Yet another MH queston!

[crash519]

I hate to beat a dead horse, but I need everyones educated opinions. My tank is a 58 gal. Oceanic show. It is 36" long and 20" deep. I will have a 2"-3" deep sand bed cutting the depth to 17-18".

I was set on doing 2-175w magnetic and ready to order when the thought hit me Why not go with a single ELECTRONIC 250w? More efficient, can run any bulb, and when I upgrade to a larger tank (everyone does eventually) I'll already be one step ahead of the game.

My only concern is the rule of thumb of one bulb per 2' of tank length. Am I going to end up with dark areas on the ends of my tank? Is a single 250 enough for a 58 gal? I was going to go with a 12 or 14K bulb to eliminate the need for actinics.

Thanks in advance!

 

[reefrunner69]

If placed high enough it will give you coverage, but the ends are going to be less intense. You would want to keep lower light corals on the ends, or you would need to go with 2 bulbs. I would put it about 10-12" off the surface of the water.

 

[sumphead]

Maybe he'll jump in here, but brndfrb has one 250W on a 36" 65G and it looks amazing. It's probably close to 12" from the top.

 

[brndfrb]

yeah i have the one 250 and it is GREAT