Lighting Upgrade

[Ziggy953]

Hey gang! I'm getting ready to take the plunge and upgrade from PC to MH with VHO actinics. I have a 75gal reef, I cant decide if I should go with the dual 175 or dual 250. (The VHO will be 220w 2 bulbs 4') I need some advice. Should I go with the 250 giving me about 9.6 w/per gal or just the 175 at 7.6 w/per gal??? Would love to hear what you guys think!

Thanks in advance!!

[lando]

What would you like to keep? Persoanlly, i thing the 2x175 would be plenty for almost anything.

[Hara]

I agree with lando..that would be plenty. One thing alot of folks don't consider is the amount of money it takes to run those MH lamps. The 175 will cost you alot less than the 250's.

[Ziggy953]

Good point! Overall costs are pushing me towards the 175s!! Thanks for the input!! As far as what I would like to keep, I'd like to includes some SPS corals that require higher lighting. Because of the cost of this hobby I was forced to start out a bit on the lower end of the light scale, which has limited the types of corals I have even looked at. I plan to, over the next few months, build a 2 stage sump fuge system and get rid of the 3 different tanks I'm using as sump fuge and skimmer tank. Cleaner lines and easier to keep clean. You know how it goes, you see something and you want to star upgrading your setup! My wife thinks I'm nuts but that's ok. Anyway I've gotten off the subject. I would like to have a more diverse reef and I want to see to it that my setup will support what ever I deciede to add to it.

Again thanks for the input I agree with you both on the 175's!!!