Some light questions

[mhaynes01]

I am at the most willing to spend. 300$$, now i was look at PC's 2x 96 watts, i already have 1x96 watt fixture.

would 2x96 watt 10k adn 1x96 watt actinic. wor with most corals. the tanks dimensions again are 36"x18"x20"

[mathias]

if you put the MH in the middle of the tank and you have a center brace... on most 55gal tanks the center brace is a thick plastic so heat over plastic not a good idea....


but if you go with MH I recommend 20k my tank never looked better ... xm 20k is my favorite...

[JimD]

Best thing to do is to go look at different lighting settups and then make your decision. Most of the information given is useless without actualy seeing the different lighting scenerios working and I dont mean pictures as pics rarely do the lights justice. I believe that eventually youl find that a good 10k lamp and a generous ammount of VHO actinics will do the job nicely. My 65 gallon acro tank is lit by a single 250 watt Reeflux 10K SE driven by a Coralvue e-ballast and three VHO 95 watt actinic 03's on an Icecap 430 e-ballast and Im very pleased with the results.

[caferacermike]

This is the store of the guy Kyle bought from.
http://stores.ebay.com/Aquarium-Ligh...QQftidZ2QQtZkm

At $300 you might try a T5 set up like this.
http://cgi.ebay.com/T5-HO-Aquarium-l...QQcmdZViewItem

2x 150w halide retro $285 DE with electronic ballasts.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Metal-Halide-Ret...QQcmdZViewItem


2x 250w SE retro kit for $260
http://cgi.ebay.com/Metal-Halide-Ret...QQcmdZViewItem


36" 250w halide and 2x 95W VHO actinics + moon lights. Ready to go out the box for $429
http://cgi.ebay.com/36-Metal-Halide-...QQcmdZViewItem

36" retrofit kit.. 250W halide and 2x 75W VHO includes everything for $349, mounted on a reflector/just screw to your hood.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Metal-Halide-VHO...QQcmdZViewItem

I've seen 2 of these units up close and have seen them in trouble free use for months.

[mhaynes01]

Thanks a whole bunch

[junkstang]

on my tank, same as your's I run 2x175w reeflux 12k lamps and it looks great. they give a light tint of blue so that all the colors stang out but not over board. the ballasts are electronic and the lights have been on for 7hrs a day for the last 8months and have lost very little candle light output yet.

[mhaynes01]

thanks, I think I'm going to go with;

http://hellolights.com/25hlmhrekith.html

[caferacermike]

Those are the reflectors I bought a long time back. Rumor is that they are not always in stock and get back ordered for months. Make sure to ask if they will ship right away. It seems I lucked out when I got mine as several others I spoke to after had ordered but not received theirs. Note that in the link I sent you for the same price you can include bulbs from the Ebay seller, the Hellolights do not come with bulbs for that price.