Info on current-usa lights

T

thedocisin

Premium Member
I want to upgrade my 140 reef lighting. I currently have 4 96wPC and 2 150w 10K MH attached to the top of my in-wall tank. They are 2 1/2 feet above the water and I think I'm wasting a lot of wattage. I want a pendant system and was looking at the Outer Orbit system. Does anyone have experience with it? I was also looking for any thoughts on T-5s versus the traditional MH and PC configuration. Mark
 
Why are they 30" above the water? Lower those down to 9" and see the difference.
 
Just to add to Marc's post... I would lower the lights a little each day or two to acclimate the corals for the increased light. :D
 
I honestly think you can light a beautifull tank with T-5s. But as of right now I also don't think for the money anything else beats a good metal halide setup.
I guess right now you have the light fixtures mounted directly to the ceiling above that tank? In the end whatever you do, they should be about 8" above the water. But like they said, some how acclimate the corals slowly to the extra light or you will burn them. Either move the fixture slowly down, use temporary shade, lower the amount on time the lights are on, or a combination of all.
 
Problem is that they are bolted to the top of the hood with the aluminum reflector. To lower them I would need a whole new setup anyway.
 
I agree. Connect all of it to a shelf, and install brackets at various points within the cabinet. Lower the shelf to the height you'd prefer, and raise it up when you have a lot of work to do in there.

You'll be very pleased with how much light you'll get lowering it down where it belongs.

Btw, those MH bulbs are either 175w or 250w. I don't know of any SE bulbs that are 150w.
 
I have an outer orbit system on my personal tank and I have been very happy with it. I haven't had any problems with it.
 
Those don't look like 150 w mh bulbs. 150 w only come in hqi form and those that you have are mogul based. So they would be only 175, 250 or 400. I agree with everyone else and use the set up you have now just lowering it over time til it is 8 or 9 inches above water surface. Mh lighting are one of the best lighting set ups you can get for you tank in my opinion. One thing to think about as you lower the light set up is that your tank temp may go up slightly so keep an eye on that and add fans accordingly to bring down temp.
 
Don't I have do worry about covering the MH bulbs to prevent splashing if I lower them down? Also, thanks to all for pointing out that they are 175's.
 
Splashing is sometimes bad but unavoidalbe unless you cover you tank with glass lids which will cause tank temp to rise. It is also better to have some fresh air blowing across the water surface. You just have to keep an eye for busted bulbs. A lot of people have their bulbs close to water and not to many have had busted bulbs from splashing. It is just a luck thing and something that doesn't all the time.
 
9" to 12" off the water and your bulbs are usually safe from splashing. Unless you have a couple of mating Hippos like I do that love to do that nightly. Eggcrate on top of the tank can help reduce the splashing event.
 
My reflectors are mounted 10 1/2 " above the water. Which puts 5 metal halides bulbs 6 1/2" from water to the bottom of the bulbs. I have never had one break or crack. And at times they have been splashed with a fair amount of water. Not to say if you threw a bucket of cold water one it wouldn't crack. But I think they are pretty hardy under normal conditions.
 
If your super worried about the splashing use DE bulbs in a pendant that is shielded like a PFO. This has glass in between the bulb and the water. This doesn't ereally help in your case since you already have SE but for everyone else. I totally agree with making something to lower them down. Just a waste of light in the current setup.

Also agree with rick that bang for buck you cannotr beat MH. Even on a softy or other tank it is worth it to go with a low wattage 14k or 20k halide and then you have only a couple bulbs that need repalcing once a year instead of many bulbs that have to be replaced every 6 months!
 
On a slightly different note, I am wondering how many actinics to use. It seems that all the 36-48 inch light hoods use only 2 actinics. I have squeezed 4 96w PCs into my hood and wonder if the extra blue is purely aesthetic or if more actinic is better. Assuming 2 175-250 w MHs.
 
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