Confused what to do about lighting

[edsbeaker]

My fixture is only about 6 in. from the water level and really you can't notice any shadowing, at least to naked eye. If you raise it higher like 10 in. it will cover whole tank no problem. Of course PAR levels will be lower around the edges but you can place low light corals there.

I'm probably going to have a minimalistic style, so there won't be corals around the edges to worry about. I just didn't want it to look like a spot light in the center, and it doesn't sound like it will. Thanks for the help, and glad I don't have to spend $2000.

 

[LemontReefer]

I vote keep your current fixture and add leds once you get it set up......best of both worlds and you can aim the leds accordingly to you aquascaping once your done/ your budget permits.... worry about the rest of the tank, the lights you have now are are probably good enough for the corals you dont have yet, especially if its just 2 more bulbs than current fixture Good luck with your build.

costwise the leds are gonna win out long term on the electric bill and bulb changes / if you can mount the leds higher up they are pretty powerful and you may not need as many .. for my 8 foot open top tank went with 3 led units to replace 4 mh

 

[FishBeard]

You really think the six bulbs will be enough for 24" front to back. I will have a 14" high canopy, so I can raise it up to about 10", but am worried that I'll have shadowing and just dim lighting in the front? I just assumed that it would be too narrow. Do you all have 6 bulbs over 24" tanks and they look good? If that's the case, I'm good!

I guess I'll just wait and see what it looks like. Thanks everyone!!!

Yep, definitely plenty to not have dark spots or heavy shadowing. I'm running 6 bulbs right now on my 8 bulb fixture that is 1 foot shorter than my tank and you would never know. Looks great and everything gets good light.