back at one

i recently bought a used 140, with the dimension of 48x24x30. i have a friend who accidentally broke his tank and in need of a tank badly, instead of me hang on to the tank, i sold it to him (with a margin of profit), now i am back at ground zero, i was wondering, what would be the best size tank to get, with the limit of 48lx24w, what height should i get?

 

180g is perfect for a reef!

 

what is the size? i was thinking about using t5 would that be too deep?

 

with a height of 24+ i would use 400w mh and the t5 for the blue lighting

 

any brand that u prefer

 

If seriously considering a 140, a 180 gallon is not much of a stretch.

Only considerations now are space, expense & time to manage.

Try not to go cheap on lights and skimmer at startup. Will save you lots of grief and $ in long run.

Good luck.

Keep us posted on progress!

"Om"

 

i know but thinking about maintainace and start up cost thats what killing me right now have u guys heard of aquatinics solar flare t5? they suppose to be really good light or ATI powermodule?

 

The SolarFlare by Aquactinics and the ATI Powermodule are among the best in their class. Now there are T5 enthusiasts who would tell you that they are good in any application; but it's not true. I own the Aquactinics TX5 fixture and I love it. BUT--it's sitting on top of a 55 gal tank. I researched pretty thoroughly, and given the scant 21" height of the 55 gallon, a T5 fixture is the best bang for the buck.

For the tank height you're talking about, though; I think MH's are in order. Like ReefGuru said, maybe 2-400W MHs would do it.

Also, as Omard says, don't skimp on the lighting or the skimmer. Paying even an extra $200 on a skimmer will be money WELL SPENT.

 

initially i had thought about using either one of them, but knowing that my tank is pretty deep i am thinking about getting a retrol fit kit for my tank and build a canopy using 2 250, and 4 65 watt t5 overdrive with icecap ballast

 

4 54 watt t5s, those are wattages for PC's which IMO arent even near as good for actinics as t5s are.