Looking to upgrade Lighting

[InfernoST]

Hi All
It's been a while, had some Family issues to sort out. Now I'm looking to upgrade the MH relectors to luminarcs from the regular parabolic reflectors. The goal here is to eliminate my T5's and run the tank solely on the Mh's. I'm currently running 2 10000k 250's DE with 4 T5VHO about 9" above the surface which I'm going to bring down to 6" above the water. I was thinking I would be able to run either 2 14000K or 20000K alone without supplementation. Also should I go with a double ended or mogul base and why?

Thanks All

It's nice to be back

 

[KathyC]

Nice to see you back

It might be helpful if you remind folks of what size the tank is and what type of corals you keep in there.

Due to heating issues many people are moving from MH's to the T5's - curious as to why you want to go in the other direction?

IMO I don't like when MH's come blasting on without an 'introduction' of T5 lighting to wake the tank up.

20K is a LOT of blueness...which is cool if you like it that way

 

[prattreef]

I would recommend 14K Metal halides ( which flavor depends on your ballast and your taste). Not all 14K are created equal, in fact none are The Ushios ( my preference) are on the whiter end of things. Phoenix the bluer end.

 

[InfernoST]

Nice to see you back

It might be helpful if you remind folks of what size the tank is and what type of corals you keep in there.

Due to heating issues many people are moving from MH's to the T5's - curious as to why you want to go in the other direction?

IMO I don't like when MH's come blasting on without an 'introduction' of T5 lighting to wake the tank up.

20K is a LOT of blueness...which is cool if you like it that way

I keep some SPS and softies, The tank is 60 x 18 x 26. The heat hasn't really been a huge issue and I think the T5's wont give me the penetration needed to the bottom of the tank. I would love to get away from the MH but the cost of LED's is way to high and the savings not that great. If you know of a T5HO fixture that will get good light to the bottom I'm all ears.

 

[InfernoST]

I would recommend 14K Metal halides ( which flavor depends on your ballast and your taste). Not all 14K are created equal, in fact none are The Ushios ( my preference) are on the whiter end of things. Phoenix the bluer end.

I had the Phoenix 14000k and did find them to be a bit too blue. Do you run T5's as well?

 

[prattreef]

No I don't run T-5's or any supplemental lighting, just 250 W 14K Ushio DE lamps on IC ballasts. Many people find these not blue enough, I, like you, find the Phoenix to be too blue UNLESS they are over-driven on an HQI ballast in which case the color is very nice.