Could u fit 2 400 w mh in this hood?

[Mattl22]

I'm contemplating going with MH
Just a thought ATM!

Anyone know if u could fit them in this hood?

How much would running 2 400 w mh cost too run 5 hrs a day ??

 

[tunicata]

What are the specific dimensions of the hood.
Also, what type of fixtures/light set up would you have?top line of the tank, and then the top of the water?
How much space is there between the inside top wall of the light and the

 

[Mattl22]

Tank is 72x 24 wide by 36 deep

The hood has 4 computer fans and I'd add 2 more clip on fans to blow between light and water !

 

[Mattl22]

Hi ill take those measurements when I get home light would have to be removable so I can work on tank !

 

[Mattl22]

Would 2 250 w mh be enough ?

 

[edd]

i have a hood similar to yours. when i switched to halides i removed the top of the hood, and hung lights from the ceiling. you want them i think a min of 8-10" from water level. it doesn't look like you have the room unless you remove the top.

 

[MIKE NY]

Matt you can fit them, but may need a shield to protect them from splash because it alittle low...there is a big difference in heat from 250 -400 that's why I dont use 400s ..you may need a chiller ...36" deep you may need the 400s if you want to keep the more light demanding SPS near the bottom to get good color or do what I did just keep the less light demanding corals there...softies, LPS etc...

 

[dubs]

Space is tight on that hood for 400 Imo is 3 or 4 250 no good or they have to be 400?? The 400 bulbs are big and give off a lot of heat for that hood if h want to use the 400 u not mount the to the ceiling and rebuild u r canopy to go all the way up to the ceiling. .. am going by what I see in the pic

 

[jackson6745]

Matt your PM box is full

Tank is 72x 24 wide by 36 deep

The hood has 4 computer fans and I'd add 2 more clip on fans to blow between light and water !

Good! 400w halides do throw off serious heat. Have some fans blowing in and some sucking out. I would cut holes in the top of the canopy so you can mount 2 luminarc style reflectors 12"-14" from the water. On a 6ft SPS tank with 2 halides you will need the 400w's running up a little higher so you still get good par while getting better spread. However, you can use lumitek adjustable ballasts so if you ever decide that you don't need or want the 400's, you only have to flick a switch and change the bulbs to 250's.

 

[Mattl22]

Ok lots of great advice thank you guys !!!! Just going by few things I see here 400 w would Probably be outta the question I like the hood and at this point not willing to remove it I wouldn't be against modifying it but my ceiling is only 2-3 " above the top of the hood the stand the tank sits on is custom built and puts tank at eye level which is pretty frekin sweet but I don't have any room at top!
Ill get few more pics up I really not concerned with lighting the middle of the tank at this time just the right and left side !

 

[Mattl22]

Just cleared few pms will clear more later

 

[rideit6578]

Run for 5 hrs? will you be supplementing with t5s? because you also need to include that in the dimensions of the hood. I want to come over and see the set up dude.

 

[Mattl22]

If I'd probably see if I can use my existing LEDs maybe make a bar or something outta the 2 fixtures!

How long do guys run their halides
Thought 5 hrs was around the norm 1 hr b4 1 after with blue LEDs

 

[tomtoothdoc]

i used to run 2x 400w radiums(~7-8 hrs/day) and 2x 110w vho actinics(~8-9 hrs/day) and 36w leds(~9-10 hrs/day) on a custom 48 x 36 x 27 200g marineland dd with a total volume~300g. the stand and hood are custom built all the way up to the drop ceiling of the basement. the lights were on a custom rack mounted to the studs supporting the wood floor of the 1st level.
i had a 1 hp chiller that was a little too big for the system so i bought a 1/2 hp which was a little too small. the 1hp cycled too quickly with only a 75g sump. even though the 1/2 hp was running constantly, i kept it because it gave off less heat.

you will need a chiller and a good room air conditioner....the chiller puts out a lot of heat.

my electric bill during the summer used to be as high as $900 a month but after switching to 6x ai sol's and 2x 54w t5's, it went down a couple of hundreds at the peak month....in the 600's. the chiller hardly comes on now and the basement was much cooler this past summer. the chiller heat used to overwhelmed the 3x 8000btu window a/c's when i was running the halides. 2-3 a/c's were on 24/7 from march to september. now i run only 1 a/c during the same period.

switched to the ai's for a full year now. saved quite a bit of money the past year...colors are decent but sps growth is not as good as the halides but that's just fine with me. less trimming....the acro's and monti's used to touch each other constantly...requiring trimming every couple of months.

what make you want to go back to the halides?

if you want to try the halides, i got 3 sets you can borrow to test. all luminarc reflectors, one ice cap 400w ballast and 2x lumitek adjustable (i think 175-250-400) ballasts. you would only need to buy bulbs.

 

[Mattl22]

Hi Tom that's a very generous offer thank you !
I don't have the money right now to get a new hood built up too ceiling !
I will think about running it without the hood or I could just get a few kessils and call it a day!

Reason for wanting halides is I'm doing 99 % sps and wanna see them actually grow !

 

[Mattl22]

My tank is in the basement and I have Centrel air
Could I get away with 2 250 w mh ??? With no chiller I have 0 intrest in setting up a chiller that will definitely price me out !!!!

 

[Mattl22]

Anyone know how much it costs per day approx to run 2 250 w mh ??

 

[Jaftica]

I use 2x 250 mh on my 48x36x27 200dd with no heat issues at all, im using lumenbright reflectors and bulbs are @15" awl, can u cut the top of the canopy to mount a lumenbright reflector on top of the canopy?

 

[JARRETT SHARK]

I had same top on my 220gal and I had 3x 400w
chilller and a fan for summer
always clean bulbs once a month helps
SPS grown like weeds with 400w

 

[Mattl22]

I don't need a 3rd only lighting the 2 rock islands leaving middle open for swim room for fish! There Is a lg over flow box in center anyway so just gonna use 2 on either side!!