Need some help with lighting - am completely lost

godzilla3063 · Feb 8, 2016

I have a 200g reef tank with (2) there were (3) Halogen bulbs, but one does not work, *8) T5 bulbs and (3) moonlight bulbs that no longer work. I need a new light for the tank but between all the new choices of LED, I am lost. I tried two different types of LED's on my freshwater tanks with plants. Once is thriving, one is not doing so well. Which made picking LED's even more confusing.

Everything I have read has put me in different directions. I have seen beautiful reef's in the forums, but it seems the lighting is all over the place.

What do you suggest? I have always had Halogen Lights and it has always worked, but with the advances in LED's I think I need to take the plunge and get them.

the tank is 72" by 24"

brownsalt92 · Feb 8, 2016

I've never had mh. It depends on what types of coral you are growing. I have had a coral compulsion on my 29 with good growth. But I scraped that tank. I bought my dad's 110 and put a 6 bulb t5 unit and I'd stick with t5 imo.

Pete polyp · Feb 8, 2016

10 bulb t5 or fix the existing lighting. (Assuming you mean metal halide and not halogen) would be my suggestion. Led have been so hit and miss I simply cannot trust them to work

hybridazn · Feb 8, 2016

Halides are tried and true. You simply cannot go wrong with them. As far as leds the best way to go is with either ecotech or AI. But the price point is way up there for the amount of fixtures you would need to cover your tank.

Diy led is the sworn by practice by some, if you have the know how and can deal with wires everywhere lol.

NanaReefer · Feb 8, 2016

IMO it comes down to what you're willing to invest. MH are tried and true, yet costly. Both to run & in bulb replacement. They also throw off a lot of heat.
T5's are also tried and true. Again costly to run and in bulb replacement. A tank your size you'd need 6-8 bulbs at $30-$40 per every 8-10 months.

LED's are also tried and true. Top of the line will cost you. But the savings over time IMO is well worth the initial cost. The controllability is unbeatable.

Brandon Rutherford · Feb 9, 2016

NanaReefer said:
LED's are also tried and true. Top of the line will cost you. But the savings over time IMO is well worth the initial cost. The controllability is unbeatable.

I agree that LED's will save you over time. Halide lights can cause serious problems with temperature fluctuation during day and night intervals and often require the use of a chiller. Everything in this hobby is an investment and lighting, proper water circulation, and quality salt (like Tropic Marin) are the most important things to not skimp on. I've used a variety of LED lights and like EcoTech and Kessil the best. Both for their quality and controllability. I've contacted customer service at EcoTech a number of times with questions and they've been very helpful.

Sully · Feb 9, 2016

Check out sbreef lights. Mike is a great person to deal with.

mcarroll · Feb 9, 2016

godzilla3063 said:
I tried two different types of LED's on my freshwater tanks with plants. Once is thriving, one is not doing so well. Which made picking LED's even more confusing.

Measure Your Light - Stop Guessing!
Start by getting a [HASHTAG]#lux[/HASHTAG] [HASHTAG]#meter[/HASHTAG] so you can have a reference for how bright your fixtures are. This will be a big help on all your tanks.
A free lux meter app for your phone is probably the best place to start. A handheld meter can be ordered from all the usual places for around $15. Search for the model name: LX1010B.

100,000 lux is "direct sun" at sea level. An excellent reference piont.

If you set up your lights so you measure about half of that - or around 50,000 lux - as the peak lighting at your water's surface, your corals will be great. In general, 20,000-80,000 lux seems to be the good range...higher is not better.

For what it's worth, I run an SPS tank that reads under 20,000 lux and one that reads at around 40,000 lux.

Which Fixture To Pick?
There are lots of reasons to pick any given fixture and as you found out from reading, there are lots of good options to pick from! How to decide?

For one thing, consider your tank's shape vs the shape the light fixture puts out. Here's an illustration:

Screen Shot 2016-02-09 at 1.19.38 AM.png

This isn't a good vs bad pic...it's just to illustrate some of the issues and that shape of light can matter.

If your light doesn't account for the shape of your tank, then you usually have to make some workarounds that end up looking like the top two photos where percentages of your light are wasted (or "spilled") outside the tank.

To avoid the scenario depicted in the top photo (max. wastage) you typically have to lower the fixture and shrink the coverage to the perimeter of the tank, but then you need multiple fixtures to cover the open space.

You can also see in the illustration how "dark corners" happen at the edges of each fixture's light.

I'd look at some of the lights that are designed for tanks that are long. The Orbit Marine Pro is one, and maybe the best of example. But the Maxspect Razor and Kessil AP700 are also designed more in that direction. There are others. Is DIY an option?

What you pick ultimately depends a lot on your tank, your space and your tastes. Working with a meter, you can make just about anything work. I would only add: don't feel like you need to break the bank on a top-price light.

scardall · Feb 9, 2016

Check this link out for data on lighting. http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Aquarium_Lighting.html You will find some opinions will not be based on empirical data, but hearsay with some exceptions. Once you read some reliable data from link. you'll be able to figure out what you need for Your Tank. Then figure out what you are willing to spend and buy the best setup your budget can handle. IMO Ecotech/AI are over priced for what they are. Not the Best but very good. Remember you want to get what you pay for. IMO Orphek are the best on the market but Very very expensive(Will deliver period) Kessil is next, then Aquaray,then Ecotech ??? That link really is worth reading. Good Luck and happy researching

godzilla3063 · Feb 9, 2016

Thanks for everyone's help. Measuring the output of the lights is something I never even considered. I will look at all the recommended companies and links that all of you have provided.

A little more information in case anyone wants to give more opinions
I have a large chiller so heat is not a worry with using the MH.
DIY is a potential option but only with minimal setup. I tend to break things pretty fast. I have a wooden canopy that with fans that I can house these lights instead of suspending them.

Thanks again for the feedback any another suggestions would be appreciated

mcarroll · Feb 9, 2016

This is what you get with a DIY fixture like mine over a 36" x 12" tank ("one lamp" and 12" space for reference):

This is a rough approximation of my 27" Razor over my 36" x 18" tank:

Both images are to scale (best I can, anyway...using OmniGraffle to draw everything to size) with the theoretical fixtures hanging 12" over the tank, and are drawn to give an idea as to blending of emitters, shading in corners, etc.

mcarroll · Feb 9, 2016

@godzilla3063, on a 72" tank, you'd just have two rows similar to the single row pictured on the 36x12" image. Will try to get more time to do a mockup for that shape a little later.

The main attraction of this fixture (IMO) is cost and effectiveness - it's definitely not fancy: It has strictly on/off functionality.

You can wire blue bulbs and white bulbs on seperate circuits if you want to "get fancy".

I didn't do anything but simple on/off for mine. You can see from the illustration that the light is used with close to 100% efficiency in terms of what makes it into the tank vs getting beamed elsewhere. That design plus the 30º lenses these bulbs use by default makes these fixtures extremely efficient.

For a default configuation you'd need 35 bulbs in each row, or 70 bubs total and they run between $2.50 and $6 per bulb. (PM me if you wanna get deeper into this...lots of ways to do it.)

I've been just as happy with $2.50 bulbs as $6, but that's more a question of taste not function.

In the end, exluding wiring and whatever you use to mount the sockets (furring strips, whatever...since you're in a canopy), it should cost in the range of $245-$525. That's bulbs and sockets....almost everything you need in most cases. Screws, furring strips, wire and wire nuts aren't expensive if you need to buy them. The only wiring required uses wire nuts just like household wiring - no soldering. (I like Wego "lever nuts" if you wanna make the install even easier....they boost the cost a little though.)

Again, PM me if you wanna go into this futher....or tell me to keep going.

There are other ways to set these up than the "standard design", but the standard design is usually the best place to start. For what it's worth, it's not hard to change later after it's built either.