375 Gallon Tank Planning...Need Help

[Babybrown1249]

Ok I guess that makes sense. I will have to ask the company about a coast to coast overflow. That sounds good...then I could do the intakes low in the back of the tank for the closed loop.

How many branches do you think I could run off of each of those ocean motion outputs? I could do some returns on the wall and some returns on the floor of the tank then. The less visible equipment the better I think so if I can get rid of the powerheads completely.

Now what do you guys think of metal halides...which brands? and how many?

 

[mitchellmoto]

I would assume that since it can handle 7500gph you could get 2 to 3 returns off each outlet. You just figure out your numbers. If you maxed out the gph then with 12 returns ( 3 off each outlet) you would have 625gph out of each return. I would think that would be pretty good but that would be one big pump. Then again if you are talking a 400gal tank that might be better than a bunch of powerheads like you said.

As far as Halides, I have a soft spot for them. I have T5HO, metal Halides and LED and out of them all I still like the look of halides the best. They look more natural to me. Keep in mind that is just my opinion. With halides comes heat of course. How many will depend on how long your tank is. You can figure 1 every 2ft. So 6ft tank would need 3. A 250w is typically good for up to 24in deep. If you go with a deeper tank you would have to move up to 400w. As far as brands I'm a DIY guy and I've never purchased an entire halide unit. I usually buy a retro kit or just piece my lighting systems together. I do this mostly because of the price of a fixture. Man those things are pricey. I like to purchase a good quality reflector to get the most out of my lights and I usually stick to XM bulbs. I like XM because of their price.

Later
Mitch

 

[Babybrown1249]

I am like you when it comes to Metal Halides, I really like the look. The only thing I really like about LEDs is the reds and obviously the no heat factor. I hate the price of LEDs. The tank will be 8' so I will have to go with 4 lights...I might have to pick your brain on DIY for these, I love saving money. So 250w all across will be enough...the tank shouldn't be any deeper than 30in. I really want to try to keep everything in stand and canopy so we will see.

 

[mitchellmoto]

if you go 30in you should move up to 400w if you want to keep "high light" corals low. If you don't mind strategically placing "high light" corals higher and the "lower light" corals lower in the tank 250w should be fine. This will give you more places to put coral because if a coral is getting too much light you can lower them or visa Versa. Going with 250w will save you some electricity cost as well.. DIY Metal Halide are really a breeze and I can help when your ready. Also when you are ready I can send you some links on places to get good deals. I would go with 250w DE halides as the reflectors are smaller but the SE MH are slightly cheaper. With the smaller reflectors you will have more room in the canopy and you can always add just a few LED strips down the road if you want to add some color and make your coral color pop. The DE MH are supposed to be better than the SE but I have to admit I'm not exactly sure why I never really looked into it. I have both. SE on my planted tank and a SE on my frag system.