Metal Halides vs. T5's

K

kebber1223

I just wanted a second opinion from my own thoughts for lighting on my 20 gallon long tank. I have currently, 6 LED strips from Panorama and 28 watts of T5's totaling 100 watts. I have some SPS, but mostly LPS corals. Should I invest in a 150 or 175 watt MH with PC or T5 combo light system, or am I fine. The corals are open nicely, but I am sure that they could expand some more. Also, want to have them grow. All parameters like pH, dKH, etc are great.

Any advice would be helpful.

JB
 
I would think what you have is fine but more information on the LED's and lighting schedule would be helpful.
I have 4 24" T5HO's on a 29g, it's okay for softies and some LPS but not enough for sps

Coral PE for SPS isn't that dependent on amount of light as long as there is enough. PE is more determined by flow for asperation and constant high quality water parameters
LPS PE can be driven by light but usually the lower the light the more PE as they will expand to increase their surface area.

Overall I don't think you can beat growth and color from MH's. The issue is cost and heat. On smaller tanks, like your 20g, even a single 175w MH may be an over kill if too close. If you do decide to go with a MH get a good pendent reflector so you can hang it about a foot above the water level and use a fan, otherwise you will be fighting heat issues, the corals suffer and you defeat the purpose.
 
I am curious as to what you went with. I had 4 x 24w T5HO's on my 20g long. It was OK for zoanthids and LPS. The SPS did not grow.

I am still trying to figure out a lighting system for 30".
 
I am running a 150watt ViperK2 fixture over my 20g long frag tank. This is the one with the fan built in. I just concentrate my sps in the middle directly beneath the light and lps and lower light corals towards the edges of the middle.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top