What lighting should I use for a 55 gallon reef tank?
twkillingpack asked:
I am looking for the most cost effective lighting. I have a 55 gallon right now with a hood and standard flourescent bulbs. Is it possible I could just change the bulbs to special reef ones for around $30 at my local pet store or do I need to buy new fixtures. I am going to buy anenomes and jellylike looking plants. Any help would be great thanks!
I am looking for the most cost effective lighting. I have a 55 gallon right now with a hood and standard flourescent bulbs. Is it possible I could just change the bulbs to special reef ones for around $30 at my local pet store or do I need to buy new fixtures. I am going to buy anenomes and jellylike looking plants. Any help would be great thanks!
Well, I would either by some more flurescents that are the right size and spectrum for your tank, and buy some good reflectors – the reflectors can literally double the amount of light getting into the tank – its SO much brighter. Normal flurescent lights ar called T8, ad they are 8/8th’s of an inch in diameter (ie 1 inch). There is another type of lighting you can buy called T5’s. These are, as you guessed, 5/8th’s of an inch in diameter. These are WAY more powerful, and take up less space. You need a new start unit, but once that expense is over (they are not much) then you have way better lighting. Again, put some reflectors in to almost double your lighting.
Lastly, and the most expensive way, is metal halide. This is reall the best type of lighting for reef tanks. If you can get a second hand one, and buy a new bulb for it (about £40 or so, about $80) then this is well worth it. I got one for about £75 ($150) and bought a new bulb, and it was amazing. It is so bright, and SO natural (it is the most natural looking light, in spectrum, intensity, direction etc you can get), I loved it.
So, I would go for either MH or T5. With T5 you dont need to convert the hood or anything, which is a bonus.
Hope this helps
Ashley [who] Ashley
” I am going to buy anenomes and jellylike looking plants”
Amemones need lots of light to thrive, 4X T5’s (2X 10k or higher and 2X Actinic blue) should do the trick.
“Jellylike looking plants”??? I am guesing that you are talking about LPS (large polyp stony) corals which are NOT plants.
The T5’s would be good enough for most of these corals but if you plan on getting any SPS (small polyp stony) corals or clams, Metal Halide lights would be the way to go.
2X Standard T12’s or T8’s will starve the Symbiotic Algae which lives inside these animals(helps them digest there food) and in turn will eventually kill the coral.
If you REALY want to set up a REEF tank, DON”T scrimp on the lighting.
I have a 75gal reef tank (48″longX18″wideX22″tall) and I have 2X 250Watt Metal Halides and 4X T5 Actinic lights on it and EVERYTHING is thriving. [who] 007
You need watts per gallon for a reef tank. You want around 3-5 so you need anywhere from a total of 165 watts to 275 watts. The higher the better. Buying a new bulb doesnt cut it. Itll use a different spectrum to reach deeper but thats not what people take into account. In total blue helps but nothing replaces the total wattage. Reef tanks cost a lot more because of the lighting. It sounds like you might of just started this tank in which case i really want to warn you against the anenome or coral yet until the tanks been cycled (no ammonia or nitrite). If you add anenomes before this youll probly lose it. And just for the record i speak from experience i had an anenome in a 75 gallon it ate fish every time i offered it some and i added an extra hood light for a total of 80 watts which came to about 1 watt per gallon. Also one was half blue one was all blue. Despite the fact that the spectrum reached deeper the anenome still died. There is not substitute for wattage. Hope this helps. Oh yeah if your LFS guy tells you different theyre full of it and youll have a lot more to research in the future.
BTW if you buy t-5s dont get rid of your main light those things may add wattage but they dont visibly light up your tank… that or the one that was demod for me was defective. But im pretty sure it wasnt and it didnt light the tank up visibly at all. [who] icewing726@sbcglobal.net
To support the animals you want to keep you will need to increase the lighting. Remember you want to try to mimic their natural environment to be successful. You are better off getting VHO bulbs with a mixture of daylight and actinic blue. If you can budget in metal halide lighting this would be the best choice. A combination of 175 watt 10,000k bulbs and 2 VHO actinic blue fluorescent would be recommended. You might pay a little more initially but it will save you a lot of headaches in the future. Happy reefing. [who] Tang man
soft corals= 3-5 watts per gallon
hard corals= i believe its 8-10 watts per gallon [who] Gilbert
6-8 watts per gallon [who] justin p