[nvert]

i've been thinking of upgrading my lighting (specs below, tank is 36" long x 18" deep x 16" high). i'm considering either adding an additional 175w mh (to have a dual system) or replacing the current 175 with a single 250w mh.

obviously, there are tons of opinions. so my main concerns are:

which system provides more light, dual 175w or a single 250w? what about light intensity? which tank will be noticeably 'brighter'? would you go with pfo or hqi?

my eyes like the current level of brightness but i do recognize that some of the animals i would like to keep do like more light. i currently have a mixed reef of lps, softies, and clams. i would like to try sps as well.


thanks for taking the time to add your .02!

brad

[Chris Lakies]

What is the length and depth of your tank?

[nvert]

i guess that would help! 40g breeders are 36"long x 18"deep x 16"high. currently, my lights are 4" off the surface of the water.

[Marco]

I am running 1 250w MH and 2x96w PCs on a 36" long tank. Mine is a little shallower than yours but not enough to make a difference. I keep SPS, Softies, and LPS with no problems. I just posted a new pic in the Eye Candy thread. Check it out it may help I dont know.

[nvert]

marco...your tank looks beautiful with a wide variety of life do you have anymore pics? how far above the water's surface is your 250w? what is the kelvin temp? photoperiod? any info would be great.

thanks.

brad

[zhenya]

Hi Brad,
I guess it boils down to what type of corals you going to keep.With what you have now,if you add one more 175w,it'll probably be just fine.If you are trying to add some sps I personaly would swap for
either 250 hqi or single 400w and mount it perpendicular to the tank to increase coverage.But even single 250w would look much brighter I think then 175w.I would however add couple of actinics just for your viewing pleasure Just my 0.2c.

PS.I have two tanks,one with 250w(dual) and one with dual 175's both 10k Ushio and happy with it.I probably will upgrade to 250 in time if I see a need.

[nvert]

gene-
if i do upgrade to a 250 hqi wouldn't heat be an xtreme issue on my size tank? how far above the water would i have to suspend the fixture?

my roomate already teases me calling my tank chernobyl. i agree it is very bright but the colors are sooooooo amazing!

some forms of sps are definately my next purchase so i am thinking ahead.

have you checked out http://mistressreef.homestead.com/ ?

brad

[Bamm Bamm]

you should be fine running one 250 watt MH on your tank as long as you have at least one 4" fan. Now If you don't have any pcs you could also probably just run a set of 2x96watt pcs for additional lighting .. I am running a 250MH on my 25gallon reef and it's about 6-8" off the water and I run one 4" fan pulling air out of the tank..No prob's every once in a while though the tank will reach 80degrees.. I am possibly going to be running my other 250mh on it also for a few hours during the middle of the day..

Dan

[nvert]

hey dan-
thanks for the reply. do you have any pics of your setup? also, what animals do you have in your tank? what kelvin is your lamp? how bright does your tank appear?

thanks...

brad

[PerryinCA]

I personally believe that the best lamp setup for a mixed tank is a 250w 10k. Gives enough light for all types of coral without serious need for placement worries, is easy enough to deal with the heat, and the color rendition/look is very pleasing to most.

That being said, for that size tank I would recommend two lamps. So, I'd keep the reflector you have, and get a new dual ballast with 250w and a new reflector. If thats a little too costly, stick with the two 175 watt lamps. But, I would think that the added cost of 2 x 250 wouldn't be a whole lot higher than adding the next 175. Especially when you could sell the current 175 ballast to recoup some money.

Just my $.02.

Regards,

Perry