? about MH pendant fixture

[LeslieS]

Sorry - this may be a really bad ?. If you have MH pendant fixtures, how do you have actinics? Are they in the same fixture? The Marine Depot pictures are not very clear.

 

[Deanos]

My Hamilton pendant has VHO actinics built into the fixture.

 

[aaron23]

on my previous lighting setup, I used 2x 250w PFO pendants, They were quite small. It allowed me to rest 2x 48" VHO bulbs on the tank, one on front and one on the back.

 

[jhale]

which ones are you looking at leslie?
just a pendant is usually just the MH bulb as aaron said, if it's a long fixture then they are mounted on the sides of the bulb, like deanos mentioned.
if your doing a retro fit in your hood for example, you could hang the pendants and the t-5's / vho's from cross pieces inside the top of the hood.
are you getting MH's ?

 

[LeslieS]

My goal is to redo the entire set up. It takes up way too much space and I have junk everywhere. I would like to change the tank to a bigger tank with the same display volume but adding a huge overflow area for the skimmer etc. There would be no sump.

The tank would be 150 gallon, 48x24x30. the first 36" would be exposed on the front and one side of the tank (the corner). The rest (the overflow area) would be inside the cabinet.

There would be no cabinet over the display area so I wanted to hang a metal halide pendant, but one thing that I do like about my tank is the depth. I cannot find a short MH pendant (that would look nice over the 36" of tank) that provides enough light and the actinics. :-(

This project is in the very early planning stages. I am still researching and looking at how much and how to configure the space that I have. This time I am going to go very slowly. My goal is to complete and set this up by next April

I hate to waste the $ that I already spent - I am doing exactly what I wanted to avoid when I set mine up the first time. Can't see anyay around it though! I love how interactive and not clunky looking my tank is, but it has taken over the apartment.

 

[jhale]

I'm contemplating a similar tank for my next set up.
Depending on the floor strength I was thinking of stacking a fuge on top,
display/sump combo, and mixing tank / storage on the bottom. It would be in a floor to ceiling cabinet that would hide all the parts you don't want seen.

 

[LeslieS]

I'm contemplating a similar tank for my next set up.
Depending on the floor strength I was thinking of stacking a fuge on top,
display/sump combo, and mixing tank / storage on the bottom. It would be in a floor to ceiling cabinet that would hide all the parts you don't want seen.

That is what I am thinking!

I will leave room for the fuge in the top, but not going to add it until possibly later. Could also become more storage!

I am also looking into dif. types of surge which could be mounted above the tank. I know Lois and Cali have done it and are very opposed, but I always need all the information before I can let something drop. (If it is still a sucky idea after all my research, I will drop it - not that stubborn). If the surge was plumbed to enter the tank near the bottom, wouldn't that reduce splashing? Also, having such a large overflow at the back means that the water level in the display would remain constant

I was trying to work with standard sized tanks to keep cost down and avoid the trouble of special ordering, but I would rather have a 30" cube as my exposed area. Did you see page 397 in The Reef Aquarium Volume 3? Pretty cool, but I don't have room for that much hidden space, and I would still use a skimmer.

Another issue I am having it that drop in chillers are supposedly not that great, and I already paid a fortune for mine, so I would like to use it.

We have concrete floors in our building so the floor strength isn't that much of an issue, but I can see why you are waiting until you move to make any big plans.

 

[PalmTree]

Hey Leslie. That sounds like a nice project. I've never had a drop in chiller but I've known people to swear by it. As for MH and actinic supplements I use HQI 250 watt pendants inside my canopy w/ 4 6foot VHOs for actinics.

 

[PalmTree]

Here is a pic of what I have. I have 3 fans in the back to cool things down but it does get hot in there!

 

[LeslieS]

Hey Allan,

Thanks for the heads up on the drop in chiller.

I really want the light to hang over the tank from the ceiling so I am trying to find an all in one. I have found some that are small but powerful so I may be able to hand two of them over the display area without it looking too strange.

See you at the swap!!!

 

[PalmTree]

Oh yeah thats cool too. I've seen people hang 3 above their tank and it looks fine. The only problem I see with that is have 2 separate power cables attached to each pendant as opposed to having them come off of one side of a long all enclosed unit. Still it can be done. I really hope I can make the swap! I have to see if my boss will let me take off!