Lighting Question

[Thumper]

I have a 150 tank and I'm about to upgrade the lighting. I want enough light to have corals and I currently only have about 100 watts of flourence lighting which i know is not nearly enough. I'm looking at installing 3 250 watt 12,000 K metal halides and was wanting to know if this was going to be enough lighting. I currently only have 3 fish and a some mushrooms. Tell me what you think please.

 

[captivereefs]

That will be adequate for most anything you want to keep!

 

[austinsdad]

I agree that with 5 watts per gallon, you can keep almost anything. I've never used MH lighting, but have heard that they can get hot. Faster water evap/more frequent topoffs. Maybe even a chiller might be needed.

Might wanna check those considerations too. You may not have to go that far for many corals. Plan on doing hards?

 

[Thumper]

I plan on softs at first but my problem is that I've had LFS tell me one , and three metal halides lights, so I'm confused and was wanting to here from someone who has allready done it themselves. I love the way the MH make the water look sparkly and clear and want a lot of coral in it as well. I'm just lost on this lighting thing. In your oppinion will the 3 lights generate to much heat? Will I need a chiller and or fans. As you know this is an expensive hobby and I want to get this expensive part done right the first time is possible.

 

[austinsdad]

Check out my profile. I'm at 3.5w per gallon and doing fine with the corals listed. Gotta healthy clam too. And like I said, I'm not one to advise on the MHs, but I've seen some say they do create a need for more frequent topoffs and maybe a chiller.