300 g custom build!

[Dearth]

Sorry I'm a late comer to the discussion but looking pretty impressive

You had a question about lighting and most of it was answered already but I'll add to it anyway

What are you looking for in a budget on lights?

Unless you luck out with acquiring used LEDs on an 8' tank your looking at easily 3 grand for the lights then there are the adding things like controllers, goose necks and timers which all adds to the cost but the upside the costs are only huge to buy and setup and to run would be cheap

T5 and T5 hybrid lights are cheaper to buy than LEDs but running costs are considerably higher with yearly replacement of T5 bulbs and with hybrid lights the LEDs have been known to be an issue on older models

Metal Halides again can be pricey to buy but offer the best "natural" light options but the down sides are huge amounts of heat produced and yearly bulb replacements

In the end it comes down to what you want and what you will have in your tank and what your willing to spend