75 Gallon Reef Lighting Upgrade (MH vs T5)

H

Harmony Exotics

New Member
Hi everyone!

Im new to Reef Sanctuary and what better way to say hello to everyone than with a controversial question. haha

Ive been running PC on my 75 gallon reef for a year now. Ive got mostly soft corals with a FEW LPS. Now that I know more about parameters, etc...I want to upgrade my lighting to be able to house different types of sps. Acro, milli, monti, and maybe a clam or 2.

My LFS says that on a 75 gallon tank, a 4 bulb HO T5 will be enough to do this. :ponder2: My main concern is color fading. I would like to have atleast 6 t5's to have more intensity. Or better yet MH's. :fingerx:

The fixtures that have my attention are the Nova Extreme Pro 6 X 54w T5 and the MarineLand Pro HQI 24 hr fixture.

I am interested to hear everyone's thoughts on these two fixtures and if my LFS may be right about 4 tubes being sufficient enough to see growth and stunning sps color. :shades:
 
Clownfish518

Clownfish518

Razorback
PREMIUM
Welcome to RS

If you want clams, then you want as much PAR as possible. If you go T5, I would want 6 bulbs, and something that has individual reflectors (IDRs); the Nova Extreme Pro approximates IDRs, but is not true IDRs.

For T5 I would look for IDRs, active cooling (fans), and six bulbs. I no longer use actinics in my T5 fixtures. I use a blue bulb, which will have the same fluorescing effect as actinics, but produce way more light and nicer colors. Something like 3 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Aqua Blue Special, 1 UVL Actinic White, and 1 GE 6500 Daylight is a nice combination of bulbs. Something like that will give you tons of PAR and make your colors pop.

MH is another route - I am not familiar with the Marineland fixture. You would need two MH bulbs; I would do 250w if it were me; but you might could get away with 150w on a 75

Just my 2 cents
 
L

livebait

Member
Clownfish518 said:
Something like 3 ATI Blue Plus, 1 ATI Aqua Blue Special, 1 UVL Actinic White, and 1 GE 6500 Daylight is a nice combination of bulbs. Something like that will give you tons of PAR and make your colors pop....
Click to expand...

It's true! This combo was a super improvement over my other bulbs. Clownfish knows his stuff, you'll do well paying attention to his advice.
OH and Welcome to RS!
 
Eric

Eric

Google Warrior
PREMIUM
I would go 2x T5ho and 2x250w HQI best of both worlds all the light you'll ever need :)
 
H

Harmony Exotics

New Member
Thanks for the Info Everyone!!!

Even after having my tank for a year and a half I still feel like a novice. Therefore, I have a few more questions now. lol

If I use a MH fixture with 2 X 150w bulbs and 4 X 54w T5's that gives me over 500 watts. Most of you say 2 X 250w, but on my tank....wouldnt that be OVERKILL?? I dont want to bleach the soft corals that I already have in my tank by adding too much intensity.

Also, What about the Kelvin rating of the MH bulbs? Which Is better for sps growth and color?
 
Eric

Eric

Google Warrior
PREMIUM
250s are more bang for the buck and only a few dollars more than 150s, most places keep their corals under 400s so 250s are not likely to bleach your corals.

I honestly think if you are buying new 250s are they way to go.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Harmony Exotics said:
Thanks for the Info Everyone!!!

Even after having my tank for a year and a half I still feel like a novice. Therefore, I have a few more questions now. lol

If I use a MH fixture with 2 X 150w bulbs and 4 X 54w T5's that gives me over 500 watts. Most of you say 2 X 250w, but on my tank....wouldnt that be OVERKILL?? I dont want to bleach the soft corals that I already have in my tank by adding too much intensity.

Also, What about the Kelvin rating of the MH bulbs? Which Is better for sps growth and color?
Click to expand...

"K" rating isn't really what you're worried about. "K" (at least to a certain degree) is more about what LOOK you're going for. Higher the K the bluer it is. Some coral color-up better under higher K.

It doesn't matter what fixture you upgrade to you're going to want to do some SERIOUS light acclimation. Here's how I do LIGHT ACCLIMATION

I'd go all T5 but that's just how I roll LOL!

If you go MH/T5 I agree go 250 because it's not much more but a good amount MORE light.
 
H

Harmony Exotics

New Member
Do you recommend any certain brand? I have been looking at the Marineland Pro 24 hour Lighting system. I cant find many reviews on it. It has 150w instead of 250. It also has 4 T5 actinics. Could these could be sub'd for more white bulbs???? This fixture is kinda pricey!!! Are there any other 48 inch fixtures? I want to use a strip instead of pendants.
 
H

Harmony Exotics

New Member
I have just read some nice reviews on the Tek T5 fixtures also. Im still tossing this around in my head because i dont want to buy a MH fixture and not be satisfied when I may could have bought a T5 fixture that costs less and gives good results. If I go Tek T5, Do you guys know If i should go with 4, 6, or 8 bulbs on my 75 gallon? I do plan to keep clams in the near future, so I want enough intensity for them and most sps corals.

I
 
Clownfish518

Clownfish518

Razorback
PREMIUM
Harmony Exotics said:
Do you recommend any certain brand? I have been looking at the Marineland Pro 24 hour Lighting system. I cant find many reviews on it. It has 150w instead of 250. It also has 4 T5 actinics. Could these could be sub'd for more white bulbs???? This fixture is kinda pricey!!! Are there any other 48 inch fixtures? I want to use a strip instead of pendants.
Click to expand...

T5 Fluorescents are not as intuitive as you might think; in that white bulbs do not necessarily produce the most par. Daylight bulbs produce the most PAR in MH; not T5

For growth, I would go 10k MH. For color, I would go with "blue" bulbs (454-460nm bulbs). They will induce fluorescense, and good color, and offset the white of the MH nicely. And produce a lot of PAR.

If you go catalina, call them up, and you can substitute the blue bulbs for the stock actinic. Also get fans and legs for the fixture - not standard. We sell catalina fixtures at my LFS. The MH ones are pretty nice.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
I say get as many as you can fit over your tank without light "spillage" over the front & back. :D
 
H

Harmony Exotics

New Member
Thanks everyone! If I go with the Tek T5 fixture with 6 bulbs on my 75, will heat buildup be much of a problem?? Thats one thing that pushes me away from MH. I REALLY dont want to fork out cash for a chiller if i dont have to.
 
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