Need Lighting advice for new canopy

[LanMan]

Hi everyone, I just bought a used 120 gallon acrylic and I plan on setting it up as a reef in the near future. I was hoping someone here could give me some tips on the lighting configuration that I am going to need so that I can incorporate it into the canopy that I am about to build for it.
Here is some additional information:
The tank is close to 5' long 2' high 2' deep, with a built in 6 chamber filtration unit in the back that is about 5" wide and runs the length of the tank.
I plan on buying 2 MH 250W bulbs at 10K initially and then another 1 or 2 MH 250W 10K bulbs in the near future.

So what I would like to know is:
How far from the surface should I have the MH's?
How far from the surface should I have any other bulbs?
Do I need any other bulbs?
How many fans should I have?
Any tips from any hood DIYers that I should think about while I am still designing that would make things easier down the road?
Am I forgeting anything?

[LanMan]

Ok I just went to my local fish store and they are trying to sell me on two pair of 96W bulbs. One blue and one white in each pair. The cost is way up there, around $700 for the full set up. They are claiming that his will be more than enough for any type of coral that I am trying to grow.
Are they blowing smoke?

[greg c]

[ QUOTE ]
Are they blowing smoke?

[/ QUOTE ]
Like a chimney on a cold winter morning. Save the headache, get the metal halides now. I would recommend a dual 250 watt HQI. www.oceanencounter.com (http://www.oceanencounter.com) has good deals on several other lighting set-ups as well. You can get a good MH setup w/ electronic ballast bulbs and pendants thru them for less than $700 shipping included.

[greg c]

[ QUOTE ]
Hi everyone, I just bought a used 120 gallon acrylic and I plan on setting it up as a reef in the near future. I was hoping someone here could give me some tips on the lighting configuration that I am going to need so that I can incorporate it into the canopy that I am about to build for it.
Here is some additional information:
The tank is close to 5' long 2' high 2' deep, with a built in 6 chamber filtration unit in the back that is about 5" wide and runs the length of the tank.
I plan on buying 2 MH 250W bulbs at 10K initially and then another 1 or 2 MH 250W 10K bulbs in the near future.

So what I would like to know is:
How far from the surface should I have the MH's?
How far from the surface should I have any other bulbs?
Do I need any other bulbs?
How many fans should I have?
Any tips from any hood DIYers that I should think about while I am still designing that would make things easier down the road?
Am I forgeting anything?



[/ QUOTE ]
Don't waste your money on PC setup if you are eventually going to end up running MH. IME most people run MH bulbs approx 8" from the water's surface. I beleive PC nad VHO can be much closer. I run AB 10K bulbs without supplemental actinics. Chek out my post: Don't waste your money on PC setup if you are eventually going to end up running MH. IME most people run MH bulbs approx 8" from the water's surface. I beleive PC nad VHO can be much closer. I run AB 10K bulbs without supplemental actinics. Chek out my post: Don't waste your money on PC setup if you are eventually going to end up running MH. IME most people run MH bulbs approx 8" from the water's surface. I beleive PC nad VHO can be much closer. I run AB 10K bulbs without supplemental actinics. Check out my post:
http://www.reeftalk.com/ubbthreads/showf...;o=&fpart=1 (http://www.reeftalk.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=20030&page=0&view=collaps ed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1)

Most people think the lighting looks good without actinic. I use no fans in the canopy only 2 small $10 clip-on fans from Target and I have no problems with heat. I would recommend building an open top canopy so you don't trap the heat in. That's what I did and my temp goes from 79.6 to 81.4 throughout the day.

[LanMan]

Thank you for the advice. I did find what appears to be a good deal on a retro fit pair of 250w MH 10K bulbs. So unless I hear some MH ebay horror stories, I think I am going to buy a pair soon. Should I mix them up? Like maybe a 10K in one socket and a 20K in the other? Do I even have to worry about anything under 10K?

My big question is...how can I tell if a MH bulb that I buy from a independant seller is used or not? Is it even possible without having a confirmed new bulb running next to it?