HELP with Lighting my new 220g project

seems to me that MH is the best all around. Whether I'm just using them for the look or growing corals also. My 220g will be a mixed reef, but in saying that i think mostly soft corals, leathers and anemones. not sure if i will try my hand at SPS yet or not.

tank dimensions are 84x24x26 and in looking at some 72" MH's, they are over $1200. That's insane - I'm trying not to get a divorce over this tank.
Has anyone done DIY lighting and if so was it worth it? Here is a link to my build thread. http://www.3reef.com/forums/filters-pumps-etc/new-220-gal-setup-questions-150265.html

There is also a link to a gallery of photos of my current setup so far. Mostly DIY.

Thanks for taking the time to read....

 

Yes you can save a ton of money by doing reflectors and ballast separately.
you can also get many used so there is even more savings.

 

do you have a preference on a place to purchase reflectors and ballasts?
also can anyone shed some light on watts, # of bulbs, types? if i build my own what should I put together. I'm a pretty handy guy but very new to the whole lighting aspect of this.

 

I'm in Canada so my preferred place would not be the same.
but for a 220G I'd go with 250 or 400W ballast. Also I'd use e-ballast over all others.

 

I would do 250W Mogul (single ended), with Radium 20K lamps. These give a nice crisp white look, with actinic supplements in a single lamp. You do not need to add T5HO or PC actinic lighting, which would save you some money. If you do not like the "blue" look as much, go with 250W HQI (double ended), with Phoenix 14K lamps.

You could use 150W ballast/lamp combos, but that would limit you later on if you did want to jump into SPS, Clams, etc. Anemones need light, and with 150's, they would most likely travel toward the top.

 

You living in Florida dig around on Craigslist or even your local paper you would be surprised sometimes what you can find for cheap..

Best of luck..!!

 

I think i may go with this one...
72" 1070W Metal Halide System Advance Plus by Odyssea...


Fixture Configuration:

3x External Quick Connect 250W Electronic HQI Metal Halide Ballast
2x Internal Twin Output T5 Electronic Ballast
4x Power Switch on Fixture (2 for T5, 1 for LED, and 1 for Cooling Fan)
1x Power Switch on each HQI Ballast
4x Power Cord (3 for HQI and 1 for T5)
Non-Corrosive Powder Coated Aluminum Housing
2x Built In Heavy Duty Cooling Fan
Glass Cover for HQI
Acrylic Lens for T5
Highly Polished Reflector
Set of Mounting Leg

3x Odyssea 250W DE HQI Bulb 15000K

4x Odyssea 80W T5 High Output Bulb Actinic Blue

8x Dual Bluemoon LED


Think it will work for my configuration?

 

*bump* any thoughts from the light experts?

 

I ended up going pure LED. 72" panel with 56 x 3W 12000k Whites and 56 x 3W 460nm Blues. It's a beautiful fixture with a smart programmer. Completely dimmable and programmable.

Here is my issue - It comes with preset Seasons and Lunar cycles. These schedules run the lights 24/7 and either dim or increase the White/Blue in increments of 10% every hour.

Seems like a lot of light to me. What I'm looking for is a schedule to run.
From/To Time?
Intensity of Whites during this period?
Intensity of Blues during this period?

Thanks in Advance

 

I would probably run from 7am -8pm but you can change the times just that length
And I would start blue every hour raise 10% until you hit 30% then add in white and do the same
Probably at 1 I would do 80 % at both and then start the decrease at 3 again

You can definitely Change this up or go to 100% if you want
Let me know what you do!