Would you share your MH with me?

F

FranktheTank

Premium Member
Hi everyone,

The hardest thing I've had to do thus far for my 36g Corner is determine what MH lighting to use. Obviously, since so much $$$ is committed to this part of a reef tank I'd like to gather as much information as possible in making the right choice for me.

What I would like to ask is... Would you share your tank with me? Perhaps open your home to me to come by and view your tank & the lighting combo you use. Pictures posted here would be fine as well... but sometimes cameras fail to capture the exact lighting.

I live in N. Richland Hills... near Keller & Watagua. I also frequent the Flower Mound, HEB & Grapevine area often. So anyone in these areas I would love to see your tanks & help me make the choice for me.

Finally, my criteria is simple. I'm looking for tanks with blue tints. Perhaps 14k & up only. I will be running a pendant over my 36g Corner w/o actinic supplementation. So I want that blue/actinic look from the MH bulb alone. I realize some of you may have actinic supplementation... which you might be kind enough to turn off for pictures or for a visit.

Thank you so much w/ your help. Just let me know if you would be glad to help.
 
@bdare wrote:
I say you can't go wrong with a Phoenix 14K on an IceCap ballast. said:
Honestly, I'm really leaning towards that combo. I've already thought about it so many times. I've seen some pictures that look really nice with that combo. I would love to see one up close too. Anyone have this combo?
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I'll try to get a picture later. Currently, I'm supplementing with 2 T5s. I'm using a Blue+ and an Aquablue. I LOVE the look. Makes it MUCH brighter and gives the corners more light.
 
I wish statements like "I love my set up" helped me... but in all honesty, they don't. Your likes & my likes may be totally different. I haven't heard very good things about Hamilton bulbs either.

I really could use pictures and/or invites to see your tank. Thanks!
 
Fank,

I am in NRH. I have a 400 20k XM and a 250 reeflux over the reef right now. I also have a T5 over my frag tank. Youre welcome to come by.
 
Frank,
I'm actually Running 2 x 250W Reefoptics 14K's with a pair of lumatek ballasts and Simple spider reflectors. The cost of the bulbs is low (35 bucks) and the ballasts are in the 100-120 range each.
If you've been to Franks Tanks in FW, the tank you see as you walk in the door is running a similar setup. It's a Nice Blue color that's not too blue.
When I can get my acrylic cleaned. I'll snap a couple of Pics for you.
 
@chrisT wrote:
Fank said:
Chris,

Thank you for the kind offer. I would love to come by and check out your set up. I'll pm you and maybe we can work the details out.

Russ... I believe I know which tank you are talking about. This used to be his BB tank. If so, I'm looking for a little more blue than his tanks offer. Actually, his tank to the right (kind of behind the cash register) is closer to the color I'm hoping to achieve. However, I believe he has some sort of complete hood with 3xMH & T5's on that.

I'm looking for a very rich blue/actinic look. The XM 20k was a DE bulb on my list.
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@FranktheTank wrote:
[I]@chrisT wrote:[/I][quote="Fank said:
Chris,

Thank you for the kind offer. I would love to come by and check out your set up. I'll pm you and maybe we can work the details out.

Russ... I believe I know which tank you are talking about. This used to be his BB tank. If so, I'm looking for a little more blue than his tanks offer. Actually, his tank to the right (kind of behind the cash register) is closer to the color I'm hoping to achieve. However, I believe he has some sort of complete hood with 3xMH & T5's on that.

I'm looking for a very rich blue/actinic look. The XM 20k was a DE bulb on my list."]

Frank,

I used the 20K XM DE on my Paly tank and still needed to add ATI Blue Plus t-5s to it to get the pop I wanted. The XM 20K is blue, but its not very intense. I found it very similar to the hamilton 14K or the pheonix 15K I used previously.

I don't know what your plan is, but I have found that halides alone rarely give the coloration or pop I want or need so have always ended up with t-5 or vho supplementation.

In my 90G I went away from halides completely and went all t-5 with the ATI powermodule and couldn't be happier. If I upgrade to a larger tank for my main system in the future, I will seriously consider going t-5 in that as well, if for no other reason, the ability to fine tune the coloration with the bulb combos t-5 affords. Its easier to get the coloration with 6 or 8 bulbs than with 2 or 3 MH's.

If you want to see the 20K over the 45, you're welcome to stop by.
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Dave,

Thanks! I have given T5's some thought in the past. I know I could probably put a 6 bulb T5 fixture over my 36g and get some great colors.

But a corner has funny dimensions. While it will no doubt accept a 24" fixture... the very corners would allow spill over both front & back for a small section until the tank widened.

What do you think about that? Is it ok to have a little spill over?
I have looked at some TEK & ATI light sets.
 
@FranktheTank wrote:
Dave said:
Sure, a bit of spill over won't effect the tank or livestock. What matters in that is the 'curb appeal' of the tank. If that is going to bother you on a daily basis for example. My 90 is a corner tank as well and I do have some spill over on the back with the 36" fixture I have over it, but up front its fine and since the spill over goes against the walls I dont' mind it. If it was multiple inches over though, that would probably irritate me.
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You know what... after speaking with the GrimReefer on RC, I may do a 24" Aquactinic TX5. It's only 9 1/2" wide which is a perfect match at the outer edges of my 36g Corner. It's actively cooled & has solid individual reflectors. It would be a real nice fit hanging over my tank. I'm pretty pumped about this light fixture!
 
Sure...

http://www.aquactinics.com/pages/TX5.html

http://www.aquacave.com/24-tx5-5-lamp-t5br-fixture-by-aquactinics-1587.html

I really like this fixture.
 
@FranktheTank wrote:
Sure... http://www.aquactinics.com/pages/TX5.html http://www.aquacave.com/24-tx5-5-lamp-t5br-fixture-by-aquactinics-1587.html I really like this fixture. said:
Nice... is 4 bulbs going to be enough for you?
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@DaveJ wrote:
[I]@FranktheTank wrote:[/I][quote="Sure... http://www.aquactinics.com/pages/TX5.html http://www.aquacave.com/24-tx5-5-lamp-t5br-fixture-by-aquactinics-1587.html I really like this fixture. said:
Nice... is 4 bulbs going to be enough for you?"]
It's 5 bulbs. I think 5 would be enough for zoo's & ric's. The clams should be fine.
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