90 gallon wattage
- Thread starter reefiness
- Start date
ags
Member
Originally Posted by reefiness
I have 260 watts pc in my tank right now but i want to be able to get all corals anbd clams... right now i only have mushrooms....
how many watts would you say would be good for a 90 gallon?
also i was thinking of mabye getting a 180 how much would that need?
If you want to keep anything and everything, clams included, you will need metal halides. 2 250 watt MH supplemented with your PCs will work but 400 watt MH would be better. If you can be content with soft coral, lps and limited sps then VHO or PC will suffice. I have a 90 with 660 watts of VHO and have no trouble with the soft corals, lps and certain lps corals. The same logic follows for the 180.
I have 260 watts pc in my tank right now but i want to be able to get all corals anbd clams... right now i only have mushrooms....
how many watts would you say would be good for a 90 gallon?
also i was thinking of mabye getting a 180 how much would that need?
If you want to keep anything and everything, clams included, you will need metal halides. 2 250 watt MH supplemented with your PCs will work but 400 watt MH would be better. If you can be content with soft coral, lps and limited sps then VHO or PC will suffice. I have a 90 with 660 watts of VHO and have no trouble with the soft corals, lps and certain lps corals. The same logic follows for the 180.
A
andretti
Guest
If you want clams...you must have M/Hs. A good rule of thumb to go by is 4-5 watts per gallon. So if you want clams and hard corals, you're looking at 450-500 watts minium. You have to remember that this is just a "general" rule because there are different situations in many tanks. For example, let's take a standard 90 and a standard 125. Usually 90s are several inches taller than 125s, so even though a 90 is smaller in gallons, it's taller so you will need more wattage because the light has to travel down a greater distance than the 125.
ags
Member
I have over 7 watts per gallon and wouldn't think about trying a clam. The only SPS I keep are motipora digitata and montipora capr. I also keep hydrophora but most do not consider it an SPS. I like it the branching variety bc it looks like an SPS and grows like a weed. Both do reasonable well with my lighting although the digitata's growth rate is extremely slow. Something I contribute to my lighting.
The intensity of the lighting trumps all. VHO and PC don't have the intensity of MH. As such the growth rate and coloration you see, and want, will be different under less intense lighting (ie VHO/PC). The most colorful SPS and clam tanks all have 250 or 400 watt MH fixtures.
As andretti said, the depth of the tank is also important as VHO and PCs intensity is lost in deeper tanks.
The intensity of the lighting trumps all. VHO and PC don't have the intensity of MH. As such the growth rate and coloration you see, and want, will be different under less intense lighting (ie VHO/PC). The most colorful SPS and clam tanks all have 250 or 400 watt MH fixtures.
As andretti said, the depth of the tank is also important as VHO and PCs intensity is lost in deeper tanks.
latino277
Member
just my $.02....
that 4-5 watts/g.... put it in the trash!
if you going with MH now you have to look at the demetions of the tank
you will need 1mh for every 2sqaure feet... so if you tank is 4' long then you will need to MH's
so... now you want to try and figure out what watt MH you want.
again you have to look at the dementions of you tank. below 18" (short tank) you can use 175w... below 24" you should use 250w above 24" you should use 400w.
Hope this helps. good luck :jumping:
that 4-5 watts/g.... put it in the trash!
if you going with MH now you have to look at the demetions of the tank
you will need 1mh for every 2sqaure feet... so if you tank is 4' long then you will need to MH's
so... now you want to try and figure out what watt MH you want.
again you have to look at the dementions of you tank. below 18" (short tank) you can use 175w... below 24" you should use 250w above 24" you should use 400w.
Hope this helps. good luck :jumping: