Metal Halide Question

[Reef Newb]

So I have a quick question.

I currently have a biocube 29gallon and I have added a 70w Metal halide to it inbetween the two 36w CF actinics. Although I have found that when I come to corals I have been drawn to the beauty of SPS corals mainly. I have a 70w MH 10k ushio bulb right now and as far as colors I am pretty happy with it. I was wondering what everyones thoughts are on having just the 70w MH.

I was thinking about replacing it with a 150w MH or adding a second 70w MH? Which would be better?

Also if I do add a 150w instead are the bulb holders from the 70w the same size? and would they work if I just changed the bulb and ballast?

I know that both of these options will increase the heat and right now i have a few computer fans that I have built into the hood so to keep them in check and my tank has been staying relatively stable at 77 - 79 degrees. But with the added heat I may have to look into a chiller....I am hoping that is a last resort though.

[lReef lKeeper]

if you want acros ... i would go for a 175w or 250w MH over the 70w or even 2x70w MHs. i would go for the 250w personally. it sounds like a lot, but in all reality ... it is only 8.62 watts per gallon (bad way to estimate it). a BC29, IIRC, is a fairly tall tank ... the 250w will penetrate it very nicely.

[Reef Newb]

Wow a 250w glad I asked..do they make 250w Double ended bulbs? I want to keep the stock hood of the Biocube on, which i would not be able to do with a mougul style bulb. Also worried about the heat a 250 would make for the plastic hood.... So two 70w MH not worth the trouble and If I am going to do it anyway might as well be a 250w?

The biocube doesnt seem to be too deep, its 19.25" deep without the sand and the hood is only about 1.5" - 2" abouve the water surface. Also the BC 29 is actually only about 24 gallons of water making the 250w MH more like 10.2 watts per gallon not includingthe 2 CF 36w actinics.

[lReef lKeeper]

i thought it was deeper than that. lets let Pearson give his opinion on this. he had a 24g nano with a halide that he recently tore down.

[Reef Newb]

Sounds good thank you very much :)

[CarmieJo]

Pearson's was a hang on tank type light and I think 150 watts over a NC12. I don't know that you would melt the hood but I would think that the heat could make it brittle and prone to cracking.

[PhotoJohn]

I would remove the hood. It will also trap the heat from the light and cook the tank. Taking the hood off will let it breather a bit and allow for some fans

[Phurst]

Yes, mine was over a 12 gal, and wasn't integrated into the hood. I think a 150w HQI would be sufficient, especially that close to the water. You'd be able to keep just about anything you want up high in the tank, and probably lower light SPS such as montipora capricornis and digitata all the way tot he bottom.

I want to say the 150w DE bulbs are slightly longer than the 70w, but I've never seen a 70w bulb in person so I'm not positive. i can pretty much guarantee you're going to have heat issues with the 150 in a closed hood though. I'd strongly recommend a "clip on" like the viper or Coralife Aqualight, or a "stand on" like the sunpod if you're going 150. Either that, or look into a drop-in or probe style chiller.

As far as keeping the PC lights, that's going to be personal preference. To my eye, 10k needs actinic suplimentation, but I like the blue look. The corals will be fine with or without them.

[Reef Newb]

Thank you. I only want to keep the hood for know as my 14 month old daugter is learning how to climb and throw things :) and also with 3 cats around I just would like to be safe with the hood. I was looking at the ice probe chillers and they say that they are only good for a 20 gallon or smaller tank. I guess the only other option would be a small chiller that I can plum into the system :( I will have to look into all of this and do some investigating. Thank you all for your help.

So it sounds like a 150watt MH would be the best bet for my biocube to be SPS dominated correct?

[CarmieJo]

You may also want to check out http://www.talkingreef.com/forums/member-tank-projects/5394-jasonanatal-s-jbj-28-gallon-nano-cube-hqi-nano-reef-aquarium.html (http://www.talkingreef.com/forums/member-tank-projects/5394-jasonanatal-s-jbj-28-gallon-nano-cube-hqi-nano-reef-aquarium.html?)

[Reef Newb]

I have been following his build thread I love his tank..... wish I could set mine up like his......but unfortunately life right now wont let me devote as much resources to my tank as I would like. I am planning my next tank already though but that will be a little ways off. :) Thanks for your help :) I will start looking into some of my cooling options and see if the 150w MH would be possible.

[Reef Newb]

ok so I have looked into some of my cooling options, and I have found a few fairly decent deals on the JBJ 1/10th and 1/15 HP chillers. I think I may go that route. Although today while avoiding actually working while at work I found a deal locally for a pair of ice probe chillers from coolworks. Does anyone have any experience with these. The guy selling them seems to thing that the pair will drop my temps down about 5 - 8 degrees. That seems a little exaggerated from some of the info I have seen online, hopefully someone here will have some thoughts on these chillers.

Thanks in advance.

[Reef Newb]

Hi everyone, well i have figured out a cooling situation and I will finish building it this weekend and post pictures if anyone is interested. But basically I built a riser for my hood that takes the hood of the biocube and raises it 4.5" and cut holes big enough for 4 80mm PC fans. I also left the back area open so that I can organize the cords back there. I tested it last weekend and my tank stayed at 77 degrees with the heater on all the time, this was while the temp in the room was about 84. I also ordered the JBJ auto top off for the tank as i am now evaporating a lot more water. So now it is time for the light. I think I am going to go with a 150w MH setup and leave my CF actinics in as well. But my question was that since I have raised the hood up almost 5" will the 150w penetrate to the bottom of the tank well enough or with the riser idea did I make it so a 250w MH would be a more viable option? Also what bulb brand do you recommend? I have a 10k ushio currently and I really like the color so I want to stay with the 10k temp. But if there is a bulb that is more conducive to growth or just better I am all ears. Thank you for all your help and suggestions.

[Phurst]

The 150 will still be fine. No worries there.

[Reef Newb]

Great, Thats what i was hoping for. Any bulb recommendations? Im using ushio now, but is there something better in the 10k double ended variety that I should splurge for?

[lReef lKeeper]

coralvue REEFLUX !!

[Reef Newb]

Thanks for the bulb recomendation...I just finished my very long project of installing the 150w MH into my hood and building a 4 inch riser for the hood and installing a few computer fans into the hood. And when I fired it up with that bulb the resulting color was very very good. So I just wanted to say thank you again. I will try and get some pictures of the setup as soon as I get a new camera...I dont think my camera phone will be good enough.

So thank you again.