So I have the new tank set up and im trying to decide what light configuration i should go with…here are my options…the new tank is a standard 110 gal.
I have my old nova extreme 6 bar on there right now, and right next to it I have my nova extreme 4 bar…most of the bulbs are ice cap…
now my question is, would it be better for me to swap out the 4 bar for a 150w halide? the 4 bar has 54w t-5 lights in it…the halide is either a 10k or 14k bulb…
my ultimate plan is to gut the nova extreme 6 bar, install it in my hood, and either gut the 4 bar and put it in there, or use the halide…im going to have some softies, but mostly sps/lps
so what should i do…10 t-5 bulbs vs. 6 t-5s & 150w halide?
what do you guys think?? what else should I consider? thanks in advance
Do you have 1 or 2 MHs
If I could I’d go 6 bar T5 and 2 MH - I think I’d prefer at least a 175w though. Of course I don’t have MH so I’m not an expert. I just like the shimmer.
i actually have a 250w also, reflector and bulb, no ballast…the 150w has a ballast, i know a little fish store in pennsville that is setting up their saltwater section…they have like 40 old ballast in the back and im sure i can get one for cheap…
thanks for your opinion craig…i would also like the shimmer…i was also thinking i could get that extra growth from my stonies…
I could make a very interesting 10 bulb combination though…thats the other aspect…i have the opportunity to get a icecap ballast here shortly too…
10 bars just seems like an ass-load of light for a tank. How deep is a standard 110?
48 x19 x30ish…
seems like a lot but i was thinking mostly actinic…i want a really deep blue look…
a standard 110 is 30 inches deep. but at only 18 inches front to back, how do you get a 6 bar and 4 bar light strip over it? or are those the ones with flat pan reflectors and the bulbs are like right next to each other?
you know, theres no rule you have to have symetrical lighting over a tank. you could put the 150w on one end with a 20K bulb and the 250w on the other with a 14K-20K bulb and 4-6 T5s surrounding them with some more blue and or white bulbs. that way the 150w end would be for softies and medium light stuff and the bright 250w end for SPS. it could make an interesting light gradient for viewing. and i bet the fish will like it.
mix up a selection of T5 bulb colors like two 75/25s. two 454/420 blues and maybe a couple of those new blue/red bulbs. I just bought one of those Blueline R/B s at DPA yesterday for my 3 bar over a 40 breeder. i had 2 50/50s and a 454. but one 50/50 got dim, so replaced it with the R/B in front, 50/50 center and 454 in back. looks pretty good. the R/B looks pink but the tank looks bright and clear with nice color. i want to see how it works for the macro and some softies in there.
you can use a lot of different blues and some MH light. the more blue the better. I might get two 54w blueline R/Bs from DPA to try with my two 150w HQIs over the frag tank, to see how they work. in a couple weeks. ive been thinking about spectrum mix again.
its actually 24.5" wide…both lights combined take up 21.5" of width…
ive had the “pinkish” bulbs before, not really a fan…i have an old ice cap bulb around here that was really pink, not sure what K rating it was…
i also have a clear center brace which i really didnt notice how much of a shadow it cast in my old tank that had a black center brace…pretty neat and easy mod…
you guys think 10 bulbs would be overkill…this would put me somewhere roughly around 5 watts per gallon??
watts per gallon is really an outdated measuement.
I personally think it’s too much - even if it were all actinic.
How are you goign to fit your hand past them to feed your fish?
Again these are just our opinions - you can never really be sure until you try it. I just think you’re going to need to give your fish sunglasses.
Hmm. what me, a newbie noticed, that the more I ran those dam MH’s , the more brown I had on the glass. So, I cut them down to to couple of hours. And right now, only 1 runs.
I have both moon lights on separate timers, one, then both moonlights, then daylights in, moonlights go off, then MH turn on, days still on, MH’s shut off after 2 hrs, later both moons kick on, days drop, then one moon dissapears, then around 9 its’ dark.
Try all the lights you want, but remeber, strong lights will grow alot of things, Do you really want all these things in your tank?
Good luck.
yeah, if anything im more worried about coraline growth than pest stuff…
if you leave any light on for more than a typical photo period your going to run into those problems anyway…also old bulbs will cause algae problems…
[quote=“longballz84, post:12, topic:3118”]
yeah, if anything im more worried about coraline growth than pest stuff…[/quote]
Coarline doesn’t like bright lighting.
[quote=“Cdangel0, post:13, topic:3118”]
[quote=“longballz84, post:12, topic:3118”]
yeah, if anything im more worried about coraline growth than pest stuff…[/quote]
Coarline doesn’t like bright lighting.[/quote]
+1
Running straight atinics do best for growing coraline. ;D
yeah, i usually run about 70-80% actinic on every system ive ever had…coraline out the wa-zoo…
i just saw a tank yesterday with 2-400w halides…coraline out the waz…