Need help on getting lighting system !!!!!

[Reef Man]

HI !

Well, I am deciding on what is the cheapest light for a reef and the best to keep softies an LPS. I really want a clam, so I can think on the future.

My tank will be 1mts-45cm and 50cm tall. = 3´4", 18" and 20" tall.
It will have a refugium lighted by a LOA fixture in reverse daylight light.

I am thinking on the following options:

1) A pair of PC´s 96 watts

2) A pair of MH 175 watts 5500k with NO fluos actinics

3) One Iwasaki 250 watts at the center.

4) 4 NO fluos

5) A pair of 175 watts MH only. suggest a bulb and °k here !!!

6) One 150 watts HQI

7) One 150 watts HQI with 2 NO actinic fluos


Maybe I can skip the clam and go in another way, so I need your opinions on this.

BTW, I really appreciate if you can post pictures of your tanks with this kid of setups mentione above, I am trying on get an Idea of how will the tank looks with the setups I am thinking on.

TIA !!!

 

[Larry Grenier]

Man, what a wide range of choices and PRICES.
I'll just make a few comments.
1) A pair of PC´s 96 watts
Should fit nicely over your size tank and lighht-up nicely but probably not enough for the clam but maybe a Dersa.

2) A pair of MH 175 watts 5500k with NO fluos actinics
I think this may look a little yellow and the NO fluos would not have much impact.

3) One Iwasaki 250 watts at the center.
I believe this is a 65KK and it looks a little yellow by itself to me but a lot of bang for the buck. Any clam under this should be happy.

4) 4 NO fluos
OK for some softies but not much else.

5) A pair of 175 watts MH only. suggest a bulb and °k here !!!
A pair of 10KK ushios would be real nice. 12KK bulbs would be bluer, too blue for some folks.

6) One 150 watts HQI
Good for a narrow tank, not much experience with these. A store near me has one of these with a high K rating on a 35 gallon hex and it looks great.

7) One 150 watts HQI with 2 NO actinic fluos
Not bad, put the clam right under the bulb.

I'm no expert, just throwing my 2 cents in.

 

[oafie2244]

Just from what I have read around if you were to go with say a 20000k sunburst and 6500k the combination of the yellow and blue is supposed to give the truest color if you add NO actnics this supposed to be the optimum for covering the most growth. Now I haven't used them so I don't know prices, but they say never skimp on lights cause that is where all the energy comes from and you really will only burn yourself later if you go cheap here. I would suggest trying readjust your budget (if you can) cause the lights are the best and most important part of a reef let a lone a clam tank. But again I understand these prices can get out of hand, I would just suggest cutting back somewhere else if at all possible. But good luck.

 

[Jan-Dman]

i vote for the 150W HQI with NOs!

 

[newreefman1]

NO NO's with HQI. You dont need them. Guaranteed. I have had the 12k and 10 k HQI bulbs USHIO. No actinic needed. HQI's are far nicer bulbs IMO but they also are pricey to replace as well. Factor that in for future planning. the Iwasakis are a nice priced with excellent Par bulb. Good bank for buck. But also, quite yellow I would only use 2VHO for actinic supplementation though with metal hadides. NO wont give enough output to compete at all with the intensity of the MH's.
1 150 HQI would be good up to about 35 gallons as mentioned above. A Hex tank with an HQI pendant is a great situation for an HQI bulb/good tank.

I dont want to go into all the situations above but there are some good ideas. Pass on PC's unless you use them for supplementation with MH's but as far as MH's the hqis are very nice. If you can go 2 150's thats a sweet setup.

HTH
jason

 

[Yam]

Double ended HQI bulbs are just as cheap, if not cheaper than most bulbs. Only like $80. Factoring in the color, this is the best way to go. I would get the 250W DE hqi's though. Bulb price is within $10 of the 150W.

danny

 

[suckair]

yes.. HQI setups rock. I have two HQI 250w germans on IceCaps and they are just a bright as my dual Iwasaki 400w pfo

One danger is the higher UV output of HQI lamps.. Many HQI setups come with UV filters. In my case I run covered system so the UV is filtered out by my glass tops.

HQI short of some experimental suff such as LED lighting and ultra high frequency HID lighting that uses microwave magnatrons to excite the lamps are the most efficient form of lighting avliable today.

I would expect that within 3 years LED will be come a reality and will be the way to go. LED will allow for a 100% range of dimming and brightness and will use far less electricity. It will all but eliminate the need for chillers and allow for smaller low profile hoods that are easy to work wtih. Also once prefected the LED lamps have a life of about 25 years! NASA already has a white LED setup running in the hydroponics lab on the new space station! Sone newer underwater video lighting systems already use LED lighting due to the power savings. LED ultrabright white lamps have similiar intensity to HID lighting and will be the future of reefing!

Randall

PS I have experimented with LED lighting and am rady! As soon as the lamp cost drops to $0.50 or less per lamp I am all over it! I estimate it would take me about 500 - 1000 lamps depending on the type of lamp used to replace my dual HQI setup.

 

[afss]

Just curious on the LEDs. what type of wattage/lumenns/color rating can you get out of them? what is the general cost at present?
do you know of any links for reading about this stuff?
Thanks
Scott
_________________
oceania economy

 

[Reef Man]

Hey !!!

Can anybody tell me what kind of light are the "LED" ???

ABout a pair of HQI, that looks like a good idea, but for the money I think it would be better a pair of 175 watts MH.

What do you think???

 

[Anonymous]

There was a big discussion on LEDs a while back and it was found they have a good color for zooxanthellae,but are extremely expensive. Especially when buying enough to cover a 180 gallon reef. They are cool running and produce a lot of light. Do a keyword search for LED or LED lighting and you will be shocked by the prices. Also do a search here on the BB.

Dan

 

[cerreta]

I recently battled this issue. Finaly, after trying several types of PC and MH systems. I fired all the PC's. The 96 watt units are terrible. I never kept a bulb for more then 4 nonths. The longer bulbs tend to burst on the ends. The 55watt and 65watt units seam to be more reliable. Anyhow, it gets very expensive after awhile replacing burnt bulbs, and the color is not nearly as good as VHO.
When I started the upgrade, I too wanted clams in my 80 gal AGA. And ended up with a dual 250watt PFO system (complete with 6500K Iwaski bulbs) The cost is not too much more than the 175 watt units. An article came out about MH ballasts 6 months ago. The PFO 250watt was a stellar performer. You should also note that many 250watt bulbs cost less than the 175 watters (supply and demand) most people have 175watt systems. Anyhow, try Premium Aquatics for pricing. I have no experience with HQI. But you never mentioned anything about VHO's.
I highly recommend VHO's to anybody because of the color, inexpensive bulb replacement, coral growth, and flexability. I only run my MH lights 3 hours per day from 11am to 2pm. The VHO's run for 14 hours. I am planning on adding a dimmer which can be used to mimic real climates, with storms, and changing light intensities through the day.
Unless you want a high electric bill, you should consider supplementing MH with some other type of lighting system. The NO just doesn't have the output, and the PC's run hot, cost too much, and do not perform as well. (My opinion, personal observation and experience).
When I gave up the PC's I switched to an IceCap 660 with four VHO bulbs. I run three actinics and one 50/50 bulb. The 6500k MH's are yellowish and when used in combination w/ the VHO's the color and coral growth is phenonmenal. This is a very reliable combination and I have done no maintenance to it in 4 months. I am very pleased with its reliablility. I think the entire setup cost $600.00 (all new) with all the bulbs. I did some serious price shopping and think this price is very fair for 940watts reef power (more wattage than my car audio show truck

If you are interested in buying an IC660 system, I have a few brand new units available. Just email me. I can also foward you some pics of the lighting system. Just let me know what you want to see.
Cheers,
Scott