Newbie at it again!

Paligues

Paligues

Reefing newb
So its time for me to ask another question. Tank is officially established, its starting to look good. Got coralline growing nicely with a little cyano (i know i know.. im working on it :P). Anyway, I am going to upgrade the lighting system and just want everybodies opinion on a lighting system. Ive heard T5 and talked about it on here, but i need some confimation please!

Sunlight Supply New Wave 4 Bulb T5 Fixture (24 Inch, 4x24W)

What do you guys think? bulbs?
 
Ah it will be hard to find T5s for a 30" tank. :( Those are always tough ones to find lighting for.

You could go with a MH fixture instead.
 
I'm serious. T5 bulbs are made in 24" and 36" inch lengths. That's why 30" tanks are a bitch to find lighting for.

With T5s and metal halides, you want to aim for a minimum of 4 watts per gallon to keep corals. 4 x 24 watt T5 over a 40 gallon tank is right around 2 watts per gallon. Not strong enough to keep corals. Those lights you linked to have individual reflectors (which is good), but I don't think it would be enough...
 
Wow, didn't expect to hear that. So in other words, sit back and save my pennies for the next 25 years and who knows, maybe i can afford something then :P. Any other alternatives you can see?
 
Paligues said:
Wow, didn't expect to hear that. So in other words, sit back and save my pennies for the next 25 years and who knows, maybe i can afford something then :P. Any other alternatives you can see?
Click to expand...

a small 150w MH light wont cost you much more than that fixture you posted
 
But one 150w MH light is enough for my tank? Every fixture Ive looked at has been $480 and up. Remembering I'm in canada and unfortunatly, i got to go from suppliers half way across the country to get what i want.. which blows :P
 
The first two links are great places, and hopefully will have affordable shipping to Canada. At least they do ship there -- some stores do not. :(
 
Thanks for those links Biff!!! I actually live about an hour away from one of them so thats a huge help!! The LFS where I live charges outragous prices so basically if i want anything saltwater, its got to come online! Put it this way, $5.50 for nassarius and turbo snails, $4.49 for hermits and it just goes up from there!!
 
Oh wow! With prices like that, it's worth the drive! Please feel free to post in that thread of any other stores in Canada to build up the list. It's a really common question because we have a lot of Canadian members. It sucks, because we're like, "buy this, buy this, and this!" and very few of the places us Americans shop from will ship up there! :(
 
Now, last question of the night. How come ive seen 125 gallon tanks running two fluorescent bulbs, one white and one purple with full reef system. Is it actually possible with lower than expected lighting?
 
I don't see how that is possible unless they were only keeping low-light soft corals. Some soft corals don't need a lot of light, and you can have a low light reef. But you will be restricted from keeping 99% of the corals out there that are available.
 
I only have one thing to say.... DUMB

Im going to start inventing a new bulb right now. Nice and cheap, stays cool and puts out just enough light for corals and everything else. Anybody in?
 
That would be great. A lot of people actually build their own to save money. If you have a basic knowledge of electrical stuff, then I don't think it's too hard. They buy the parts they need, and assemble it on their own, and basically mount them in a wooden canopy that they build. It's very cost effective to do it that way, compared to buying a ready-made fixture.

I would probably burn down my house if I tried doing it.
 

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