duncan-junkie Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Hey guys, My DIY LED's decided to take a swim in my tank, so I decided to go with MH this time. I have a lot of sps, and wanted your guys openion. I have never even though about trying MH before, but I needed a quick fix, and found a great deal on a fixture made for my BC29! The fixture is a coralife 150 HQI with a 14K Pheonix bulb. NOW.......my question.....I was able to grow SPS on the sand bed, and I'm unsure if thats possible with this MH fixture. Can someone let me know if I need to move all my SPS up in the tank? My red planet was browing out once my LED's took the swim, so with the new 14k Pheonix bulb, will it color up again, or should I move it entirely? Also, the fixture is about 8-10 inches off the water, is that sufficent? The LED's were up for about a month after they took a dunk in my tank, and in that time my Maxima clam died.....I had it for about 10 months, so I know it was getting enough light from the LED's, then I noticed some of my more light demanding corals start to brown out. So I know for sure that I'm not having water quality issues! Ive seen alot of tanks lit with MH, and the SPS have the most vibrent colors I have ever seen, and thats what I want!!! Link to comment
farkwar Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Hot.Buy a chiller Brown corals = water quality problems. Did you mean something else. Link to comment
duncan-junkie Posted September 15, 2014 Author Share Posted September 15, 2014 I just put up the MH fixture, so its not too hot.....and like I said, its not a water quality issue. The corals browned out when my LED's fell in the water, and weren't putting out as much PAR anymore since they were ruined. Should I move my SPS that are on the sandbed up higher, or will the HQI be able to reach the sandbed? Link to comment
NorthGaHillbilly Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 MH are not as hot as many folks like to claim, that being said, they put the heat DOWN into the tank, but if you run a pendant and not a canopy its not much of a problem. I cant say what kind of PAR change your corals are going to get, but to be safe I would start with it higher than you have it and slowly move it down. Id rather brown corals over white ones Link to comment
duncan-junkie Posted September 15, 2014 Author Share Posted September 15, 2014 MH are not as hot as many folks like to claim, that being said, they put the heat DOWN into the tank, but if you run a pendant and not a canopy its not much of a problem. I cant say what kind of PAR change your corals are going to get, but to be safe I would start with it higher than you have it and slowly move it down. Id rather brown corals over white ones Thank you, unfortunatley the fixture is attached with a goose neck on the back of my biocube 29, but I will start by either slowly increasing the photoperiod every week, or adding a few layers of glass to the top of the tank, and removing a layer every week or so. My corals seem pretty happy, I'm getting great PE, and I'm also seeing some new colors jump out on a few frags. I'm assuming it will take a while for a browned out coral to get its color back.......nothing good ever happens fast in a reef tank......story of my life!!! Link to comment
atrox Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 So good to see someone else join the dark side, us halide users lurk in the shadows but our numbers are strong. Did seller tell you age of bulb? With that light you can put the sps any where you like. Keep any eye on you're evaporation rate, make sure the glass shield is in place, and never touch bulb directly. You will enjoy the hassle free operation of halides. Phoenix 14k are great bulbs, those and radiums. Link to comment
NorthGaHillbilly Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 I've taken to shading specific corals from above to acclimate to my lighting, probably not a problem with your sps, but keep an eye on your lps to make sure there not shrinking up from too much light Link to comment
duncan-junkie Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 So good to see someone else join the dark side, us halide users lurk in the shadows but our numbers are strong. Did seller tell you age of bulb? With that light you can put the sps any where you like. Keep any eye on you're evaporation rate, make sure the glass shield is in place, and never touch bulb directly. You will enjoy the hassle free operation of halides. Phoenix 14k are great bulbs, those and radiums. Yes, Ive joined the dark side!!! The seller said the bulb had about a month of use on it.....and I have no idea how to tell, but worst case, I would just buy a new one. I'm very excited, I can already see colors that I couldn't see with the LED's. Right now the bulb is 9" from the water, not sure if thats a good spot, but I'm not seeing any of my sps bleach, so I'm gonna give it a shot. Link to comment
atrox Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 My bulbs are closer than that you should be fine with that height. You'll notice corals really taking on new growth with the halides. Link to comment
Spenseriana Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Been thinking of buying the same light. Probably because I feel the halides look better to me than all but the most expensive LED units (which are out of my price range). Maybe it's be easier to find deals on MH systems now... Link to comment
NorthGaHillbilly Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Been thinking of buying the same light. Probably because I feel the halides look better to me than all but the most expensive LED units (which are out of my price range). Maybe it's be easier to find deals on MH systems now... On my local reef forum MH fixtures can be had for pennies on the dollar, there are so many people moving towards LED that the used market is saturated. Link to comment
phasezero Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 I owned that coralife 150w halide and I would have to say that you'll have all the PAR zones in your tank. Low on the sand bed, to med/high on your rock work. I would probably keep your sps mid level at least. Link to comment
Spenseriana Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 I owned that coralife 150w halide and I would have to say that you'll have all the PAR zones in your tank. Low on the sand bed, to med/high on your rock work. I would probably keep your sps mid level at least. What were the tank dimensions, and how was growth and color for you? Also, did you go with the 14k or do 20k? Link to comment
duncan-junkie Posted September 23, 2014 Author Share Posted September 23, 2014 Holy crap, this light packs a punch......I bleached about 4-5 sps in a matter of 2 days!!! I've gotta be more careful! This is my first bout with MH, sO I have a little learning to do! Other than torching my sps, I really like everything so far. Link to comment
basser1 Posted September 24, 2014 Share Posted September 24, 2014 I'd say to cut down on the amount of hours you have it on. Maybe start out with 4 hours and gradually work up each week after. Link to comment
duncan-junkie Posted September 24, 2014 Author Share Posted September 24, 2014 Thats what ive started doing....i also cut some strips of fiber glass window screen and put 5 layers down. Taking 1 off each week till there gone. I just cant wait till i get the full effect of the halides....i have a few other sps that didnt get torched, and the colors coming out on those are unreal. Link to comment
Spenseriana Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Got any photo documentation? I'd love to see the process. Link to comment
0utkast Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Ive got a 250w over a 29 gallon aga. 8" over the water. No temp problems. I go to the lfs which uses leds and I can hardly tell what im buying. The tanks look so dark compared to mine. Corals have a lot more fluorescence but when I get them home I see a lot more color. I don't think ill go to leds. The price of power and bulbs is worth it to me. Link to comment
basser1 Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 I'm one of the many that went from MH to LEDs. Funny how I saw colors with LEDs I wasn't getting with MH. There was a variety of reasons why I switched. I had a Nano-Tuners retro kit in my BC29 hood. And it could get so hot, the clear plastic splash guard would literally melt. I didn't want the added expense of a chiller. To combat the heat, I used no less than 7 fans running to keep it cool, not to mention I also kept my A/C on 72 degrees, Brrrrr. I had so many fans it sounded like an airport! And as you might expect, my ATO got a real work-out as well. Plus the added expense of annually replacing bulbs, I had 3 to change altogether (1 MH and 2 PC bulbs). Now everything is cool, literally, and it is a lot quieter........ Just my 2 pennies Link to comment
Formula462 Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Make sure to use a glass shield. That Coralife fixture is open faced and that little curved piece of glass is just a splash guard. The stock bulbs that Coralife uses are uv shielded on their own, Phoenix bulbs and most other HQIs are not. Link to comment
hey Posted September 27, 2014 Share Posted September 27, 2014 Surprisingly an amazing amount of UV still goes through a glass shield, I would have to find the bulb chart but yeh its a lot more than I expected the difference between mogul and a shielded hqi is still startling. Link to comment
duncan-junkie Posted September 28, 2014 Author Share Posted September 28, 2014 I have an open top BC29, with a mesh screen top from BRS. So far I just laid 5 extra layers of fiber glass window screen on top to defuse the light, and it sure has blocked out a lot of the light being produced by the HQI. I have yet to remove a layer of window screen, due to me being scared to death that it will start bleaching my corals again. The photo period is up to 6.5hrs/day, and I started at 4hrs/day, 7 days ago. I might wait and go 10 full days before removing any of the window screen. My LED's must have really been shot! Link to comment
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