Using Triton/Blue Moon lighting? Please share experience!

[ouderbear]

I have a 90 gallon FOWLR tank and a 4" deep sand bed. I have always had the goal of eventually making it a reef. I am a frequent visitor to the GARF site ( www.garf.org ) and have always found good info there. One of the products they mention repeatedly are these Triton & Blue Moon florescent lights. They say in a couple of different articles that they use these lights with all types of SPS and soft corals as well as anenomes with success (2 Tritons & 1 Blue Moon for every 55 gallons).
I would really like some confirmation (or denial) of this info before I go ahead and set up a lighting system. Any info/experience is greatly appreciated!

[reefrunner69]

What type of bulbs are they? NO, HO or VHO? I have serious doubts about using these with SPS corals or even most LPS corals.

[possum]

im pretty sure they are just NO bulbs

[loganj]

They are NO bulbs. They are using them on 55gal tanks with mostly soft corals in them. GARF will tell you they have gotten the best growth with VHO tubes. A 90 is a pretty deep tank and I don't think NO lighting is going to be an option for you if you want to keep any photosynthetic inverts. IMO, 440w of VHO is going to be about the least you'll want to use. You might also use T-5's. If you have any desire to keep SPS or clams, you're probably going to need MH...my guess would be two 250w fixtures.

[ouderbear]

I can't afford MH right now, plus I know they eat up a lot more electricity ( more $$). My 90 gal. is 24" deep but 4" of that is sand and it is probably 1" down from the top. That leaves me with 19" of water. My options are T5, VHO or PC. Suggestions?

[possum]

Well from what i can tell t-5 isnt much cheaper than MH. Plus you would have alot more bulbs to replace.

[loganj]

Originally Posted by ouderbear

I can't afford MH right now, plus I know they eat up a lot more electricity ( more $$).

Not really that much more...and it really depends on what you want to keep. If you end goal is SPS, anemones, clams, ect... , it'll cost you a lot more in the long run to upgrade to MH later if you put a high powered fluorescent system in now.

My 90 gal. is 24" deep but 4" of that is sand and it is probably 1" down from the top. That leaves me with 19" of water. My options are T5, VHO or PC. Suggestions?

My suggestion would be 4 48" VHO's with an Icecap ballast and a good reflector. You'll probably need fans as well. Although you could go with PC's and get the same wattage, I don't think it will benefit you that much. Startup cost will be higher as well. It's just really easy to put VHO on a 48" tank. If you have a canopy, you can get 46.5" bulbs that still give you 110 watts each.
http://www.championlighting.com/e/en...ucts/Lighting/vho.html?link=/Products/productinfo.html&item=main:446
(you may have to cut and paste the above link due to the acronym description)

http://www.hellolights.com/4654lamvhore.html (about $250 with bulbs)

The following will get you two 250w MH retros for $100 more than the cheaper VHO system...somthing to think about anyway.
http://www.hellolights.com/25methalretk.html

[reefrunner69]

My suggestion would be 4 48" VHO's with an Icecap ballast and a good reflector

My first reef was a 90g w/ 440W of VHO lighting, with that set up I could keep just about everything but SPS, I had a clam in it (T. crocea), but I kept it towards the top of the tank and don't recommend it (it did much better in it's next aquarium with more light. Here is a pic of the tank, glad my photography skills and equipment have improved over the last 8 years, LOL.