75g Lighting confusion

a 75 gallon and a 90 gallon have the same footprint so it will fit...

 

I would have to vote for t5s. You can keep everything you can keep with halides without overheating your tank.

 

Ya me either. If the one inch doesn't matter then go with the Tek.

 

There are two choices to go with. The TEK without lights and the TEK with lights included. And you can choose the UVLs. Pretty good deal. Yeah.....for the time being, my wife won't OK the cost for the TEKS. However, I do need to do something, so for about $40 more (than getting a whole new set of PC bulbs), I can get two really cheap and probably badly made 4x54W T5 fixtures. Kind of a bandaid job. But if they last the next year, then I will get my TEK at that point.

 

The Teks don't come with bulbs at all. The Nova Pros come with Current bulbs which aren't good. I bought the Nova Pro 6x54W and am extremely happy with it. Bought my first SPS corals a few weeks ago and can already see growth. I have a small Maxima clam on my sandbed but it's too early to tell if he is growing.

The Nova Pro includes fans, mounting legs and a splash shield which are not included on the Tek. You can read my Paul's Reef: Nova Extreme Pro Review for more info. I purchased my bulbs from Aquarium Specialty.

Check out this link for more examples of T5 lit tanks. Reef Central Online Community - please show me your t5 only sps tanks

 

No, they actually do. Reefgeek.com gives you the choice of with or without bulbs. You, of course, have to pay for the bulbs (at a discounted rate), but the choice is there.

 

Definitely a better deal to get the bulbs at a discount.

However, it just irks me that you have to pay an additional $60 for legs (freaking plastic - pay that much for the fixture, throw me a bone for Pete's sake), and $40 for a shield which should be included to start with.

I was talking to the same guy at the LFS again today, and he has different tanks ranging from 265, 210, 120, 75, etc. and actually has one of the Tek fixtures on one tank (120, I think). He isn't very impressed with the Tek fixture - says it's good, but his corals all do better under Metal Halide, and didn't have any luck keeping a clam under the Tek fixtures.

Maybe it just depends on the bulbs, and maybe just different species of clams, but he had no luck. Also has no issues with cooling with his Metal Halide systems, just runs with no canopy, keeps the halides 5-6 inches above the water, and runs a 5 inch fan blowing over the tank.

I think I am leaning towards metal halides. I like my house on the cool side anyhow (lower 70's), so even if they do heat the water some, with an open top and a fan, I think I should be OK.

It's hard to make a decision when so many people go different directions and all have good advice for each solution.

:-/

 

So, after reading several threads on the Odyssea units, I think I'm going to go with the 2x250 unit.
Aquarium Lightings - Metal Halide Light Fixtures - Free Gift with Light Fixture Purchase

I'm not terribly fond of the PC's but they will mainly be to simulate dusk / dawn anyhow, and the main lighting will be from the Halides. General consensus seems that the ballasts are blah, but at $329 for the unit, I can get 2 IceCap replacement ballasts and have a fairly decent fixture for the price.

Sound like a decent plan?

 

I would stick with a Tek over a Nova...
I would also consider 6 bulbs instead of 8, 8 will CRANK on that tank! You will most likely melt some of your corals!! Believe me T5s can really do the trick, I only have 8 on a 180!!

As far as bulbs go, what look do you want? I went with Gman as previously stated, but most of the crowd here tends to favor the UVL....
Either way determine what "color" you want your tank then go from there...

As far as MH, heat will not be an issue with a few properly placed fans and a lot of evaporative cooling..
MH or T5 that is a decision that you have to weigh, glitter lines vs longer lamp life, more lamps to replace vs more frequent replacement..

Happy deciding!

 

Odyssea, has had a BAD rep so be wary of what you buy!!! Shoddy wiring and so on, component quality is a big issue as well...

I have seen people grow SPS all the way to the bottom of a 24" inch tank with T5 so just because an employee at the LFS had an issue with a clam doesn't mean you should rule it out... I have seen many a person have issues with clams with MHs.
Look into threads of others and see how their tanks do with either T5 or MH and see what you like.
T5 will most likely cost you less in the long run, not only in start up but with overall electric bill

Happy lighting