[MistyJ]

Hello all. I've been surfing this board for quite a while but just registered today.

I've just started my tank, and would like your input before I commit $$$ to a lighting system.

Here are the basic parameters/factors:
--75-gallon, eventually would like full reef (yes, I'd like a clam!); right now, just LR, LS, clean-up crew...can't buy a fish until Sept., as we are going on vacation for 12 days and I don't want to risk the fish in a new system
--Currently have a lovely 40-watt NO strip that came with the tank (bought used)
--have space to hang MH if that's what I go with
--tank currently runs 80-81 with 4 MJ 1200 powerheads, protein skimmer running on a Rio 800 and an Aqua Clear filter (which will be replaced when I actually get fish)
--live in Dallas, TX and don't want to buy a chiller; and the tank is close to the thermostat so I don't want to throw my house A/C and heat out of whack
--I pay the electric bill, so at least my husband can't give me grief about it
--would still like the best bang for the buck, both up-front cost and energy consumption

I've been doing a lot of reading about lighting and have taken note of a lot of opinions. Have gone back and forth from PC's to a MH/PC or MH/VHO combo. I don't have a canopy right now, so I either will have to build one or hang a pendant.

Basic thoughts so far for different set-ups:
1. 4 x 96w PC's
2. 175w MH with 2 x 96w PC's
3. 175w MH with 2 x 96w VHO
4. 175w MH with 1 x 40w NO and 2 x 55w PC
5. 2 x 175w MH with 1 x 40w NO

My brain is officially mush at this point. I think there is such a thing as too many choices!

Please give me your input/experiences/suggestions/advice, etc.

Thanks!

[SunfishFun]

Yikes Yikes Yikes!
We are in the same boat, only mine is 60 gallons and I need to make up my mind soon b/c my live rock is a-curin'.

MH was sounding better and better to me, (so was VHO at one point), and some people say "only MH will do" and others say "PC are fine for softies, LPS and some clams and even a few SPS." I was scared by the "How Much is Your Electric Bill?" thread currently running on ReefCentral.com. I am tired of trying to compare watts and efficiency and PAR and Kelvin and what light activates what chlorophyll type b/c there is no one answer. I just want to get my tank going and have it be an appropriate environment for the animals.

At this point I am leaning toward 4x96W PC, although it is not cheap. That's quite a bit of light and my tank is only 18" deep and I have sand bed in there. If that's what I choose, I'll get ones with separate ballasts so if I decide to change later (I hope I and the tank inhabitants love it), I can drop 2x96 and add a couple MH.

Good luck! I'm interested to see what responses you get here. Perhaps I'll change my mind yet again...

[Trapper]

What is the dimension of your tank? I'm assuming it's at least 48 inches long. If that's the case I would elect to go with at least 2- 250 watt MH. If you go with 6500k Iwasaki's you will need plenty of actinic supplementation 4-48 inch vho actinic 03, and run them on electronic ballast's they will make your flourescent's last longer. And with that you may have a little of a heat problem, a fan blowing across the top of the surface of your tank will aid greatly in reducing your heat build up. The higher Kelvin bulb's only last 6 month's' so going with the Iwasaki's to me is the best choice but you do need sufficent actinc light. I hope this help's.

[Reefland]

Welcome to Reefland!

Your right, there are a lot of options available and these options mostly depend on what you plan to keep. You mentioned a clam so MH is going to be the choice for you.

I would recommend 2 150-250w HQI pendents, using your 40w NO strip for a dawn/dusk simulation. The HQI's don't need actinic supplement for a nice color, only dawn/dusk simulation. The price for these is higher than a retro kit, but it eliminates the need for a canopy. 2 pendents will cover the tank nicely and you won't be limited on your animal selection.

2-250w Iwasaki kits would be a good choice as well. The problem is you need some actinic supplements and a canopy. If I went this route, I would opt for VHO vs. PC. This might be more expensive than the HQI's since you will need the VHO's, MH and a canopy of some sort to hold them.

I would stay away from the 175w MH since the 250w can be had for just pennies more. Your future clams will fair better under the 250's for sure.

Best of luck,
Scott

[MistyJ]

Thanks for the input, Trapper and Scott. BYW...tank is an Oceanic 75...48" long, 18" x 18"

Well, my brain feels a little better, but my wallet is terrified!

Question about the HQI halides...have been looking for info. about them on the web. I've found pfo ballast so far, but aren't the pfo ballasts tar instead of electronic? From what I hear, I want electronic.

Can anyone recommend a good brand of electronic ballast that supports two 250w HQI's?

Also, if I have the HQI's hanging from a pendant, won't my 40 NO strip get in the way?

It's a catch 22...I would like to suspend the MH for heat-related/intensity reasons, but when I do that, then anything below gets in the way. Does someone have this kind of set-up?

And, for budget concerns, would it be a good idea to build a tall canopy that would eventually fit all of the bulbs/fans (MH and VHO), but just start with the VHO and add MH when I want to add those organisms requiring such intensity? That way, I could have the dawn/dusk benefit immediately. Basically, anything's gotta be better than the year-old 40w NO on there now!

Since this is my first tank, I do plan to start with the easy stuff (mushrooms, etc.) and then add the more difficult SPS/clams later.

[Reefland]

Question about the HQI halides...have been looking for info. about them on the web. I've found pfo ballast so far, but aren't the pfo ballasts tar instead of electronic? From what I hear, I want electronic.

Electronic ballast are a great way to go. I would recommend an Icecap Ballast (http://www.icecapinc.com) to power them. The cost is slightly higher but a good investment.

Also, if I have the HQI's hanging from a pendant, won't my 40 NO strip get in the way?

Well the HQI's would be hanging in the pendent. j/king
The PFO mini-pendent is quite small leaving plenty of room for a strip light with an 18" wide tank.

It's a catch 22...I would like to suspend the MH for heat-related/intensity reasons, but when I do that, then anything below gets in the way. Does someone have this kind of set-up?

I'm not sure what would get under the bulbs causing an obstruction. If you mean the center brace, the pendents should be centered in each half of the tank for total light coverage. If you have 2 braces, splitting the tank in three sections, then you must keep a fair distance between the bulb and the brace.

Placing a few VHO's over the tank (which can be used with your final application) for the time being is a great idea. You can provide some higher quality light to your animals while you continue to research your available options.

Scott

[saltjunkie]

I believe Misty is talking about the light strip getting in the way.
All of the above advice is great, ansd asking questions like this may make things more confusing. What you will have to do, is take this info and disect it, to see if there is a common point to all of it. Which there is.
On your tank the 250w/ mh will be the best choice.
Now in my opinion, I would build a hood 2 hold 2 mh bulbs and 2 n.o. actinic bulbs, just buy end caps and mount them to the hood also, this will be a cheap dawn dusk application.
Also you wont go wrong with the hqi's due to the fact that they need no actinic supplimentation, for example, when the actinics come on, leave them on for 1/2 hour or so, then have a timer set to fire the mh's, as soon as they hit full power, have the actinics go off, then do the reverse for night simulation. This will hellp conserve a lil bit of eletricity and be somewhat beneficial to the tank inhabitants.
But again, these are just my opinions, to help confuse you even more.
The main thing is, get the mh now, instead of working up to it. You will spend as much in lighting that you wont use as you will if you just buy the mh first.
good luck
Rick

[Reefland]

Well if you keep reading saltjunkies posts you will be confused. First of all I think he meant to say 250w, not 275.

Secondly, the strip light won't be a problem because the width of the HQI mini-pendent is only 6.5". When centered over the width of the tank you'll have nearly 6" in front of and behind the pendent. The light would spread thruought the tank, no problem.

The problem with building a hood for the HQI's is they are not available retro fit. They MUST have the UV shielding supplied with the pendents since the bulbs don't have the protective outer envelope.

For the ballast, again I recommend looking into the IceCap. They are second to none when it comes to electronic ballasts.

Scott

[saltjunkie]

Dont make me drag out the post in the Admin forum Scott, Ninong, wanna help me out here?

distinguish

Anyway good luck on the confusion/conclusion




Rick

[Reefland]

Scott

[MistyJ]

Thanks for the <further> input! Now I am enlightened (ha!) and amused with the wit of saltjunkie and Reefland