vokuro Posted December 9, 2004 Share Posted December 9, 2004 quick question. im about to purchase an aqua medic ocean light HQI pendant. i am the owner of an 18gal aqua via aquarium that stands about 18 inches tall. i am debating weather to go with the 150w or 250w. i hope to have clams, perhaps some sps and a BTRA. heres a pic of the tank for reference: i apperciate any input Link to comment
EnFuego Posted December 9, 2004 Share Posted December 9, 2004 im getting a 250 in a few weeks for my 16x16x16 cube (little smaller than yours), just know that you may have to do something to keep it cooler in there Link to comment
liquidfluidity Posted December 9, 2004 Share Posted December 9, 2004 150w will probably work fine but for the small amount of extra money , I'd go for the 250w. If you don't , you'll regret it later. The bulbs are even about the same price and some places even charge more for the 150w. I just started putting 250w HQI together for my Eclipse 12g and will be using 2x4" fans and the canopy will be 10"-12" tall. Link to comment
Sushi Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 150w is enough for most corals in that tank...personally i think 250w might be a lil too much, but that's just me here's my 150w DE HQI Retrofit in the ViaAqua 18g hood... Link to comment
emurray Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 I got an aquamedic 250 DE for my 29g tank that I am in the process of setting up. For fun, I hung it over my current 10g about a foot over the tank it is doing great. Just make sure you have a fan or something. Without a fan, temp jumped from 79 to 86 in about an hour and probably would have kept rising. with a fan, it never goes above 82 Link to comment
Samc Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 I have a 150 de over my 29g-no heat problems, but its winter (The heater actually comes on like 15 mins after the light goes out). Thinking of uping the ballast to a 250 watt version and getting new endcaps for my regent, but I really don't think the extra light is worth, considering I have had temp problems in the past here in Maryland. Thats with a 75 gallon running two 40 watt no bulbs! Sam Link to comment
vokuro Posted December 10, 2004 Author Share Posted December 10, 2004 thanks everyone for the input. uchiha: love the retrofit. im still debating on weather or not to go that route or stick with the pendant. via aqua's ballast reliability remains a question. liquidfluidity: can you go into greater detail about your proposed canopy? id like to see what you have planned. emurray: what was your 10g stocked with? and how long did you have the pendant over the tank? can anyone post pics of their fan setups? thanks a lot! Link to comment
Tigahboy Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 I had the 150w Aqua Medic Ocean Light...and now I have the 250w version of the Aqua Medic. I think for this specific pendant, you should go 250w b/c the price difference is EXTREMELY minimal for this quality pendant. And when you want to upgrade your tank, you can just use the same pendant (instead of having to buy another 250w and selling the 150 like I had to do). But i agree w/ all above about heat issues, so do use fans. peace. Link to comment
Sushi Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 if u get a pendant, get 250w.... if you're considering the retrofit, 150w is the way to go. problem solved... Link to comment
Tigahboy Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 Originally posted by uchiha if u get a pendant, get 250w.... if you're considering the retrofit, 150w is the way to go. problem solved... I agree. Link to comment
Cesar Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 Is there a big difference in prices with a 150W MH Retro fit or are you just better off getting the complete system? Link to comment
Tigahboy Posted December 10, 2004 Share Posted December 10, 2004 If you don't already have an empty pendant/fixture or canopy, I think it won't be that much cheaper...maybe like $40 cheaper. Link to comment
397honda Posted December 11, 2004 Share Posted December 11, 2004 I need hepl understanding the fans. Where do you put the fans? Like actually small fans or ones that are on the side of pendents. Sorry if this is a stupid question. I want To get the 250w but want to understand everything first. Link to comment
MiniReefin Posted December 11, 2004 Share Posted December 11, 2004 thanks, shoulda seen this on tuesday i ordered the aqua medic 150 for my 10g. oh well, just have to sell it when i get the itch, AGAIN Link to comment
liquidfluidity Posted December 11, 2004 Share Posted December 11, 2004 you might also check here http://www.reeftanklighting.com/ and look under bare hoods on the left. I still haven't ruled one of these out yet and they are pretty cheap. They also sell the reflectors that fit them. the canopy I'm making will be more for function tha eyecandy. This is a temporary situation untill I get mt 25g done and then things will be transferred. I will be using fans out of a computer power supply , wiring them to a plug so that i can plug and unplug the 12v adapter if needed. I have already done this with another hood and it works quite well. Link to comment
vokuro Posted December 11, 2004 Author Share Posted December 11, 2004 glad this thread was revived because i also had questions about fan placement. we mask our heaters in sumps, hide the PH behind rocks, etc. only to have unsightly fans hanging around? liquid those bare hoods look enticing, however im not much of a DIY'er. any idea how much effort it would take to complete something like that? anythings possible with a proper walk-through/schematics i suppose. and perhaps tigahboy/uchiha would be so kind as to offer up some pics of their fan setups? Link to comment
Sushi Posted December 11, 2004 Share Posted December 11, 2004 here's my setup showing fan position & drip top-off (aside from main tank) hopefully this will give you an idea Link to comment
vokuro Posted December 12, 2004 Author Share Posted December 12, 2004 looks good as usual uchiha. anyone else? Link to comment
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