Help me with lighting my Soon to be New Reef

[fish freak2012]

Hello all, i havnt been on for a while. Tomarro i am probublygonna buy a new aquarium. An acrylic 260 gallon. i cant weight. still trying to decied on plumbing, and such. It actually has an overflow. It has one right in the middle of the tank. im so excited. Ok but i have a question about lighting. I would like to have hang MH Pendants or something similar to them, but then do i need VHO? What brand would be good for a reef, but not to hard on the wallet??

 

[sean48183]

I would try to get the pendants with the actinics mixed in or just get a fixture or fixtures with everything(halides, actinics and blue leds for moonlighting). Can make more of a sun up to sun down effect and turn off halides from time to time for cloudy day effects or to knock down algae.

 

[billgray22]

I agree w/ Sean. I have Coral Life MH with vho and LED for night. It is on a pedestal, about 6" above the top, easier than hanging lights from the ceiling. And if you can afford a 260 g, you can afford a chiller.
One overflow for a 260 sounds dubious. Typically 150+ have two overflows. I'd worry about sufficient circulation. The tank should cycle 10 times/hour. You'll need a 2500 gph pump for that system. Better yet, two 1250 gph pumps, for back up.
Use live rock, 1.5 pounds per gallon, a Berlin filtration system, protein skimmer, and additional pumps (power heads eg) for good water movement. If the tank is 24" deep or more, you need MH.
Good luck! Sounds like fun.

 

[fish freak2012]

ok. for one thing i am pretty sure the overflow is big enough for the aquarium.it is really long. and i really dont want a canopy, or a light that sits on the tank. But if worst comes to worst i may end up getting one. thanx for the advice, i will keep doing some research.