Center Braced Tank - MH Lighting

[chuckster]

I'm putting together a 90G tank which will be 90% LPS, Shrooms etc w/ 440w VHO and 110w actinic. However I REALLY want to be able to keep a Crocea or Maxima. My issue is the heat from MH's. The tank will be in a kitchen that already heats up pretty bad in the summer no matter how cold the A/C is set and we spend allot of time in that room.
I've got a 1/4 h chiller so the tank temp should be OK. As a "middle ground" I'm considering putting just 1 250w HQI MH in the canopy. I'm afraid that if I put the MH on one end of the tank it will look "out of balance". The tank is center braced. If I put the MH in the middle of the canopy, how much do you think the MH shining through the brace will affect the available light to the tank? Enough still available to keep a healthy Maxima? Maybe just at the top of the rockwork?
I'm more worried about the comfort level of the people in the room NOT the tank temp.
THOUGHTS??????

[Travis]

Is the center brace clear or black. If it is clear it will reduce the amount of light that gets into the tank. How much, I'm not certain. Putting a mh over a center brace isn't the best idea, IMO. You will have to clean the center brace regularly of salt creep and lime buildup to allow the most light to get through.

[crimson156]

can u set up a sump or fuge in another room or in the basement to help cool the tank off?
2 30 gal rubbermaid containors/trash cans would triple your water volume and if 2/3 of your water volume was in a rom that got cold(the containers have heaters in them so they don't get below a certain temp) u can use them to cool down your tank and have the lighting u want, just gonna be alot of plumbing

[chuckster]

The center brace is clear.
Is this business of the 2-250W MH's being hot enough to warm a room for real? I've never spent time around a tank in someone else's home!!!!!

[crimson156]

i have 3 175 watts in a room thats about 10 ft wide by 20ft long, guessing these dimensions
and because my water evaporates(about 1 gal/day), releasing heat, and the lights produce heat the room stays prob in the mid 70's
where be4 the tank it was prob in the low 60's, crappy windows

[crimson156]

but my tank's 5 times bigger than yours
i think if u set a fan up so that it blows cool air from the rest of the house into the room the temp should be fine

[Travis]

Get a good fan to blow the cool air into the canopy and the hot air out and you shouldn't have much of a temp. increase compared to before. With 1/4hp chiller you should be good to go. Heck, I think you could probably even go with 2 X 250w over your tank and be ok.

I have 2 X 400w HQI on my 75(120 gallons total) in an apartment with only a window ac. It also gets very hot and humid here in the summer AND the tank is right next to the kitchen AND the 1/3hp chiller is located inside right next to the tank. I haven't had any heat problems except for the discomfort of the apartment being a bit warm on those really hot summer days when the chiller is running a lot.

[blgreef]

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[ARDEN]

I have a 175 MH above the black center brace of my 46gal bowfront. It does cast a shadow, though it's hard to see when the floresents are on, so I am forced to place light dependent animals outside the shadow. I still have 7 brightly colored clams, Maximas, Groceas etc and they do great.

[chuckster]

Arden,
How long have your clams been in your tank?
PS Thanks for the post!!!!!!!

[chuckster]

Travis & Arden,
After looking over this thread, I get the impression that a black brace may be better than a clear brace.
Is that true?
If not please forgive my newbie ignorance!!!!!!

While we are on the subject of Tridacnids, after reviewing as many posts as one can absorb, it appears that crabs in general are an issue with clams. Are the "reef safe" hermits ie. red leg etc. safe with clams?

[Travis]

After looking over this thread, I get the impression that a black brace may be better than a clear brace.

Actually, IMO, a clear brace is better than a black brace. If the MH bulb is directly over the center brace, the black brace will BLOCK light from getting to inhabitants directly below the brace. It will also cause a shadow to be cast in the tank. A clear brace will REDUCE the amount of light getting to the inhabitants directly underneath it and won't cause the shadow. I don't think a clear brace would reduce the light too much as long as it is kept clean.

I used to have 3 MH on my 75 and 1 was right over the black center brace. I couldn't stand the shadow so I emptied my tank and replaced the black brace with acrylic. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone until they have searched doing it first and are aware of the risks involved.

While we are on the subject of Tridacnids, after reviewing as many posts as one can absorb, it appears that crabs in general are an issue with clams. Are the "reef safe" hermits ie. red leg etc. safe with clams?

Crabs can be an issue with anything because they are omnivores. They are usually introduced to eat algae but you have to remember they like meat too. I haven't heard much about crabs picking on clams unless the clams are already dying anyways. Crabs can sense death before we see it and will start attacking the clam. At this point the clam is usually too far gone to save anyways although it will look perfectly healthy to us.

[ARDEN]

Some of my clams have been in the tank for over a year and a half and have grown greatly. I wouldn't say the black brace is better it is just what I have so I make do. But it shouldn't stop you from having a few clams just keep them out of the shadow.