Lighting question - 125 softie/LPS tank

[snowstar]

Hey guys! Getting ready to correct the lighting problem I have on the 125. And was looking for some guidance.

This tank will always be an LPS/softie tank so halides are not required and in some instances may be less than desired unless I choose a low wattage halide like 150's or 175s.

That said, the tank is a standard 125 --- 72"x18"x20". So the current arraingement of staggard 4 ft vho's needs some work. I had been thinking of completely switching over to pc, but from an earlier thread, seems that most would not go that direction. I believe that I do prefer the pc white over vho white but I'm not really that "hung up" on an either or solution. Maybe actinic 03 vho with pc white.... or some other combination.

I've been looking at Aquamedic Aquaspace if I go the MH route but I think the ballasats are integrated into the hood and the lowest wattage is 250... :( The Giesemann lighting solution I can get in a 150 watt halide but they are only 4ft. I would rather have a complete hood if I use Halide so the UV shield is in place and I don't have to deal with 3 pendants for de bulbs plus the reflector for the supplemental vho/pc/t5 lighting....

So the question is, what to do? Or maybe if there is not one "clean" solution what is the best solution?
:confused:

Thanks in advance
Lisa

[1package]

I ran 4 X 160w = 640w VHOs, 2 white, 2 actinic for a couple years over a 125g full of LPS and soft corals. Obviously I can not say that the growth was better or worse than other options. I can say everything grew what I considered well and fairly fast, even a couple SPS on top. The lights are about $32 each every 9 months, although I ran the actinics longer. I used 2 ballast for 4 bulbs, about $65 each. No heat issues with a couple small fans.

[LowCel]

Have you considered T5's? I had some before I switched to mh's and they worked great for my softies and lps. They are very efficient and produce minimal heat.

Just thought I would throw that in to help make your decision as difficult as possible. :)

[snowstar]

thanks --- Bruce! Just what I need more options.

Seriously, I was considering T5's but again length is a smallish issue... no 6ft tubes available. Not that staggering 4 fts or getting 2 3fts to make the length come out to 6ft should not be considered.... I was just not sure the 3 ft bulbs would penetrate the tank. Not that I'm very sure "how well" they need to penetrate a "lps/sps" tank. But I can say that I do like the color of the T5's both blue and white bulbs!

Lisa

[firefish2020]

They cost a bit but the 72 inch Orbits are pretty awesome fixtures unless you want to DIY.

[essop3]

I run 4x6' VHO. It grows LPS and softies really well. I use Ice Cap ballasts and URI bulbs from www.championlighting.com They have 6'

[snowstar]

Sonya and I were talking about that on the way home.... The whole DIY. Over the past 12 years whe have built so many canopys and sooo many light setups ---- all the same variation of vho ,or mh +vho... that I think that if I can find the "all in one" solution that will give me what I want that I'm going to go with that. That's why I was looking at but ruling out the Aquaspace, Oceanlight,and the Giesemann for various reasons.

The orbit has possibilities, but I was a bit leary of the dual actinic 420/460 light.... I thought that particular actinic pc is what everyone complains about.

Not knowing a bunch about pc (no experience with them) - I was maybe falling for the "add hype" of the Coralife or the hamilton fixtures - saying they have a true actinic. Which pc actinic is the more accurate of the lot? - known loaded question!

Right now I'm sort of leaning toward the coralife 72" AQUALIGHT PRO W/ 3-150W - PC - Moonlights or the pc + moonlight only version of that hood. Question there is a coralife hood so will it run other/better MH bulbs? When the ballast fails can I change it out for an ice cap electronic? Leaning - but willing to be swayed -

Thanks Lisa

[firefish2020]

I run Hamilton in my Aqua-Pro and the entire light hood is component based, if anything breaks down it can be replaced or switched out it seems first system Ive seen with replaceable moon lights. The ballasts could easily be replaced at a later date as they just plug into the hood so I cant see a problem with that. What’s meant by "true actinic 03" is nothing more than a heated debate at what’s true actinic, and like Jason says it depends on many factors but the wavelength of a 03 is around 420 nm the ones with the Orbit are dual 420 & 460 nm which I like a lot. Most people complain about them because 420nm and 460nm are worlds apart visually and the 420nm one looks like it's not burning or weaker than the 460nm side. You can also opt for Coralifes NEW 470 nm actinic bulbs as replacements for the standard “03� the Pro ships with. This is what I did with mine, the 470nm is very blue and causes massive fluorescent response in corals. Hope this helps a bit.

[snowstar]

That helps tremendously! You probably know from other posts, I really prefer blue ---- to the point of opting for slightly less par in my mh --- just to get the blue 20k's. Thanks much ---- Sonya and I had to drive to Rockhill, SC this morning so for three hours se debated the various different options and had pretty much reached the conclusion that if the Aqualight-Pro was pretty much interchangeable we were going to go that way!!!!

Thanks Lisa

[firefish2020]

I cant complain about the system, the Pro is IMO a great stand alone plug and play lighting system. We can't keep these in stock which Im suprised but I guess many people are willing to buy a ready-made set up rather than building a DIY one, I know I was :)

[snowstar]

Thanks Ron.... I'll talk to Barry or to you about it when Sonya and I are there Saturday...

[H.crispa]

I gotta say, The display tank in Morgantown at Exotic Jungle is lighted with 24 regular output fluorescents-- Actinic White alternating with Philips 03 actinic. Tank doing well.

A few 96 watt compacts would do quite well too. You could toy around with different colors with that setup too.

Halides?? I see no reason to fear halides in that setup either. I have had no trouble using halides over LPS and softies-- although I am getting away from those in favor of SPS. Check out aquaticlight.com. They have a "12,000k" halide that you could use over a softie tank. 250 watts even! The trick is that these particular bulbs are VERY blue and not all that bright, at least not in the spectrum that our eyes perceive all that well. Pay no attention to the kelvin temp on lights-- it means nothing. If it did then all 10,000k bulbs from all manufacturers would look exactly the same. They do not. The 12,000k bulbs I mention above are far bluer than any other bulb I have seen. 14,000k, 20,000k, whatever. You have to see them burning to really know what they look like.