Metal Halide Q&A

Hey kracer,
I can say that with any 20k bulb you will get the lack of white light to make the tank look bright. If you look in the holes between your rock, the light will not reflect the darker colors of the rock and therefore will look more dim to our eyes. Now onto bulbs...

Ushio 20k is a good bulb. will look slightly brighter than your aquamaxx as aquamaxx are REALLY blue lol! If you were running SE base then i would say Ushio is all around a good bulb no matter what way you look at it. Other nice bulbs for consideration are Radiums for the amazing color. Phoenix 14k in the mogul base is a nice bulb but I would not choose it over others as the SE is not as good as the DE bulb.

Since you have DE, then i would recommend the phoenix 14k. IMO this bulb is the best bulb on the market... Your color will be amazing with it! You will have plenty of light into the tank with e ballasts on these (my dad SWEARS by these and i can attest for them as being the most amazing ever)!
The ushios are notorious for being on the whiter side so you will still get the blue and nice color but they might be a bit brighter to your eyes.

Let me know what your thinking about this when you get a chance.

 

Dingo,
Thanks for the quick reply. I was thinking about the phoenix bulbs, but have not seen them in person, but have not seen the ushio either. while reading it has been stated several times that with the phoenix bulbs you get a bit of a washed out windex look to the tank and I did not want that as that is what I think I currently have with the aquamaxx bulbs. (this is why I added some whiter t5 bulbs) I have also rear that the ushio 20k had a nice bit of purple almost like running a fiji purple t5 in the mix but still has good output.
I believe I have read that the phoenix has higher par with good color would be a good mix. I have not been able to find any par numbers on the de 20k ushios.

 

Honestly, your PAR value isnt going to be that important. I would say that it will most likely be an average value though.
PAR isnt as important as it has been made out to be in the past. What makes a bulb quality is the spectral output that it puts out... kinda a blend of all the different wavelengths to cater to the individual needs of each and every coral. Ushio being such a high quality company, there should not be any issues with the bulb.
If you choose not to go with Phoenix, you will be safe going with Ushio instead.

 

Thanks for the input. I think I may go with the phoenix since it is such a good all around bulb.

 

I've been doing a lot of research on this website and elsewhere and I'm still confused on what the best lighting for 75 gal tank would be. Currently a FOWLR but definitely transitioning to a reef in the future...

So many opinions, so many types, so much to look into.... Any suggestions?

 

I am having a hard time deciding between metal halide (and how much metal halide) and T5 lights. My first question which I didn't see answered directly is how much lighting I would need for my standard 55g reef tank in metal halide. Right now I have an assortment of LPS and soft corals under 4X65 watt PC. One of the lighting slots stopped working all together so now im in the market for new reef lighting. I really think I would like the look of two pendant lights hanging over the tank like in this auction:
2x175 WATT METAL HALIDE PENDANT WITH E BALLAST - eBay (item 260665135917 end time Dec-14-10 13:34:14 PST)

I know it isn't the good reflectors you have been talking about but my budget is about 250-300 TOPS. Are these bad lights?

So between getting two 175, 250, or 400w what should I look at? Would I be able to keep sps if I wanted to with two 175's? Would I fry all my softies with two 400w?

My other question is what wattage is 4X48" t5's equal too? 6X48"?

lastly What is cheaper to upkeep on bulbs for t5 or metal halide?

Thanks all!

 

Other light I am looking at is a hybrid deal

17" - 24" Metal Halide T5 Light Nano Reef Pendant 150W - eBay (item 290500297424 end time Dec-14-10 10:26:39 PST)

But then I have to replace 3 bulbs every year per fixture...

 

sorry it took so long to get back to you...

anyways, your best bet would be to go with two lumenark minis over that tank and quality ballasts. If you dont want to drop that much on reflectors then you can go the cheap spider reflector route and build a canopy around them. <-- with this route you loose a lot more light though

Lastly, you can go for a 48" fixture which will be your most expensive route but will have literally everything you need already in it.

When you need help with bulb selection come back and we can help you with that

 

your first link is alright... the light coverage wont be that great and you will likely have some issues with spotlighting. If you can suspend it high enough then it will be able to light the whole tank. The deal for the hardware is decent, however you will likely have to buy new bulbs verrry soon.
175w will be fine for a mixed reef, as will 250w. 400w is getting a little high for one that is not sps dominant... plus you dont need that much light in a 55g lol

I feel like the second light you supplied is not the best choice here. If you are really on a budget but still want a fixture that works for a 55 try aquatraders. Their stuff is not made with the best quality, however it works and is cheaper. You will also have to replace their bulbs asap

 

thanks for the reply. I'm a firm believer in doing things right the first time so you don't have anything to worry about in the future especially when it's an expensive hobby such as thi. With that said, I would definitely go the fixture route. I've been looking into something like this:

Current USA Nova Extreme T5 Aquarium Lighting Fixture, 8X54 Watt, 48 inch

Obviously shop around for a better price but I feel this is the way but I've heard mixed reviews