How deep is a 175 good for?

[ragman]

Setting up a new 55 and will have mostly SPS's in it. The tank came with twin 175 MH, wondering if anyone knows what the depth recommendations for 175, 250, and 400 respectively. The tank is about 16 inches deep, the 175's should work, just looking for some opinions.

 

[kevinpo]

Hello,
It really depends on the type of corals to be kept and the coral coloration you are looking for. That being said here is a basic rule of thumb for SPS corals. This is the distance from the bulb to the coral. If the bulb is hung at 9" then subtract that from the distance to get the placement under water.

175W - 18"
250W - 18"-24"
400W - 24-36"

Regards,
Kevin

 

[ragman]

That is about what I figured, thanks.