what I'd choose.

02/20/2006, 04:16 PM	#5
supertech3 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: El Paso Posts: 1,206	I agree with zigzag, about heat and if you do not go with the mh lights now you will probably pay again later because you are not happy with what you can keep in your tank

02/20/2006, 08:43 PM	#7
ufans Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Fairfax Station, VA Posts: 681	I agree with ZigZag. 2-3 250Watt MH or 400s would be better based on the depth. If the canopy/hood isn't fully enclosed then a simply fan will eliminate any heat problems. Florescents are very expensive in the long run.