NJRees
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I'm looking into lighting for a 48' 75gal tank. FOWLR currently, but want to upgrade the lights for corals. I have found some decent internet options, but was wondering if there was anyplace around town with reasonable light prices.
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lighting suggestions (1 Viewer)
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G
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Most of the LFS in town have competitive pricing on lighting. You can save a bit of $ by shopping online if you choose, but you'll miss out on meeting and dealing with some very nice, very helpful people in our LFS owners and staffs.
One of the easiest and most affordable way to upgrade your lighting is to go with VHO. You can put 440 watts of VHO over your tank which will allow you to keep all but the most light-hungry sps out there, (but that's a matter of much debate). An IceCap 660 ballast will cost about $170+/-. End caps and bulbs vary greatly in cost, but a setup of 4-110W bulbs with endcaps should run you in the neighborhood of $150-$180. Drop these into a DIY canopy and you have a great light setup for under $350.
There are other ways to go, certainly. This is just my suggestion. Good luck.
One of the easiest and most affordable way to upgrade your lighting is to go with VHO. You can put 440 watts of VHO over your tank which will allow you to keep all but the most light-hungry sps out there, (but that's a matter of much debate). An IceCap 660 ballast will cost about $170+/-. End caps and bulbs vary greatly in cost, but a setup of 4-110W bulbs with endcaps should run you in the neighborhood of $150-$180. Drop these into a DIY canopy and you have a great light setup for under $350.
There are other ways to go, certainly. This is just my suggestion. Good luck.
NJRees
Guest
Thanks for the idea. Would I need to have a cooling fan in something like that?
Wildfire
Guest
I would recommend a cooling fan, but if you go IceCap ballasts and leave a goot ventilation matrix above the bulbs (assuming you mount the ballasts either outside of the canopy (I like mine on top) or somewhere else remote) then you won't have to worry about cooling the bulbs as much, say, as with MH lighting.
I had a 300 G tank with 8 VHO bulbs powered by IC660s and it went really well for me. I also saw a nice show at boudster's during the frag swap that was lit by only VHOs. It gives a much softer light than a MH, but you miss the "waves" that MH lights generate. It depends on teh style and type of view that you are going for.
I had a 300 G tank with 8 VHO bulbs powered by IC660s and it went really well for me. I also saw a nice show at boudster's during the frag swap that was lit by only VHOs. It gives a much softer light than a MH, but you miss the "waves" that MH lights generate. It depends on teh style and type of view that you are going for.
