What watt for a 72??????

[Ryano]

I recently bought a 72 gallon and I wanna go big on the lighting but I dont wanna go to big that will cuase to much heat. So I was wondering who would no what wattage would work out great? I was thinking 250watts.
Ryan Shirley

[Tait]

2-175watt
or 2-250 would be great just matter what fixture they are in and what the height is that you are going to be running them at above the tank.....

[Invigor]

leave your tank topless and go 2x250w in a hanging canopy. heat issues should be non-existant.

[Maverick]

Johnny , you running around your place naked again ?


Brent

[Ryano]

Sounds good. Im just unsure how much heat that MH can produce so I was just worried heat would become an issue
Ryan Shirley
Thx again

[briansmyth]

I think the advice posted here is right - I have a 10K and a 14K bulb, 400 watts metal halide on a 90 gallon tank with no top - I have heat issues on hot days even though I have a fan on my sump - I manually reduce the hours of lighting and only run with one bulb in order to compensate.

[Invigor]

Johnny , you running around your place naked again ?

Brent

not anymore, got the a/c installed and fired up :o gotta keep it warm now:hysterica

[sphelps]

If you want strong lighting with less heat go with strictly high output T5 fluorescents. They are the most efficient type of lighting available to the aquarium, produce amazing color, and produce little heat compared to a halide. Of course the German bulbs (Giesemann) are superior to any other brands, and the TEK5 reflectors are the best for the T5s for projecting more light downward.

Otherwise go with dual 250W halides (10K) and some sort of fluorescent actinic for accent. 175W would be not allow you to keep all kinds of coral successfully, and you'll regret it later.

[davidschimmers]

Any of you guys that go topless have cats? If yes, what;s the outcome?
-Dave

[sphelps]

Any of you guys that go topless have cats? If yes, what;s the outcome?
-Dave

I think it depends on the cat, I've seen topless tanks and cats in the same room with no problems, but I know my cat and an open top would be the worst possible combination.

[MartinShaver]

I have cats but I only have fresh water tanks right now. They are constantly sleeping on top of the light and pulling the grass thats in my tank... sure makes a mess with wet paw prints on the front of is :icon_razz

[Invigor]

my cats drink from the freshwater tank, and sleep on the saltwater tank cuz it's warm :|