Lighting up their world

[Shawn_epicurious]

So, many of you already know... I have a 200 gallon tank that I have been building up to handle SPS dominant, with a few clams and a few more fish. I spent the last two months working under my tank. (Everything is in my build thread) so, far I have not been cutting corners.

It is time to turn my attention to my lighting system. ATM, I have 2 Hydra 32 HDs and 1 Hydra 26 in the center. My tank is 72” wide and has a water depth of 26”. Lighting is my weakest area of knowledge with this hobby. ...just being honest. I just ordered an Apogee MQ-510, it will be here in a few days. : )

Help Me design a top of the line lighting system!!! There are soooooooooooo many options out there. T5, MH, LED...picking an assorted “color” for all the bulbs... how many of each? I want the best set up I can get. Oh, and it has to fit inside my canopy : )

 

[Darrell Brady]

I would say T5 with 4 Blue Plus ,2 Coral Plus an 2 Actinic. But don't no how well they would do in a Canopy the heat would probably be to much.

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

I would say T5 with 4 Blue Plus ,2 Coral Plus an 2 Actinic. But don't no how well they would do in a Canopy the heat would probably be to much.

From what I have read T5s should be okay in my canopy. It is well vented : ) You‘d go all T5s then?

I have been looking online... BRS has nothing available in a 60” fixture. And so far at least, I have not seen a 70” fixture yet... still looking.

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

I would say T5 with 4 Blue Plus ,2 Coral Plus an 2 Actinic. But don't no how well they would do in a Canopy the heat would probably be to much.

I have been considering this...

60" LED T5 WIFI PowerModule Hybrid

Create a balanced spectrum with T5 & LED lights Over the past few years we have really grown to love hybrid LED/T5 light fixtures for their coverage, intensity, and capability to create a complete spectrum, making it the perfect light for any reef tank. Built-In WiFi Controller Individual...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Darrell Brady]

From what I have read T5s should be okay in my canopy. It is well vented : ) You‘d go all T5s then?

I have been looking online... BRS has nothing available in a 60” fixture. And so far at least, I have not seen a 70” fixture yet... still looking.

you could go to smaller fixtures but would be more of a cost

 

[Darrell Brady]

Here are some LED Lights that look Promising.https://www.reefi-lab.com/reefi-led-duo-info/

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

Here are some LED Lights that look Promising.https://www.reefi-lab.com/reefi-led-duo-info/

my tank is 2” deeper than their chart below. I plan on having a few clams down in the sand. It seems light it is not quite giving enough PAR at that depth...? My lights would mount 9” above water level... that would make a difference too.

 

[Darrell Brady]

my tank is 2” deeper than their chart below. I plan on having a few clams down in the sand. It seems light it is not quite giving enough PAR at that depth...? My lights would mount 9” above water level... that would make a difference too.

If your mounting them 9 " above the water your going to have more Par on the bottom. The chart is showing 15" off the water. 177 is still a lot of par for the bottom being 15" off the water.

 

[Backreefing]

3 metal halides 250 watt double end bulbs . And some LEDs front and back for actinic . Maybe reef rights or orbecks. The mh will do all the growing, and the LEDs will give all the dazzles . For cooling all you need is a desk fan pointing at the sump or surface of the aquarium

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

3 metal halides 250 watt double end bulbs . And some LEDs front and back for actinic . Maybe reef rights or orbecks. The mh will do all the growing, and the LEDs will give all the dazzles . For cooling all you need is a desk fan pointing at the sump or surface of the aquarium

I have been looking at some MH that also have LED that BRS has. 400watt, 15” in length each. 2 MH bulbs each.

I am beginning the think there really isn’t a “best.” There seem to be a lot of open ended theories, but no actual definitive research. People are researching this topic... it seems most are just trying to prove their existing ideas. I am actually amazed at the level of.... disagreement on this topic... Which is why I am looking for help : )

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

Hey... @Dana Riddle riddle (I hope this is okay : )

What would you get? : )

 

[Hydrored]

ReeFi’s will do fine lighting that tank, I have 5 ReeFi duo extremes and a par meter sitting around, if you were closer to Dallas I would let you try them. What is your budget?

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

double post

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

ReeFi’s will do fine lighting that tank, I have 5 ReeFi duo extremes and a par meter sitting around, if you were closer to Dallas I would let you try them. What is your budget?

My budget is... : ) this is hard to say online in an open forum... my budget can reach high : )

 

[Hydrored]

Well if I could mount to my ceiling or walls I would have T5/Hybrid.

I’m currently running 5 G5 XR30’s mounted perpendicular diffused over a 8’ tank, not as deep with 250PAR at the bottom at 48% each. Plenty of coverage. Orphek Blues look awesome as well as an adder

 

[Backreefing]

Well 3 metal halides or 2 doubles will depends on where the center brace is 1 or 2 ? If you have1 in the center then 4 Halides might be best . If you got 2 braces then I would go 3 Halides. . Depending on how deep your aquarium is, is whether you go 250 watt or400 watt . I would stay away from 400 watts because they really get hot . Then you will be buying a chiller $$$$ . Get big reflectors . The reflector is a major component of the light .
There is one big advantage for halides they work right out of the box 100% of the time . No programming no way to screw it up . It just works every time.
I would recommend the 14000K double ended bulbs . It’s nice blue/white that’s got everything covered.

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

Well if I could mount to my ceiling or walls I would have T5/Hybrid.

I’m currently running 5 G5 XR30’s mounted perpendicular diffused over a 8’ tank, not as deep with 250PAR at the bottom at 48% each. Plenty of coverage. Orphek Blues look awesome as well as an adder

That is getting to the top of my budget : ) lol My tank is 6’ wide, 2’ deep and a has a 26” water depth. I could get away with 4 of those. I like the bottom PAR you are getting! That works for clams. Do those come with a nice App?

 

[Backreefing]

At 26” deep your fine with 250s metal halides. One more thing to point out is get selectable ballasts . That way you can switch from 250-400 watt bulbs easy peasy.
cool aquarium.

 

[Hydrored]

The Ecotechs come with Mobius, it’s bluetooth where as the ReeFi’s are WiFi.

 

[Shawn_epicurious]

Well 3 metal halides or 2 doubles will depends on where the center brace is 1 or 2 ? If you have1 in the center then 4 Halides might be best . If you got 2 braces then I would go 3 Halides. . Depending on how deep your aquarium is, is whether you go 250 watt or400 watt . I would stay away from 400 watts because they really get hot . Then you will be buying a chiller $$$$ . Get big reflectors . The reflector is a major component of the light .
There is one big advantage for halides they work right out of the box 100% of the time . No programming no way to screw it up . It just works every time.
I would recommend the 14000K double ended bulbs . It’s nice blue/white that’s got everything covered.

It is really hard to discount MH... it just is. Your comment about getting the 250 watt is something I had not considered. 400 watt would create heat issue. BRS is touting heavy T5/LED hybrids... I have been leaning that way... I have “other“ experience with MH lighting... things I am not supposed to talk about here lol. (That was a long time ago lol)