Question for all w/6ft 200gal and up tanks

[Lance]

[quote=Skimmin;431502]Wowsers that's a lot of flow and lighting! I kind of figured it would take a fair bit once the tank is 6ft long.


Like someone mentioned previously, flow & lighting depends on what livestock you want to keep. SPS require the flow and light. LPS and softies, not so much.

[fkshiu]

I've used Tunze for years and can't say enough about them. The new Stream2's are a lot less bulky than the old Streams such that the whole argument about Vortechs being so much less conspicuous than Streams is no longer valid.

The Stream2s are now programmable via a USB connector and have an available battery backup.

I'd go Tunze or Vortech over any sort of a closed loop. A lot less plumbing and electricity to deal with.

[Skimmerking]

I have a 60x24x24 SPS tank with a mag 12 for a return and 2x MP40W on 1/2 flow if that and 3x250's on lumenarc's reeflux 12K i have lots of light and the MP40's are great for the flow in the SPS tank

[Skimmin]

So 2 mp 40s are plenty in your tank on 1/2 flow? Doyou have lots of SPS? Because if thats enough for you in an SPS tank @ 1/2 power then that should be enough in a 6ft LPS/Softy tank. Either 2 MP 40s or two Tunze 6105s. I believe the vortech has a more diffused flow and they are smaller then the 6105s, but the 6105s put out more flow and have been proven over years to be reliable. Vortechs are still pretty new but seems like their second gen are fairly reliable. I'm still undecided on lighting though. T5s or Halides and T5s? Even though the tank is 28" deep I'm starting to think the t5s will be sufficient for the livestock I'm looking at. Just found this fixture. It has 14 t5s and looks pretty nice. http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/cat...oducts_id=1184

or maybe two of these although I do prefer the first fixture and right around the same cost too. http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/cat...roducts_id=473

[Skimmerking]

Originally Posted by Skimmin

So 2 mp 40s are plenty in your tank on 1/2 flow? Doyou have lots of SPS? Because if thats enough for you in an SPS tank @ 1/2 power then that should be enough in a 6ft LPS/Softy tank. Either 2 MP 40s or two Tunze 6105s. I believe the vortech has a more diffused flow and they are smaller then the 6105s, but the 6105s put out more flow and have been proven over years to be reliable. Vortechs are still pretty new but seems like their second gen are fairly reliable. I'm still undecided on lighting though. T5s or Halides and T5s? Even though the tank is 28" deep I'm starting to think the t5s will be sufficient for the livestock I'm looking at. Just found this fixture. It has 14 t5s and looks pretty nice.

IMO and IME that T-5's are not good for sps at depths of 24and greater I really dnt see them having the punch like MH i have had a 8 bulb on my tank a `120 gal and my sps had to be put at the top and the clam had to be pushed up to the top too. DOug can chime in here since he took care of my tank when i was in Afghanistan and saw the results. as for the flow i had the tunze's and the vortechs i really like my 40's for the size of the unit in a tank not much space they are slim and small not big and bulky. and yes they have alot of random movments on the unit for different flow. ya they are a bit more but hey aren't we in this for $$$$$$$ and wicked equipment and fish..
Like i say i have 3 250's on my tank the 2 outer lights are reeflux 12K and the middle one is a20 K reef optic bulb my lighting is started at
6AM- 11am morning light its a blue flood light.
11am -2PM actinic are on
2pm-9PM out side MH are on
4pm-7pm middle is on then its in reverse order...
so not all are on the whole day remember.
i could easily run 2 250s over the 5 ft tank. you could put 2 400's over your tank and have them high enough to light your tank too remember i have done that. i used to have a 280 gal tank with all softies and lps and ran 12 NO flouresants and 1 x400 in the middle too. and the lps loved it.

HTH

[banditpowdercoat]

Don't overlook Oceans Motions 4 or 8 way. I am loving the 4 way in my tank. Properly set up, you can have a tank with no powerheads, just sump and closed loop.

[xtreme]

Originally Posted by fkshiu

The Stream2s are now programmable via a USB connector and have an available battery backup.

Looking at the J&L website it says the Stream 2 pumps are non-controllable. Does the new 7096 controller allow you to control them or am I looking at the wrong pumps?

[fkshiu]

Originally Posted by xtreme

Looking at the J&L website it says the Stream 2 pumps are non-controllable. Does the new 7096 controller allow you to control them or am I looking at the wrong pumps?

http://www.jlaquatics.com/info/266/T...e+Streams.html

Both the 6105 and 6205 are Stream2s and are controllable. That's a typo on J&L's part. There's even a more powerful 6305 available.

The either the older 7095 or the new 7096 can control them, but the 7096 is the fancy-schmancy programmable one.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Replacing 14 HO-T5 bulbs every year will be a shock to the wallet. Maybe be able to buy bulk from a supplier to save some $$.

[Skimmin]

After you do the math on bulb replacement... 14 T5's @ $30.00 ea is actually cheaper replace than 3 'good quality' 250watt halide bulbs(approx $120ea)with 4 actinic supplements. But Honestly I'm not trying to stretch pennies. I bought what I believe is a really nice tank, a Vertex 250 Cone skimmer, I have a Dart super Gold return pump, I've decided on going with the MP40's or the Tunze 6105's and a Neptune Aquacontroller. I want to do everything right when it comes with my initial setup so I'm not upgrading down the road. If halides end up being the right choice then I'll go that route. I just don't want to rule out the t5s yet because I really like the way you can customize the color of your tank with a mix of bulbs. One thing is that I haven't found any threads or posts regarding t5s on deeper tanks except for one. Supposedly you can run with the Ice Cap t5 vho in up to 30'' of water easily but I can't find a t5 vho fixture or any information from the manufacturer backing that up. I'm confused because all I'm finding is t5 ho info not t5 vho... I'm assuming that any 3ft t5 fixture running at 39 watts a bulb is HO... is that correct?