Lighting... Tired of doing research!!!

[dacker]

I have been doing some research for a while now on building me a new lighting system and to be honest there is too much out there as if you guys haven't noticed. I have a 180 gal. Oceanic that is 72.5 X24.5X 27. I have 4 VHO on 2 ice cap 660 ballast currently and it is a FOWLR. My wife and I are ready to move over to reef keeping and want to tackle the lighting first. My plans are to keep the 4 VHO on the 2 ballast I currently have and replace the bulbs. And add three 250 watt 10k metal halides as well as moonlights to the system. This way I can have the "full day/night" spectrum effect. I will post my questions numbered below. I dont mind spending some money on this but dont want to break the bank if at all possible. Definentally want to build the canopy and system myself though. And thanks in advance for your help. Dale

1) Which type MH ballast. I like ice cap but if there is better let me know. Also which kind of start do I want. Strobe, soft, standard
???

2) What type bulbs... single or double end, what brand, etc...

3)What type brand bases for the MH bulbs.

4) Reflectors, any input would be helpful including if I need a sheet of something to go behind the VHO's because I haven't found much info on this.

5)What type of VHO bulbs, brand name and color to complement the 10 k lights. I think alot of people run 2 of one and 2 of another but not sure.

6) Moon lights, totally lost

7) Fans for cooling, what kind and how many


Any other advice is welcome as well. But this is a good start I think

[Icefire]

You could keep the ballast and run T5HO only, no mh.

you could run 8x39w or 8x54w if stacked.

you would need :
T5 endcaps
Individual reflector for each lamp
8x lamps

20-23$/lamp
20-30$/reflector
3-15$/endcap pair (waterproof or not)

400$ with 312 or 452W which is enought and would save you some electricity and heat VS mh.

[dacker]

Yes but would this grow corals hard and soft as well as the metal halides? Does the light penetrate as well? Sorry I am kind of a newbie.

[easttn]

Dacker,

Been there man. I'll give my opinion but they are like all others, shallow and stinky.

I started with a 55G and VHO, graduated to a 75 and needed MH because I loved SPS and the addiction. I finally got a 180 and needed "the best". I could not afford the best, so I looked for what others had success with and what was hype.

I followed Sanjay, JB NY, and Electric130's input. I also (being an engineer) did a pareto on all the TOTM threads to filter the best ballast/bulbs/reflector combinations and the success of the tanks. Finally, I looked at all the top RC SPS supplier's tanks' lighting to make the final decision.

No clear winner. So after years of sifting and expirmentation, there is no "one" ballast/bulb/combo. It just depends on what YOU like, and what your tank inhabitants become accustom to.

If your water parameters are not stable, it does not matter what bulb you select; your tank will fail.

If read through all this drivel I owe you an answer.

My reccomendation:
Buy 3X400W mogul SE bulbs, pulse start M135 ballast. If you must have VHO supplementation, then actinic 03's. Moonlight, 1-5 W lumiled 470nm LED.

This hobby is all about DIY, why not start with your bulbs. The 10K - 20 K is all up to you. 10K is white, 20K is blue. 10K produces faster growth, but not (to me) better colors. 20K gives slower growth, but better color - if you like blue lighting. 20K Radiums are good for 7-8 months, and XM's are good for a year; to me XM's are too blue though.

If your not a DIY'er do Icecap Ballast and all of the above.

The reflectors are easy - Pacific Garden Supply (or knock-off).

You coral and critters will grow accustom to whatever you decide, every tank is different.

[familyreefer]

You should shoot for about 1800 watts total on your set up. You can grow "hard corals" under the T5 set up but you will be limited to placing them at the top( You usually always place these near the top but with MH you can move them down a little to balance the display) You absolutely cannot go wrong with the Icecaps. They are great. As for SE vs DE This is usually a space issue. The DE set ups Are more$$$ but they take up far less space. Hamiltons are a great brand of bulb. $$ does not always equal quality but here it does. ( I have bought cheaper bulbs in the past , only to have to replace them 3 months later!) If you go SE Take a HARD look at the parabolic reflectors. Again, They are bulky as well as pricey but holy smokes! The light absolutely goes EVERYWHERE! As for the VHO's and the 10 K MH be advised, you will get exceptional growth out of the 10 K MH but it will be VERY "yellow" looking. I would run all actinics on the VHOs if running the 10K bulbs. This should balance the spectrum and give you something nice to look at. Phew! ....Now for the moon lights. I highly recommend the tube set ups from Fish Bowl Enterprises.. They can be run in series ( I have 8 tubes ,5 LEDs in each tube) on my 135. These are hooked to a "Lunar cycler" that simmulates the 28 day lunar cycle!! VERY natural! The cool thing with these tubes is the fact that the LEDs are arranged in an arc in EACH tube, throwing the light in all directions. Very affordable as well.Now for the fans, Take a good look at the ( Coral Vue or Coral Life, not sure which company) "Smart Fans" These babies have a temp monitor built in and will continue to run AFTER the lights have turned off, untill the temp comes down to the specified temp. A no brainer. AS for the # of fans... LOTS?!? Sorry to be so long but I tried to address each of your concerns in order. Keep,in mind, we all have our own opinions, Thanks, Scott

[Icefire]

Yes T5 will grow SPS corals quite nicely.

The icecap will also safely overdrive the lamp at 80w for a 54w.

[dacker]

Thanks for the info so far, any more opinions are welcome. Definentally think I am going to go with the moonlight system familyreefer talked about. But still a little undecided on the rest. However what easttn said makes since. Kind of like different kinds of transportation. It will all get you where your going just in a different way. L8ttr Dale

[perpetual98]

Take a look at a lot of European reef tanks that will blow your socks off and are lit by T5. Running T5 on an IC660 ballast with SLR reflectors is crazy bright.

[dacker]

Do you have some links. Also if I need to run 1800 watts, how do I get this from T5's only? Just curious

[perpetual98]

You don't need to run 1800 watts. If you've got 2 icecap 660 ballasts now, I would set up a 4x54W setup on one with SLR reflectors and you can still use your VHO if you want for now. If you like the light you're getting from that setup, you're golden. If you want more light, convert that other 660 over to T5 and I can't imagine that you'd need more light than that.

That's also provided you can cram 8 bulbs over your tank. The reflectors are about 2.25" wide each.

[dacker]

And this would give the same result as 3 MH with 4 vho's. Especially for corals at depth. Just curious again I am a newbie. And I have plenty of room under my hood. Do you know where some pics of this are?

[markandkristen]

i would go with 3 250s in my opinion. and run t5s for actinics. that seems to be the sweet spot of all the tanks ive seen. i wouldnt venture out into 400s unless i had 30" of tank depth.

i think ice cap is the best as far as ballast. i like the fact that you can mount them easier

if you could fit the lumeric reflectors then that would be good way to go.

another thing to keep in mind is the smimmer of halides... ive seen some people leave t5s only just because of the shimmer.. thats a small reason for most people

[jpndave]

[QUOTE]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9194392#post9194392 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by easttn

Moonlight, 1-5 W lumiled 470nm LED.



Which lumiled is it that you are using? I was looking at the K2 emitters. Which one are you using at 5 W and what is the output?

Thanks,

Dave

[easttn]

LumiLed (http://www.lumileds.com/products/family.cfm?familyId=9)

[jpndave]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9202011#post9202011 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by easttn
LumiLed (http://www.lumileds.com/products/family.cfm?familyId=9)

How many of these are you running to get 5W? Is the brightness about right?

[easttn]

Dave,

What are you looking for; its just a moonlight. The only reason I have one is I used to work for a CM and I had acess to thousands. 1W @ 350 mA is just as good for this application - it does not matter.

[jpndave]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9203527#post9203527 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by easttn
Dave,

What are you looking for; its just a moonlight. The only reason I have one is I used to work for a CM and I had acess to thousands. 1W @ 350 mA is just as good for this application - it does not matter.

I am just looking for a moon light. I was worried that the K2 emitters I want to use may be too bright. Also, wondered about the color. I have been going back and forth between 470 and 455.

Thanks for the replies. I should be ok with the K2 as it is about half of the V, my tank is smaller.

Dave

[Icefire]

K2 is okay, you can dim it if too bright.

[jpndave]

Dacker,

Didn't mean to hijack your thread here. I have be troubled by the same question. I am absolutely dizzy from trying to decipher all the information here on lighting and actually put it to some practical use for my application. I am building a 21x21x21 cube and at this point plan to us a single lumenarc 3 with a 175w AB 10K (actually 13K) bulb driven by an icecap ballast. The reflector will cover the entire top of the tank so no other light can/will be used. I will get the a/c option and had planned on putting a single K2 emitter right in the top of the reflector for the moon light, that way the reflector should work for the moon light also. As I understand it, Sanjay was impressed with the performance of the 175w AB bulb, it is second on his list after the Iwasaki 6.5K. I plan to keep SPS, LPS, and a clam along with a few fish. Will this lighting be enough/too much/not enough? I should be able to set the light fairly low as I don't need any additional spread and with the internal cooling, heat shouldn't be a problem close to the water. Comments or suggestions on this set up?

One thing about the single ended lamps in an adjustable fixture like the lumenarc is that if it is too much or not enough, you can interchange bulbs 175/250/400 without a fixture change. The ballast would have to be changed but there is always ebay for that.

Thanks for the advice on the K2. I think I'll try that out. So, the 470 should be a better color than the 455?

[jpndave]

Also, I have been thinking that if I can get a more efficient bulb, the lower wattage is better, as long as there is enough PAR, and the color is right. It will cost me $25 less a year to run a 175 rather than a 250 and the difference would be $50 250 to 400. That is with 12hrs/day and $.0754 per kWhr power cost. Also, the heat added would be much less. That helps in keeping the tank cool and in lowering my a/c bill on my house during the summer (which would make the cost to operate difference even higher during the summer.)