please help me pick out my lighting..

[sambo]

The tank is going to be a normal 75 gallon aquarium SPS, Zoas, acans, chalices, clam and maybe a nem. 4x1.5' footprint (i think). I decided on halides (love that shimmer) and i cannot afford one of those hanging canopies like an outer orbit or a maristar fixture besides the reflectors in those kinda stink IMO.

I almost pulled the trigger on a dual 400w PFO ballast, radiums and two lumen max elite reflectors but I chickened out. I just wans't sure if that would give me the desired effect. I have everything else I need to start building it besides lighting (and someone to take my freshwater fish off my hands). I was going to get some t5's or VHO's to supplement the halides but my my budget sucks and i've run out of money. I have roughly $500 left for lighting but its still a bit flexible.

I've been pouring over reviews and stat sheets for lamp ballast combos (thanks sanjay!) but I also care alot about the color of the light, not just the intensity. The problem is I have no concept of color when it comes to this stuff. I mean, I have no way of knowing what combo is going to give me the colors I'm looking for. What I want is bright white light. I don't want the whole tank to look blue. I do want colors to stand out and almost fluoresce, though. I really really like the tank at Country Critters. The one at the top of the walkway leading to the fish room, i have to go ask them what kind of lights they use because the colors of the fish and corals in that tank is fantastic and pretty much exactly what I want.

 

[albano]

The tank is going to be a normal 75 gallon aquarium. I really really like the tank at Country Critters, i have to go ask them what kind of lights they use because the colors of the fish and corals in that tank is fantastic and pretty much exactly what I want.

if someone has 'pretty much exactly what' you 'want', then you better, find out what they're using! I would doubt that its 'bright white light' without any blue/actinic supplementation. Hopefully, some 'experts' will chime in, but I really think daul 400w MH is overkill, on a 'normal 75' and a waste of $ and electricity.

 

[D1J8Z]

the coral life pro that is for sale would be perfect for your tank

Price is 450 I believe

 

[sambo]

I just got off the phone with them they're running 6 400w lamps on that tank 3 20000k xm and 3 10000k xm on icecap ballast and a bunch of powerbrite LEDs. So i don't think I'll be able to do that with only two lamps. poo

I don't really want an all in one fixture. I'd rather buy good reflectors and ballasts separately.

 

[premilove]

whoa that is extremely too much light. get 2x175's or 2x250s tops.

 

[sambo]

yeah, i hear you, but its not like I'm going to be running 10,000k lamps. On the 400w PFO HQI ballast, an XM 10,000K lamp has 202 PPFD while the XM 20,000K has 98 PPFD, half. Now lets say we use a 250w PFO HQI ballast with an Iwasaki 6500K lamp you get 189 PPFD, alot higher. I'm going to be running higher kelvin lamps so going with 400w makes sense to me. I just go by the numbers on sanjay's charts, not wattages. The ballast bulb combo that I picked out earlier gives me 147 PPFD, still less than even a 250w XM 10,000k on a PFO ballast. Check out sanjays guide on this site. Not all 400w ballasts and bulbs are the same intensity. You can get a 150w ballast bulb combo to put out as much light as some of the 400w combos. All that being said I did pick out one of the most powerful combos for 20,000k so you might be right. I though there was never such a thing as too much light as long as you acclimate.

 

[cali_reef]

I though there was never such a thing as too much light as long as you acclimate.

Sure, as long as you can afford the bill from LIPA every month :lol2:. You'll need a 1/3hp chiller if you are planning to use 800+ watts for lights on a 75 gallon.

 

[kasha]

i just went from 2x250 Mh + actinics to ATI T5s. the difference is amazing. there is so much light with so little heat. there is some shimmer due to my high flow. MHs are great but only if you are willing to bye a high quality ballast, reflector and have no problem with the heat.

 

[sambo]

totally valid points. They would use about 5 amps each but i'm not sure how to convert that to $'s. I was hopeing it wouldnt be too drastic of a change in my bill. I know the tank is going to be raising it regardless, by how much I do not know. 250w radiums would use about 3 amps and put out 85 PPFD. Electricity use doesn't matter much to me but buying a chiller does.

As for keeping the tank cool, this is what i was planning. Not enclosed (no canopy), hanging up off the surface and this will be adjustable, with two large fans (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000BYDUC/?tag=reefs04-20) blowing across the surface of the tank and another clip on type fan on the sump, in a well ventilated room. I don't know if it'll work but i could also shorten the photo period during the summer or have my controller set to shut the halides off when it gets too hot.

Still though, how much cooler would a pair of 250w lamps be?

 

[sambo]

T-5's dont have the shimmer of halides which i love and i don't find the cost of a high quality T5 fixture too appealing. a 4' 8 lamp powermodule is what like $1100 with lamps? thats way too much for me and T5's might be cooler to the touch but they still emit heat and will aadd heat to the tank. The halides seem much hotter because the heat is concentrated in one place but in reality they aren't much worse.

 

[ClosetFishGeek]

Lumenbright se mini wide pendants....You will not be disapointed. There mini pendant...has an adjustable socket. Can be used with a 400 or 250 watt bulb. Furthermore, becouse of the hanging height of the pendant you will not have any heat issues.

 

[sambo]

this is what i was hopeing. i haven't seen those reflecors for sale so i'll have to look around.

I still have no idea if i'll be able get the colors i want. I don't see how i can figure it out either without just buying it and trying it. sucks.