40 Gallon Hob setup (With pics)

[seabass]

The hybrid MH/T5 is nice, but a little pricey.  The T5 fixture would be fine for low light corals; however, a 4 bulb version would be preferable.

[Mitch123]

6 hours ago, seabass said:

The hybrid MH/T5 is nice, but a little pricey.  The T5 fixture would be fine for low light corals; however, a 4 bulb version would be preferable.

I was looking at something like this for a T5,

 

 https://www.amazon.com/T5-Fluorescent-Lighting-Fixture-120-277V/dp/B00GWAJGW0/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1503035478&sr=8-18-spons&keywords=4+ft+t5+fixture&psc=1

 

but how would I replicate moonlight ? another fixture for night

[Clown79]

T5ho and LED will be easier on the hydro bill.

I have 3 tanks with led and all my bulbs in the home are led. Its helped a lot. 

 

I I'd a t5 4 bulb fixture that had moonlighting feature. Not sure if those are available anymore

 

There are led/t5 fixtures as well

 

For led only

 

The marine orbit is a decent fixture. Many use it.

 

There are also the mars aqua chinese boxes

 

Aquamaxx nemolight

 

Aquaillumination 

 

Radion 

[seabass]

3 hours ago, Mitch123 said:

I was looking at something like this for a T5,

 

 https://www.amazon.com/T5-Fluorescent-Lighting-Fixture-120-277V/dp/B00GWAJGW0/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1503035478&sr=8-18-spons&keywords=4+ft+t5+fixture&psc=1

 

but how would I replicate moonlight ? another fixture for night

Here you go: http://www.petsandponds.com/en/aquarium-supplies/c5813/c293075/p17707088.html

I assumed your tank is 36" long.  Is that right?

[Jesterrace]

On 8/9/2017 at 0:43 PM, Mitch123 said:

 Lmfaooooo I forgot to take that off of the back I have a black curtain behind it so it'll look reallll goooood 

 

No kidding.  I agree with the other posts that going without a background is best.  The fish don't care as long as they have saltwater, live sand/live rock (or seeded dry rock) in the tank and the background will definitely get ruined over time as saltwater will get dripped on it every time you change your filter, clean your equipment, etc.  

 

 

[Jesterrace]

On 8/12/2017 at 11:20 PM, Mitch123 said:

I do have some live rock in my tank but only like 2.5 pounds. Dose it matter if the ammonia gets to high like 4 ppm or is it "healthy" to just leave it for the beneficial bacteria.

 

 

Unless you have something alive in there (ie corals, inverts, fish), leave it alone.  Doing a water change during the cycling process can start the whole process over again.  

[Mitch123]

I actually just god a lighting for the tank, @seabass  the guys actually dident end up selling it and I picked up the T5 and MH lighting.

 

Im gonna look at bulbs tonight so I can pick them up tomorrow I also need some sort of hanging fixture cause the light is a bit big for the tank but I dont think thats a problem

 

 the cycle is almost done and im planning on getting 2 chromis for my first bit of stock.  pics of how the light looks over the tank to come tomorrow 

 

 

[Mitch123]

 

1 hour ago, Jesterrace said:

 

No kidding.  I agree with the other posts that going without a background is best.  The fish don't care as long as they have saltwater, live sand/live rock (or seeded dry rock) in the tank and the background will definitely get ruined over time as saltwater will get dripped on it every time you change your filter, clean your equipment, etc.  

 

 

Yeah I noticed that hahaha gotta clean the inside and outside it blows 

[seabass]

3 hours ago, Mitch123 said:

the guys actually dident end up selling it and I picked up the T5 and MH lighting.

Awesome, it seems like that should be a good light for your tank.

[Mitch123]

So im looking for bulbs for the lighting and theirs Reef Grow 150w

                                                                                  10,000k

                                                                                  15,000k

                                                                         and  20,000k

whats the difference between them?

what do you think I should get considering the fixture 48" and the tank is 36" 

 

For the T5s I just got a 10,000k Super Daylight and a 50/50 (420nm Actinic / 10,000K White)

and a hanging kit, Maybe I should go rimless because the size of the light ? Research is needed 

[seabass]

The 20,000K bulb would be mostly purple.  I'm not a fan of that look, but some people seem to like it.  The 10,000K bulb is like lighting the tank with natural sunlight (or even a white spotlight).  While that might be good for taking pictures, and even growth, it's not a spectrum that you typically see used for the primary lights (people use it more in combination with other spectrums, like how you did with your T5 bulbs.

 

For me, 15,000K is a more typical spectrum for MH bulbs.  Then I'd adjust the overall color with your T5 bulbs.  Like if you think it's too white, get a bluer bulb to replace the 10,000K T5.  You might have to experiment a little before you are happy.

 

As far as the fixture being longer than your tank, I don't see that being a problem.  I'd just mount it up a little higher.  You have plenty of light there, so you don't have to worry about losing intensity by having your lights up higher.

[Mitch123]

Was looking around for bulbs today and no one had any, looks like im just gonna have to ship them. I could only find them online 

I just bought a mag test kit ( it was at 1110ppm ) and a phos test kit also( it was at 0.50/ppm 0.17 ). I would have gotten the KH/Alk test but my LFS dident have any left.

 

I bought a couple more power heads also I got 2 Hydor wave-makers one 240Gph and one 425Gph, since my parameters are all good 

I decided that id buy an Ocellaris Clownfish. its really happy swimming all around the tank, it is a pretty little one was wondering if there any special care required for one this small

[seabass]

So was ammonia undetectable?

 

The target range for phosphate is 0.01 to 0.03ppm.  And ideally, magnesium would be closer to 1300ppm.  I wouldn't worry about alkalinity and calcium just yet.

[Weetabix7]

23 hours ago, seabass said:

The 20,000K bulb would be mostly purple.  I'm not a fan of that look, but some people seem to like it.  The 10,000K bulb is like lighting the tank with natural sunlight (or even a white spotlight).  While that might be good for taking pictures, and even growth, it's not a spectrum that you typically see used for the primary lights (people use it more in combination with other spectrums, like how you did with your T5 bulbs.

 

For me, 15,000K is a more typical spectrum for MH bulbs.  Then I'd adjust the overall color with your T5 bulbs.  Like if you think it's too white, get a bluer bulb to replace the 10,000K T5.  You might have to experiment a little before you are happy.

 

As far as the fixture being longer than your tank, I don't see that being a problem.  I'd just mount it up a little higher.  You have plenty of light there, so you don't have to worry about losing intensity by having your lights up higher.

 

This is great advice, listen to seabass.

I'm so glad you were able to get that fixture!!

I always end up ordering my bulbs online, the availability and pricing is always so much better that way. 

To help control temp, considering using fans aimed at water surface. 

[seabass]

The MH bulbs alone will provide enough light without the T5s, so the T5s were used primarily for dusk/dawn lighting and to highlight the florescent colors of the coral.  So it was common to use two actinic T5 bulbs (in combination with the 15,000K MHs).  This provided the light intensity, shimmer, and florescent pop that people were looking for.

[Mitch123]

9 hours ago, seabass said:

So was ammonia undetectable?

 

The target range for phosphate is 0.01 to 0.03ppm.  And ideally, magnesium would be closer to 1300ppm.  I wouldn't worry about alkalinity and calcium just yet.

Not one ppm of ammonia, so what do you think a solid lighting schedule would be?

I was thinking 7 - 8 hours of MH with the T5s on for an hour before and an hour after 

and the blues on for about 3 hours after everythings turned off. 

 

7 hours ago, Weetabix7 said:

 

This is great advice, listen to seabass.

I'm so glad you were able to get that fixture!!

I always end up ordering my bulbs online, the availability and pricing is always so much better that way. 

To help control temp, considering using fans aimed at water surface. 

where do you usually order them Marine depot dosent ship to canada, BRS maybe ?

im gonna have to do so much topping off  but  when I top off I use tap water, is that

okay? The LFS lady said that she ran her whole store with tapwater 

[seabass]

Oh, I see that the fluorescent lighting is actually compact fluorescent (and not T5HO bulbs); which is actually fine.

 

19 minutes ago, Mitch123 said:

what do you think a solid lighting schedule would be?

I was thinking 7 - 8 hours of MH with the T5s on for an hour before and an hour after 

and the blues on for about 3 hours after everythings turned off.

I'd probably do a half and hour with just the CF bulbs, 7 hours with the MH bulbs and the CF bulbs, and another half an hour with just the CF bulbs.  As for the moonlights, whatever you wish.  You could leave them on 24/7 or work them into your light cycle (before and after your main lighting).

[Mitch123]

okay and like you said earlier the Ks are just the "Look" right ? And If so im gonna start with the 15,000k MH, LFS said I need at least 14,000k is that true ?

[seabass]

24 minutes ago, Mitch123 said:

im gonna have to do so much topping off  but  when I top off I use tap water, is that

okay? The LFS lady said that she ran her whole store with tapwater

Yeah, LFS recommendations aren't always the best.  I'd use distilled or RO/DI water.  If you are using a lot of water, get your own RO/DI unit.

 

3 minutes ago, Mitch123 said:

okay and like you said earlier the Ks are just the "Look" right ?

Yes, K is the Kelvin temperature color spectrum.  10,000K is white, 14,000K is blueish, and 20,000K looks almost like a black light (usually very purple).  However, different brands can look a little different.

 

8 minutes ago, Mitch123 said:

And If so im gonna start with the 15,000k MH, LFS said I need at least 14,000k is that true ?

I'm not sure if I understand this statement.  Yes, I believe the 14,000K is a MH bulb that many manufacturers produce.  Some other manufacturers might offer a 15,000K bulb.  Either of these should look very similar.

[Mitch123]

Sorry for the miss leading questions still learning about lighting n stuff, the only thing that matters it the par correct ? Do you have to have a specific ammount of Kelvin for the tank? Is K related to par in any way? or is it just for look

[seabass]

You can think of K as color (not intensity).  And when they talk about color temperature, it has nothing to do with hot or cold (again, just color).  PAR has to do with brightness.  I don't believe you'll have a problem with not enough PAR, as two 150W MH bulbs put out a lot of light.

[Mitch123]

True True, thanks for the advice, I learn a little more everyday  

[Lula_Mae]

12 hours ago, Mitch123 said:

Not one ppm of ammonia, so what do you think a solid lighting schedule would be?

I was thinking 7 - 8 hours of MH with the T5s on for an hour before and an hour after 

and the blues on for about 3 hours after everythings turned off. 

 

where do you usually order them Marine depot dosent ship to canada, BRS maybe ?

im gonna have to do so much topping off  but  when I top off I use tap water, is that

okay? The LFS lady said that she ran her whole store with tapwater 

How do the LFS tanks look?  Full of hair algae?

 

Most people's tap water isn't low enough in TDS (total dissolved solids) to be used for a reef, and even then it can contain heavy metals or other yucky stuff that corals won't like.  And sometimes tap water can change depending on the treatment chemicals, etc.--one member on here, @fishfreak0114, recently had that experience.  You're better off getting a quality RODI unit of your own, for a tank your size.  It'll pay for itself within months.

[fishfreak0114]

Yes, definitely get your own RO/DI!  I used tap water without issues for over two years, and then out of nowhere  it started making my new saltwater water have alk off the charts!  An RO/DI is number one on my "to buy" list right now. 

[Mitch123]

Hair algae is black correct? cause if so then I seen it in one tank. all the other ones where good tho. also there a guy on kijiji wanting to sell his corals but they have the black hairy looking stuff on em ( possily hair algae like you said ) but he said a coral dip would do wonders and I can stock them im my tank after I dip, one more thing, today I think one of my 'blueleg" hermit ether molted or died heres a pic, his shell is gone tho