would 2 175 mh with 2 ho t5s be good lighting for a 90 gallon tank? my friend is going 2 sell me the 2 175 mh with ballast and all the only thing their missing is the reflectors for 150$ do u think thats a good deal? i was going to also run the ho t5s mostly as the atinic lights (already have them) would that be good for a 90 gallon or would that heat up to much? if u could help me out at all that would be great!
I am certainly no lighting expert, but if I remember my research correctly when i was looking at MH lighting I think that for a 90 you would want at least a 2x250. I could be wrong, a 90 may require even more light then that to penetrate to the bottom. With MH as the main light source, the T5s really only need to be for actinic and color balance.
Not sure what size tank his is, but Shawn (logans_daddy) has a similar setup, but with 250w MHs and he seems to like it. I don’t know much about MHs, but as far as heat goes I doubt you would have a problem now (winter) and can always fit in some fans at a later point in time.
Is he selling you a hood/canopy or a retrofit kit?
175 would be fine for a 90 but it would depend on coral preference and coral placement. The 90 is 25" tall vs. a 75 which is 21" tall. At that price is a good deal depending on the brand of ballast. FWIW I sold 2 175 icecap ballast with complete harness for $175 (no reflectors).
Just a FYI, the tank at Armco aquatics is using 2x250mh on a 30" deep tank, and I dont think I have seen a healthier tank in quite a while. 175’s should be fine on a 90 (25" deep) as long as you dont plan on keeping SPS at the bottom. LPS and Softies should be fine on the bottom, and SPS should be fine above the 1/2 height level.
i agree with icy. i have a 90 and am running 2 - 175 watt 20 k metal hailide with 4 - 40 watt fluorecent
I’m running 2x 175watt 14k MH, and no problems here on my 90gal. My nems and coral are at all levels and seem fine.
its a pfolighting ballast? i think thats brand ot 100% sure but it doesnt have a hood or canopy or anything i found a company that i can get the reflectors from for like 40 total and i think its like 6$ for s/h i wanted the t5s more for the attinic than for the actual light that they put off i did want to actually have 2 250’s but i dont really have enough money for them and i figured 150$ is a good deal i checked them out today they work fine we plugged them in and all
I was using 2x 150W MH sitting right on my 90 and didn’t have any noticeable temp increase, but definitely more evaporation. My orange monti is near the bottom and it’s growing well.
hmm sounds like those 175’s would work good for my tank! 150 for both of them seems like a good deal just have to get the reflectors for them!
See told you I was no lighting expert.
lOl