jt48 Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 I know as a general rule, metal halide lighting is both unnecessary and possibly dangerous on a nano. I believe this is especially true for what I consider a true nano of 20 gallons or less. I set up my nano (AGA 10 gallon 20x10x12) using a CSL 2x32w pc 1white/1actinic. I am dissappointed in how it looks. I miss the MH that I have on my 120gallon. I have always loved the tinkering effects of point source lighting. Does anyone out there use mh on their nano? If so, are you placing them higher above the water surface? How are they working for you. It must be great for keeping high light corals but does it prevent you from keeping low light corals? If not is it feasible to place low lighters in the shade of a rock? Another question. Since I am only interested in the aesthetics of point source light, can I do something like incorporating supplemeental point source light that is not necessarily aquarium related. Lets say a home depot halogen light or something. Link to comment
quiksilver5768 Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 Many people do in fact use MH's on their nano reefs. The only major issue is dealing with heat. I know of some people who have MH's on a 10 gal. Most go with a 70 watta or 175 watt on a tank about that size. And no, dont try a halogen light. It puts out a whole different type of spectrum of light which does not compare to the types of spectrums put out by aquarium bulbs. Link to comment
JIM27 Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 I use a 150w DE mh on my 18g. That same light was on my 10g too. I had 2x36w pc's over my 10 and the tank actually ran cooler with the mh(it has an open top now). The bulb was about 7in over my 10g and is about 2-3in over the 18g. I like the option of being able to keep almost anything and not worying about lighting. And I have great success with my softies too. My red shrooms have budded off a few times under the lighting and my star polyps and seamat have been spreading great(almost too much IMO). MH is great for nano's. Link to comment
jt48 Posted October 28, 2002 Author Share Posted October 28, 2002 Thats good to hear. Thanks. I was considering changing my 10 to a 20Long. I was just at the fish store today but forgot already. How long is the AGA 20Long? 24 or 30? I like the long shallow look of it. And this way I may want to rip apart my 2x175mh 2x65 pc actinic retro as use one of each on the 20. Just a thought. I would not be able to use the pc actinics on my 10 as they are too long. Link to comment
Metznreef Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 i think one member here uses a 250 watt MH over his 10 gallon and the growth he gets is amazing. makes me wanna go MH but then i remember i'm poor and can't afford it. Link to comment
Crakeur Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 70w hqi and a 36watt actinic blue pc over my 7 gallon bow front. Total gallons is 9 1/2 thanks to the refugium. Heat is taken care of by a microchiller but, once the temp drops I will be removing it and just adding a couple more powerheads to replace the missing circulation. Link to comment
jt48 Posted October 28, 2002 Author Share Posted October 28, 2002 Im not familiar with hqi what is it? Link to comment
JIM27 Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 HQI stands for something(I forgot what) but its just another, not entirely accurate, name for DE(double-ended) halides, like the one I use. Link to comment
Lunchbucket Posted October 28, 2002 Share Posted October 28, 2002 LOL, dangerous...I KNOW NOT!! heck i had a 400w MH on my 10gal for a while, while waiting to up to my 20gal. no ill effects except some dumb acclimating. if you acclimate like you should w/ any light then you will be fine. heck i loved that light on my 10gal and now on my 20H is it awesome. there is no need to worry about it on a small tank except for heat!!!! Lunchbucket Link to comment
jt48 Posted October 28, 2002 Author Share Posted October 28, 2002 Thank you to all that posted. Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.