You convinced me to do it, now you gotta help me. 46bow reef planning phase

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I hear lots of offers and see little progress. It seems to me that Neilan is holding all you good people up!

FWIW I have that one DE 250 over my 29 gallon. I really don't notice the ends being too dark or much heat build up. I think your tank is 6" longer, not sure if that is enough to make a difference or not.

This weekend seems like a good weekend to get started :rolleyes:
 
I'm working this saturday, unfortunately.

I think I do want to go with a canopy, in which case I'll probably retro into that. In my mind, the 2x175 is a better solution than a 1x250, but cost wise it might be better to go with 1x250 also. Haven't looked that closely yet. I'll prob go retro T5HO for the actinic supplementation (even though I realize it's not 100% necessary, I like the look). I've read pros and cons on DE vs. SE, and initially reacted by wanting to go SE due to not having to be concerned about a UV screen (kids and all). Thoughts?

Yes Sparky, mine is 6" longer than a 29g. Just for reference the dimensions are 36x16x21, but the bow pushes out several inches from the 16" width in the center, to 20" I believe.
 
Just about any glass acts as a uv screen. The se lamps have an envelope that serves as a screen so you can get away without the glass cover on the fixture. The DE provide a smaller profile and allow for more ventilation room in the canopy.

You need a glass screen even for the tank as I understand it anyway.
 
I don't think so, I thought the preferred was open top.

I'll start looking at retro kits. Other than hellolights, where else should I investigate?

I looked at hellolights, and for their base level MH retro, the difference in price between a 175W and a 250W is $4... am I missing something? If this is true, should I be looking at 2x250? or too much heat?


I also went and investigated some BR at marcorocks. 50 pounds is $129. At F&S, 45 pounds of fiji standard LR is $90. where's the savings in BR?
 
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lol I wish some of you guys lived near me when I was starting up... I wouldn't have spent so much MOOLAH on stuff i didn't need lol.

congrats on deciding to do a SW tank.. i swear I dont know what I was doing before I had this tank, its like a totally new freaky obsession and I love it.
 
Thanks for the link Scott.

I'll keep looking around for LR, but if I can get 45lbs from F&S for $90 it's worth the extra few bucks IMO. That's assuming I go for the fiji standard stuff, though.

Sparky, I was under the impression that the SE bulbs include the UV "screen" in the glass that encompasses the bulb. Is that not correct?
 
You are right about the SE bulbs.

I don't think it would be a good idea to go with 2x250 on your tank. I have enough light on a 72 with 2x175 to house anything I want. The cost of your T5 retro shipped is more then you can get it from BRK. I think a 36" dual kit is $108. I was going to order mine from Hellolights as well but BRK had it for the same price and I didn't have to pay the shipping to get it.

Look on Ebay for your lights MH that is. I ordered mine from ebay a dual 175 and paid $160 for it. Mine is a magnetic ballast rather then electric so there is a hum to it. Mine is a PFO.
 
BRK it is then. They don't do MH setups too? If they have those good prices on T5 perhaps they do on MH too?

Are there advantages to DE that I'd be missing out on? Are the no-name brands on ebay ok? I don't see much other than bulbs.
 
After about six months now, hind sight... I would have gotten all my rock at the same time. I bought a little here and there from 4 different FS, due to finances. What I did learn from that mistake other than do it all at once is that not all LR is created equal. The best rock I got was called Florida aquacultured. It had the coolest hitchhikers. I know the risk of bad hitchhikers is greater with this rock but I got lucky and did not have any bad ones. But the good squirts, mussles, sponges, worms and corals that came with it are TERRIFIC!!! I wish I could get rid of the other rock I purchased and buy all Florida aquacultured. I have a thumb size orange sea squirt beautiful orange and yellow and chicken liver sponges. I have lots of good macro algae too like Halimedia (sp?) and others. It is beautiful and my tank looks mature beyond its age. That is my only recommendation:) Have fun
 
I am not sure if he is talking about the aquacultured rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater. I've seen pics of this stuff and a video about how they culture it and it truly looks like amazing rock. Shipping was an issue for me though, and I got all my rock locally.
 
mandown123 said:
I am not sure if he is talking about the aquacultured rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater. I've seen pics of this stuff and a video about how they culture it and it truly looks like amazing rock. Shipping was an issue for me though, and I got all my rock locally.
Click to expand...

Shipping is a bear because TBS's aqua-cultured live rock is shipped in water, so there's minimal die-off in transit. Most of the shipping cost is the weight; all the rock submerged in sea water.
I use the aqua-cultured live rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater because I endeavor to use as much aqua and mari-cultured items in my aquariums as I can, for obvious reasons. And that makes the rock worth the cost to me.

Dave
 
Yes that is the stuff. I got mine at a pet store in fort collins co. but I know it is the tampa bay saltwater stuff. I actually ordered some more straight from their web site the other day. Shipping was not that bad. I payed 60 bucks for 25# of rock and a bunch of other things, snails and I just ordered my first star fish from them and a couple more hermit crabs. You have to go to the airport to pick it up but to me that was not that big of a deal because our airport is small. The shipping was cheaper than the cost of gas to drive to fort collins. I will let you know how it looks when it gets here. I loved it in the FS because I picked ones with way cool squirts and sponges and everything is still doing well. I figured I would loose some of that stuff because my tank was still new. They are all still alive and well. I have see the video you are talking about. Fast forward through the boring stuff and the rock it shows is just what I got only I think mine may have been better. More orange and yellow and macro algae. The cost of the rock is only $5.00 a pound so the shipping does not hurt so bad. Check them out. I am a little worried about the distance mine has to come. I made arrangements to not have them send it until next week.
 
neilanh said:
I found this this morning (yes,I'm working hard today).

Aquatic Lighting Systems, offering metal halide, halide lighting, ballasts and halide bulbs, and retrofit kits. Come see us for your entire aquarium and other aquatic lighting needs.

Good price (even though bulb is crap). I dunno anything about ballasts though. Thoughts?
Click to expand...
I bought the same ballast on Ebay, brand new, for $40 shipped. It's a good magnetic ballast. Check out BallastWise for electronic MH ballasts. You can get 1 from there for about $60. There prices are great. I bought my electronic VHO ballast from there.
A mogul base socket from your local electrical supply will cost about $5.
They want $68 for an upgraded bulb, but they don't say what brand bulb it is. That kit doesn't include a reflector. You can get a reflector w/mogul base for $30 from HelloLights.

I tried Ebay cheapo bulbs and IMO, you get what you pay for. They are junk.

The only difference, beside the wattages, between a SE and DE bulb is the SE bulb in encased in a uv resistant sleeve. You need to have a reflector with a uv resistant sheild (glass) with a DE bulb.
 
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