lighting for a 120 gal reef tank

[Guest tburrs]

does the 48" aqualight pro seem like enough for 120 gal, which is 48 x 24 x 24? the wattage is 2 x 150 mh w/ 2 x 96 actinic. was also considering the hamilton 2 x 250 MH w/ 2 x 55 actinic. I'd like to have enough life to support all types of coral in the future. my guess is the aqualight pro may not be enough. thoughts?

[Lee Stearns]

I have 2 250 DEs plus 4 vho actinic bulbs on the same footprint but mine is 4 inches deeper- I like the mix and have a clam on the sand doing well in addition to a mix of sps with what i consider good color. My only worry on lighting is changing out the bulbs and avoiding a bleaching senario.

[steveoutlaw]

I have a 120 and have 2 250w MH's. I'm getting ready to add 2 96w VHO actinics but have had a clam in the tank and it has been doing fine.

[ErikS]

It's a tad more complicated, so much depends on the bulb, the ballast, and a crucial item is the reflector.

 

From what I saw on the Hamilton site I would rate the reflectors as poor, just a square box w/ some reflective material inside. I'd guess, though w/o a formal test it's just that, that the 150 DE Aqualight will put close to or more PAR into the tank than the 250w Hamilton setup.

 

Lighting is such a complex & expensive choice. If you have the time I'd do a lot of reading. A good reflector/bulb/ballast combo can far out perform what you might judge just by watts. For example, Lee mentions he has 2 250w DE bulbs....what's he's omitted is that they're either PFO or ReefOptix reflectors (he has them nicely built in, hard to tell) - this means that depending on the ballast he's putting about the same PAR as a run of the mill 400w single end setup - and he's FAR out performing ANY 250w SE bulb (maybe not a luminarc setup....maybe).

 

Over a reefcentral there are several threads in the lighting forum (stickies) that test most every bulb/ballast/reflector combo = good reading given the expense of lighting.

 

If it were my 120 I'd go with a 2x 250 DE setup. Find one w/ a decent reflector, use Aquaconnect 14K bulbs, and drive them with a M80 ballast = plenty of light & you won't need the added expense of supplements.

 

But...........factor in my general perspective - spend 1000's of $$$ on tank only to cut corners on a skimmer or lights is foolish. These are the two most critical items in a reef tank IMHO.

[steveoutlaw]

Where ya been Erik? If this freakin weather ever warms up I want to get out for some golf!!

[Guest tburrs]

I have a 120 and have 2 250w MH's.  I'm getting ready to add 2 96w VHO actinics but have had a clam in the tank and it has been doing fine.

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erik, thanks for the input. what brand would you suggest?

[ErikS]

erik, thanks for the input. what brand would you suggest?

 

Not sure I could recommend a brand, per se - it depends on the budget & requirements. The threads @ RC help explain a lot & then you can decide for yourself.

 

For example, Aquaconnect bulbs are great on PAR......but......they go for about $120 a shot - ouch. Second place goes to XM, but read the threads here on bleaching. The aforementioned Luminarcs are the best SE reflectors - you don't even want to know the price ReefOptix are very good DE reflectors, but it means finding a way to mount the pendants, PFOs are not quite as good but are a tad less expensive. Aquamedic Oceanlights are stylish but the reflectors aren't as good as PFO or ReefOptix. The Aquamedic Aqua Spacelights are stylish but the ballast is in the unit = heavy & there have been issues with the heat causing failures.

 

If I was picking components I'd go with

 

- Either a PFO or ReefOptix 250 DE

- PFO dual 250 ballast

- Phoenix 14K DE bulbs (Aquaconnect clone)

 

Single unit, noise not an issue (remote mount ballast)

 

- Aquamedic 2x250 DE Oceanlights (or one with supplements)

- Phoenix 14K DE bulbs (Aquaconnect clone)

 

Deep pockets, $$$ not an issue -

 

- Sunlight supply Maristar line

- Phoenix 14K DE bulbs (Aquaconnect clone)

 

Where ya been Erik?

Golfing Last two weekends the weather has been just fine.

[Guest tburrs]

Not sure I could recommend a brand, per se - it depends on the budget & requirements. The threads @ RC help explain a lot & then you can decide for yourself.

 

For example, Aquaconnect bulbs are great on PAR......but......they go for about $120 a shot - ouch. Second place goes to XM, but read the threads here on bleaching. The aforementioned Luminarcs are the best SE reflectors - you don't even want to know the price    ReefOptix are very good DE reflectors, but it means finding a way to mount the pendants, PFOs are not quite as good but are a tad less expensive. Aquamedic Oceanlights are stylish but the reflectors aren't as good as PFO or ReefOptix. The Aquamedic Aqua Spacelights are stylish but the ballast is in the unit = heavy & there have been issues with the heat causing failures.

 

If I was picking components I'd go with

 

- Either a PFO or ReefOptix 250 DE

- PFO dual 250 ballast

- Phoenix 14K DE bulbs (Aquaconnect clone)

 

Single unit, noise not an issue (remote mount ballast)

 

- Aquamedic 2x250 DE Oceanlights (or one with supplements)

- Phoenix 14K DE bulbs (Aquaconnect clone)

 

Deep pockets, $$$ not an issue -

 

- Sunlight supply Maristar line

- Phoenix 14K DE bulbs (Aquaconnect clone)

Golfing    Last two weekends the weather has been just fine.

31950[/snapback]

 

 

Deep pockets seem like a prerequisite for this hobby, but I was hoping to spend around 800$ on the lights...

 

So far I'm looking at...

 

Aqualight Pro 48" 2 x 150w MH w/ 2 x 96w actinic (prob not enough)

 

Hamilton Prostar 48" 2 x 250w MH w/ 2 x 110w VHO actinic

 

Acquactinics 48 " 2 x 250w MH (XM 14k) w/ 2 x T5 actinic

 

thoughts?

[ErikS]

I know nothing of the Aqualight Pro, aside from the fact that as you mention it may not be enough light.

 

I've read some negative press about the Aquacintics, might just be the early adopters - further research would be in order. Also, the models I've seen are simply SE w/ spider reflectors - the same as the Hamilton units, moderate PAR.

 

You have plenty of $$$ in the budget, you might check into these -

 

Ocean Lights - Premium Aquatics

 

Well within your budget.............but.........the ballast can be noisy. It seems hit or miss, if you're remote mounting them it's not an issue & some folks get ones that are quiet. On the plus side they use M80 ballasts which drive DE bulbs to the limit (& they can fire any DE bulb). The reflectors are "good", not PFO or ReefOptix but they function better than a SE spider by a far margin. Also, the T5s will put out more light AND use less electricity than comparable PC/VHO supplements.

 

I gather that you're not using a canopy so "nice to look at" is also important?

 

Here's what the individual Ocean Light pendants look like installed, a clean looking unit.

 

[Guest tburrs]

wow, I really like the look of the single pendants. what would I do about actinic lighting?

Edited May 25, 2005 by tburrs

[ErikS]

Acintic supplementation is really for us, the reefkeeper. If you supply enough PAR from the main lights they're not required. They can make lights look better, for example most people find 6500K bulbs too yellow & don't like how the tank looks with just those lights. If you use a higher Kelvin bulb you can get the same affect w/o the supplement.

 

It's really a personal choice.

 

The dual light Oceanlight pendants look just like those singles, they're just one long unit (& they have t5 for supplements).

[Lee Stearns]

Tburrs, Not sure of where you live- PM me and feel free to drop by and see the set up- I live one block off the fiarfax county parkway in burke- I wil give you the address in a pm if you are interested.

Erik is right I did not say that the 250W DE bulbs were 10K ABs driven by a blueline electronic balast- DEs are generally in a pendant set up because they require a UV glass plate for protection- Bought them at champion lights as a package- and added the VHO seperately at a later time- They are about as inexpensive as I could find new- And i was sold on the electronic balast- still am so far.

[Guest alex wlazlak]

the one AquaMedic link that eric had looked good. are those god systems?

[ErikS]

How are the AquaMedic units? Overall I'd rate them as pretty good. The reflectors are good (as mentioned not quite as good as the PFO or ReefOptix) & the ballasts are M80s which means they'll drive the bulbs to the max (mine say 294 watts on the cover). The biggest drawback is that the ballasts in the single units can be buzzy (I can't speak for the dual units). Mine are in a remote room so it doesn't matter to me, but if they were in the same room as a quiet tank they could be annoying.

 

Good price & decent unit.

[Guest alex wlazlak]

is it like a really anoying buzz? cause that would suck! but would that 48" be good for a 90?AND DOES ANYBODY HAVE A 90 GAOLLON TANK FOR SALE? eather just tank or tank and stand or whatever?!?p.m. me if you have a 90 gallon tank.