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Lighting a 210gallon AGA

mfisher2112

mfisher2112

What would you use?

This is a beast of a tank. I have a distinct feeling that lighting will probably be my most expensive equipment purchase.

If you were setting this tank up, mixed reef, what lighting would you use to light a beast this big? It's sitting in my living room empty staring at me as I type... Very sad. LOL!
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

How many and what size t5s are you going to be using for a tank that large?

I've had great success with T5s over 55, 75 and even 90 gallon tanks in the past. Wasn't sure they would be sufficient for a tank this large.
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

Yeah, I saw her tank. It's AMAZING. I guess my biggest concern is penetrating the depth of the 210 with 39watt bulbs. And the 80watt bulbs are only 60" long.
 
J

JerseyWendy

What are the dimensions of the tank? If it's not longer than 6', I would most definitely use T5s (80 Watters). If it's a 7 footer, I personally would probably resort to MHs as I personally wouldn't feel comfortable using 39 Watters side by side due to the depth. If it's an 8 footer I again would use T5s (54 Watts side by side).

Then again - it ALL depends on what you're planning on growing - and the placement of the corals. ;)
 
Nickjr000

Nickjr000

I have the same tank. 4- 250 mh ( 2- 12k, 2- 10k), and 2- vho 6' actinic. Looks great! Really depends on what you want to keep though. I know you said mixed reef and thats what i thought i was gonna do. But i know have sps all over the tank even near the bottom and they're growing nicely. Only a few softies here and there they're doing ok too. If your only keepin a few sps i'd go the t-5 route with some led for shimmer
 
ricwilli

ricwilli

I will also be trying MH in the future. I just want to start off with T5's. My tank will be mostly sps. So I will see how it goes.
 
J

JerseyWendy

mfisher2112 said:
Wendy, since those bulbs are 60", would you "stagger" them to get full coverage?
Click to expand...

You could, but you don't have to. I personally used the Tek Ready Fit Retros, and installed them right behind each other, without staggering them. We had to modify the canopy a slight bit (cut out some wood) in order to fit them all, but it was well worth the little effort. Lemme see if I can find a picture of my canopy.

Here you go:
IMG_1201.jpg
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

Very cool. Thanks for the pics.

The canopy on this tank is a beast (it's adesimone's old tank if that helps). The canopy stands almost 16" off the top of the tank, would you recomend hanging the retros to bring them down lower? Or do you think that extra distance off the surfaceis ok?
 
J

JerseyWendy

Wow, that is a deep canopy. I would lower them a bit, yes, especially since your tank is 29" deep. We actually lowered ours a bit as well by inserting wood first and attaching the retros to the wooden pieces. It also helps with circulating the hot air buildup.
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

Very good point on the heat. The canopy has some nice fans already mounted in it (thanks anthony and terry! LOL!)

I was considering trying to mount the lights on some sort of movable shelf, kind of like a keyboard shelf type thing, so that I could slide them in and out for easier maintenance.

Just looked up the dimensions on the fixtures. They are 3"wide by about 3.75" tall, so probably want to bring them down what, another 3 or 4 inches?

I'm also going to modify the canopy. My cielings are really low, and this canopy pivots in the center, so I'm going to sure that pivot up and modify the front decorative panel so that hinges up instead.

Don't know if you ever saw their tank or not, there was a thread around here somewhere that had pics.

Thanks for all your help, btw, your tank is beautiful, so I take your advice seriously.
 
J

JerseyWendy

Thanks, Matt.

Yes, 3-4" should be just fine. And yes, it will be a VERY snug fit for 8 X 80Watts. So snug, that the first and last reflectors bend just a wee bit, but not enough to keep any light out.

I've never seen Anthony's and Terry's tank in person when they had it up. I may have seen some pics though....trying to remember if I have or not.
 
mfisher2112

mfisher2112

Not the best pic, but you get the idea. Needs to be cleaned, and you can see theres only about 2" between the canopy and the cieling. Thus the need to modify the canopy a bit.

DSC05204.jpg
 
J

JerseyWendy

WOW - that is one gorgeous tank! LOVE the canopy and the stand. Very, very nice. You should have plenty of room to "play around" in that canopy with the lights and stuff. :)
 
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