Ok, I own a 55g reef that has been setup since march of this year.there are no sps corals in my tank, only soft corals and fish. I have a 6" deep sandbed and approximately 30lb of liverock. I want to try a few sps corals but I think my lighting may be a bit low for good results. I built my lighting very cheeply and have the chance to upgrade on the cheap but am having problems deciding on the choice of upgrade for my system.
my current lighting is 4x55w Power compacts. 2 are 6700k daylights and 2 are 7100k "psuedo actinics" (hate the 7100k's looks)(by the way, by cheap I mean I built the entire lighting setup minus bulbs for about 50 bucks)
I have a choice of adding 4 more 55w pc's to my hood, or 2 48" vho actinic 03's, or 2 250w iwaski (sorry if spelled wrong) Metal Hallide lamps.
I am thinking if I go with 4 more 55w pc's giving me 8 total, I could run them as 4x6700k and 4x7100k03 or 4x10,000k and 4x7100k03, or even 2x10,000k 2x20,000k and 4x7100k03(found out I can now order true 03 in PC's) this would yield 440w total.
If I go with the 2x48" vho 03's I would place them in front and back and run the 4x55w daylights down the center. I don't know what wattage to go with on the vho but I would be above my current 220w total.
last but not least, I also have the idea of 2x250w MH bulbs which I would run in the conventional way of MH in the Center far left and right and run my 4x55w-7100k03 pc's along the front and back giving me a total of 720 watts!
If your still here thanks for reading so far. now the questions...
What do you all think would be the best lighting set up for my 55g given the fact I want to atleast keep the 4x55w pc's I'm currently running.
If I go with the 250w MH's what k should I run? would the total wattage of 720 be a killer?
If I turn it into 8x55w pc's should I stay at 6700k for all 4 daylights or go 2-6700k and 2-10,000k or all 4 at 10,000k?
also on the PC's do the 03 actinics floresence just like the vho tubes (I really hate the 7100k)
and last of all, if I set it up as 4x55w pc's and 2 vho 03 actinics, what wattage should I go with and again, should I run 6700k pc's or 10,000k.
cooling any of these setup's should not pose a problem. my lights are approximately 10" above the top of the tank and I have two 3" fans, one at each end, mounted in the hood blowing air across the bulbs now. My reflector is also mounted on 3/4" rails to permit airflow between the reflector and the hood as well. I have checked for heat while the lights were on durring the hotter days of summer and while the fans are running, the bulbs and reflector stayed cool to the touch all day.
All oppinions are appreciated in this endevour. Thanks for your time reading this. And thanks to everyone here at the forum...without your help I wouldn't have gotten my reef started in the first place.
Peace.
P.s. Here' 3 pics of my dream that's now a reality.
What do you think for a newbie?
my current lighting is 4x55w Power compacts. 2 are 6700k daylights and 2 are 7100k "psuedo actinics" (hate the 7100k's looks)(by the way, by cheap I mean I built the entire lighting setup minus bulbs for about 50 bucks)
I have a choice of adding 4 more 55w pc's to my hood, or 2 48" vho actinic 03's, or 2 250w iwaski (sorry if spelled wrong) Metal Hallide lamps.
I am thinking if I go with 4 more 55w pc's giving me 8 total, I could run them as 4x6700k and 4x7100k03 or 4x10,000k and 4x7100k03, or even 2x10,000k 2x20,000k and 4x7100k03(found out I can now order true 03 in PC's) this would yield 440w total.
If I go with the 2x48" vho 03's I would place them in front and back and run the 4x55w daylights down the center. I don't know what wattage to go with on the vho but I would be above my current 220w total.
last but not least, I also have the idea of 2x250w MH bulbs which I would run in the conventional way of MH in the Center far left and right and run my 4x55w-7100k03 pc's along the front and back giving me a total of 720 watts!
If your still here thanks for reading so far. now the questions...
What do you all think would be the best lighting set up for my 55g given the fact I want to atleast keep the 4x55w pc's I'm currently running.
If I go with the 250w MH's what k should I run? would the total wattage of 720 be a killer?
If I turn it into 8x55w pc's should I stay at 6700k for all 4 daylights or go 2-6700k and 2-10,000k or all 4 at 10,000k?
also on the PC's do the 03 actinics floresence just like the vho tubes (I really hate the 7100k)
and last of all, if I set it up as 4x55w pc's and 2 vho 03 actinics, what wattage should I go with and again, should I run 6700k pc's or 10,000k.
cooling any of these setup's should not pose a problem. my lights are approximately 10" above the top of the tank and I have two 3" fans, one at each end, mounted in the hood blowing air across the bulbs now. My reflector is also mounted on 3/4" rails to permit airflow between the reflector and the hood as well. I have checked for heat while the lights were on durring the hotter days of summer and while the fans are running, the bulbs and reflector stayed cool to the touch all day.
All oppinions are appreciated in this endevour. Thanks for your time reading this. And thanks to everyone here at the forum...without your help I wouldn't have gotten my reef started in the first place.
Peace.
P.s. Here' 3 pics of my dream that's now a reality.
What do you think for a newbie?
