Quote:
Originally Posted by Dominick
I'm going DIY on mine only problem is I do not know how many MH bulbs and
what wattage they need to be I will also have CF lights that will come on first
before the MH.
Using a aquarium calc its about 360 gal tank 8 foot long and only 2 foot deep
and im going to have a reef live rock fish the whole 9yards.
Any suggestions as far as MH total wattage how many bulbs and what wattage per?
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MH bulbs typically cover a 2'x2' area..so an 8' tank would need 4 to cover the entire area. If you are going for a full blown reef you may want to look at using something other then
CF as your actinic supplement. T5s or VHOs would work better.
If your tank is 24" tall then you could get away with 250w MHs. I have a 120 that is 24" tall and I use 2 175w
MH with T5s and VHOs. If you are wanting more light demanding corals and clams then you may want to look at a combination of 250s and 400s. I know of a tank that has 2 400's in the center with 250s on either end. That allows you to have the more light demanding corals in the center of the tank and the other corals on the ends.
As for DIYing your lighting it's a great idea. I would buy ballasts that are already made for
MH bulbs though. Icecap is one of the best options out there though a little pricey. PFO is another good option. It all depends on if you want magnetic or electronic ballast. Magnetic hum where as elctronic do not. Magnetic are usually larger and produce a lot of heat and the electronic ballasts are smaller and don't produce as much heat.