Light for 640L tank

[V31]

Hello,
my friend is preparing for his new office tank with volume of ~640L.

Height of this tank would be 60cm. It's quite high tank which i had no experience with till now. Can anyone recommend what kind of light (tubes, HQL, HQI) is okay? And how many watts would you place in it?

Dimensions: 215x50x60 (LxWxH)
Flora: Some not demanding plants, low tech generally.

Thanks for any tip.
regards Lukas

[V31]

Nobody?

[BFG]

V31, for an office tank, I would look at how the lightset will compliment the entire setup. Placement of the tank will affect the overall look of the whole setup. I do not know where or what this office tank will be used for in the office whether it will greet the office workers or impress potential customer as they enter the office or would it be placed in the office pantry for the staff private enjoyment or even in the office of a high ranking staff.

But overall, I would go with MH/HQI lightset as this alone would become the topic of discussion in itself if the tank was set up for the motive of being the centerpiece of the office.

[tawauboy]

i believe the hqi and hql lights are similar to metal halide. correct me if i am wrong. for a start, try 2 lamps of 150 watts each. as these light have a spotlight effect, place more demanding plants directly under the light and less demanding plants at the fringes.

if even light coverage is required, you'll need to stagger fl or pl tubes. or you can look at t5 tubes.

[V31]

Thanks guys.
I've asked my friend and he told me that tank is supposed to be placed into wall dividing two offices. I've to ask him how it is possible to cool the heat comming from HQI light.

Basically the target is to pleasure company staff working in those divided offices as I know

[tawauboy]

should not be a problem during winter months. during summer, a cooling fan may be required.
or keep the lights higher/further away from the water surface.

[celticfish]

V31,

I'd suggest MH lights as they are not as hot as HQI.
But that could vary with generation and brand of the HQI.
Though MH does put out a lot of heat too.
A good guide would be one MH for every 2 feet.

To mitigate the heat your friend can consider having "slits" or vents along the top of the dividing wall.
This way he can place fans there and dissipate the heat to the top ceiling of the office.

[V31]

Okay, heat should be not so big problem cos the office is airconditioned to 23C.

As for the bulbs, which temperature (K) would you recommend for amazon-like setup?

[Jervis]

I would say 6500K to 8000K... 10000K is ok too if your friend prefers a less yellowish tank.

[medicineman]

3 x 70W Metal halide set with built in T5/PL tubes as secondary lighting. The halides to be on for several hours, the rest of photoperiod use the tubes.

Hanged by stainless cables. Modern. Minimalistic.

If the top is hidden (as mentioned in between walls), then lamp aesthetics is not so important and you can use non-built in tubes-halides to save some budget, even DIY the light yourself.

[V31]

that's how he'd like to do it, diy. so pro light set with tubes and MH bulbs is impossible due to not so high budget. I'll tell him to combine MHs with tubes.

6500 to 8000, okay thanks guys

[DE Lightings]

that's how he'd like to do it, diy. so pro light set with tubes and MH bulbs is impossible due to not so high budget. I'll tell him to combine MHs with tubes.

6500 to 8000, okay thanks guys

u can use those commercial MH fixture which are cheaper....that will save cost.....for 3x150watts, i dont think u need more than 400