Lighting on a 75 Gallon

[taichimaster]

I currently have a 150watt sunpod. I plan to setup a 75 gallon. To save money, I was thinking of buying another 150watt sunpod to use in conjuction with the one i already have. Will this be enough lighting if I like to have clams and sps. Ideally, I would like to have two 250watt halides, but having only to buy one more unit instead of two is quite alot of money saved.

 

[preons]

I have 3x 250 watts MH on my 75


I think that 2x 250 would be best though

I have not noticed any improvement since adding the 3rd

there is too much light and it doesnt reall shimmer anymore.

plus the extra heat and electricity is bad.

imo i dont think I would by another 150 sunpod. I would buy one 250. 75's look pretty rad with one 250 centrally located.

 

[Holygral]

I run 2x 250 about 4 inches off the water, I run 2 cheap clip on fans, on on main and one on sump with temp controller and my tank never goes over 80 degrees. House temp runs 78-80. Have a mix reef with a claim and several anemones. Everything seems happy with that arrangement.

 

[freetareef]

if you are going to want sps corals to thrive then i would do the 250's. i have two 175's on my 75 and i'am looking for 250's.

 

[Scooterman]

I have a 250W mh on my 34g tank, 19" deep plus 4 HO T5's with individual reflectors about 3" off the water
All depends on what you plan on keeping, wanting for growth & colors. If you wanted you could go with a 6 or 8 bulb HO T5 unit also but what will you get in return may not be quite the same but it people are doing it a lot lately.

 

[taichimaster]

Thanks alot guys. I guess I might have to sell the 150watt sunpod and maybe get 250watt lumenarcs.

 

[returnofsid]

I agree with everyone above, but also want to suggest another option. I have a 6 bulb Tek 5 T5 fixture on my 75 and my SPS and clams are more than happy. The higher light demanding SPS are higher in the tank, but even lower, I'm having great results. I also have T. Derasa, T. Crocea and a Purple Sebae. The Derasa and Sebae are both at the bottom of the tank and happy as can be. The Croceas are about half way up.

Other than that, I don't think 150W halides will be enough light for that depth. You'll need the 250s to reach down deep.

 

[Scooterman]

I agree with everyone above, but also want to suggest another option.

Think I said that already LOL but good to have more input!

 

[preons]

t -5 are good but dont give you that shimmering effect that most people love about salt water aquariums.

once you get enough t5 for sps/clams, the light just looks totally uniform.

The upfront cost, heat and energy saving is worth it to the T5 people. And I hear some people actualy prefer the look

 

[Krish]

For the record, I ran dual 250w MH's when I had my 75gal as well. That was suggested to me pretty much by everyone here at the time as they said if I went with anything less, I'd regret it later. Just keep an eye on the temp

 

[taichimaster]

Thanks Krish,
I have a chiller and will probably put a few fans in the canopy. I don't think heat will be too much of an issue. hopefully my 75 will turn out good.