speed Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 Hi to all the reefers out there. I've been reading stuff on this forum for couple of days now. You guys have great tanks! I've just set up a nano-reef tank a couple of days ago and it's going through the nitrogen cycle... (be patient!) in regards to the MH lighting question. the Atman MG600 sold by ben is quite a good unit i reckon. But there is a shop that sells Radium MH along with a magnetic ballast and the pendent. Ok here's the problem. Both units are sold for $400. the Atman MG600 is 150W + 2 X 24W PC whereas the Radium MH is 250W either comes in 20k or 14k bulb. I'm sure you guys heard of Radium bulbs as they are made in Germany. and somewhere in this forum i've came across with post a topic about the PAR ratings for the MH bulbs and Radium is considered quite good and unfortunately Atman doesn't even exist in there. So it is obvious that the Radium bulb is a quality product. The Radium system comes with a magnetic ballast and a BOSCH pendent but doesn't come with the fittings for hanging off the ceiling. My tank is 120L, 800mm X 350mm X 450mm and the depth is less than 20". Will the 250W Radium overkill my tank? I read somewhere that as long as you raise the height of the MH placement it should be fine to keep soft corals at the bottom of your tank. So i want your (you expert reefers) honest opinions out there as to which lighting i should go with. I've been reading a lot but it has come to a point where i need advices from you guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 120L is a pretty big nano one 150w would be plenty of light, my 200L tank has 2x150w & 2x2ft T5's & its BRIGHT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmy Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 mine is only about 90l and i have one 150watt MH and it is over kill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 there are nano'ers over in the states that have tanks far smaller than yours jimmy with 250w'ers over them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmy Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 Yea but they are nuts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speed Posted January 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 there are nano'ers over in the states that have tanks far smaller than yours jimmy with 250w'ers over them Yea, those ppl at nano-reefs.com has like 250W over their 100L tank. Well, to be precise, my tank actually holds approx 100L of water and 1/3 - 1/4 of my tank is filled with 18KG of LR and approx 12KG of argonite. So you guys think that 150W is enough eh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimmy Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 yip Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 i would do a 150w with a 10k bulb and a blue t5 for colour Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 120L isn't a nano reef. That's just small. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 Cant have T5 as its 800 long? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 2fters? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speed Posted January 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 The one that ben is selling comes with 2 PC actinic tube. so can't fit T5 in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 Doh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetskisteve Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 well in that case quad T5 unit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speed Posted January 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 How long is the cycling process generally gonna take providing that i have bought LR but not LS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelifaxNZ Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 Hi Speed, I got an Atman M600 from Ben and it is fantastic! I like how it has the 150W and 2 blues in a very compact package. The MH that comes with the unit is a nice colour and doesn't need to be changed, although if you wanted to you could replace with a Radium 150W. I have a 91 litre Cube Nano with a sump below. The height of the water is 45cm. Distance from top of water to light is 25cm. The corals I have in there are really enjoying themselves. Have a look at my thread "Start of Helifax's Tank". The only thing I didn't like about the Atman is that it does not have a separate power plug for each of the lights, so you can't have a separate timer for the MH and Blue lights. SO I modified the light and now I have two separate power plugs each with their own on/off switches. Reasonably easy to do. This allows me to now stagger when each light comes on which is far better for the corals and fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie extreme Posted January 9, 2006 Report Share Posted January 9, 2006 150 W is more then enough or you may end up with fish soup!! the higher the wattage the more heat is produced and smaller tanks will flactuate greatly unless you invest more money into a chiller! in regards to cycling, just test your water if ammonia and nitrite show zero (zero that is) you will be fine to slowly add stock (again the word is slowly) to increase your bioload and grow your bacteria population. also make sure that you do regular water changes from the start and not when there is a problem coming up. is your skimmer producing any foam (skimmate)? another thing regarding the lights. you can always use a different bulb in the atman (like BLV, AB). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speed Posted January 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2006 Hi Speed, I got an Atman M600 from Ben and it is fantastic! I like how it has the 150W and 2 blues in a very compact package. The MH that comes with the unit is a nice colour and doesn't need to be changed, although if you wanted to you could replace with a Radium 150W. I have a 91 litre Cube Nano with a sump below. The height of the water is 45cm. Distance from top of water to light is 25cm. The corals I have in there are really enjoying themselves. Have a look at my thread "Start of Helifax's Tank". The only thing I didn't like about the Atman is that it does not have a separate power plug for each of the lights, so you can't have a separate timer for the MH and Blue lights. SO I modified the light and now I have two separate power plugs each with their own on/off switches. Reasonably easy to do. This allows me to now stagger when each light comes on which is far better for the corals and fish. Hey Helifax, glad to hear tat you have this unit. Just want some feedback. You live at the shore eh? So when can i come and visit you and maybe grab some snails off you as my cleanup crews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speed Posted January 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2006 150 W is more then enough or you may end up with fish soup!! the higher the wattage the more heat is produced and smaller tanks will flactuate greatly unless you invest more money into a chiller! in regards to cycling, just test your water if ammonia and nitrite show zero (zero that is) you will be fine to slowly add stock (again the word is slowly) to increase your bioload and grow your bacteria population. also make sure that you do regular water changes from the start and not when there is a problem coming up. is your skimmer producing any foam (skimmate)? another thing regarding the lights. you can always use a different bulb in the atman (like BLV, AB). Ok... I'll take your words for it. 150W it is... I'm going to add a computer fan blowing across the water surface anyway to cool down the temp. In regards to the skimmer. I have bought one but hasn't been using it yet because the tank i bought comes with a hood and it has 2 fluoroscent tubes in there that i use for cycling the tank. I've got a ViaAqua hang on back type skimmer. Will use it once i got my MH and chuck the hood away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelifaxNZ Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 Sorry Speed, but don't have enough snails myself to give away. I have just started my tank on the 1st of December 2005, but going really well and am very happy with what I've achieved. See my thread at http://www.fnzas.org.nz/fishroom/start-of-helifaxs-tank-lots-of-pictures-vt9619.html I'll be getting some live stock soon to hopefully help cleanup the tank of diatoms and worms! Once I'm organised, I'll get you over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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