lighting for a 120 gal long

I was wondering what a good hqi/t5 or pc fixture would be good and how many watts reccomended since its going to be a shallow tank.

 

how shallow is shallow if it is under 18 inches i would just go with t5's. any more than that i would deffentally look into mh bulbs. id say 26 and under 150w and one bulb for ever 2 feet of tank across. thats just my oppinion

 

thanks

 

I've got a 120 long and its a deep tank. I would go with 250w MH's if your planning on a reef tank.

 

Everybody has their opinion but I think both T5s and MH are good, either one will do. If your tank is more than 20" go Mh.

Just my opinion.

 

My Frag tank is a custom acrylic w/ 2 corner overflows
Dimensions: 47.5" x 12" H x 16 I would say that is close to shallow.
My tank is dominated by SPS, but I have a few highend chalice, and highend zoanthid/paly's. At first I had a 48" MH fixture 2 x 250W HQI combo T5
Honestly, I have gone back and forth with T5 lighting and MH. My opinion my preference is the T5 lighting, with the right combination bulbs, you can get incredible color on your corals and growth as well. Currently, I am using the Tek T5 6 bulbs from Sunlight Supplies.

 

A 120 Long? is this an AGA tank?

if so, it will be a 125g. Assuming we are speaking of the same thing.

I have used both MH with t5ho, and t5ho alone.

I can tell you either way of lighting works just fine.

I have seen 2 foot tall 180g's lit solely by t5s and they have a lot of light, and grow corals well.

You can't merely go by watts, and some lights are more efficient than others.

 

Watts is a measure of electricity used not a good indicator of lighting performance.. I can tell you a 54w T5 will perform better than a 65w PC no doubt and this is just one example.
Personally I like T5 as you all know. Even on deep tanks. 24" or more. MH can "penetrate" deeper only do to sheer wattage in a small package. BUT keep in mind refraction of the light, that small wonderful glitter lines you seen and love lead to sporadic intensities in a tank. Spots with high intensity and PAR values and some right next to it that are significantly lower. T5 is more "blanketed" and consistent. If you had the SAME wattage of both MH and T5 I would bet that the PAR values esp deeper in the tank would be VERY comperable.

Lighting is really a matter of personal preference, without knowing the exact dimensions of the tank it is hard to really recommend a good light, but what I can recommend is one WITHOUT PC lamps...

 

Im gonna finnaly agree with the doc on something light related....leave the pc lamps alone....