Lighting Suggestions

[gvbender1]

New aquariust here any advice woudl be apprecitated. I have a 30 gallon hexagon tank that is 24'' tall with 30 pounds of live rock and I would like to start adding some saltwater plants to my tank. However the light fixture that came with my tank was just standard flourescent and I know I need to upgrade to support plant life. My problem is that due to the hexagon shape my hood needs a 16'' long light which after extensive research is not manufactured that often. Does anyone have any suggestions on what type of light I could get that would support plant life in my tank and also fit my hood??
Thanks

 

[ryguy]

Hey...First of all, welcome to AA!!!

This probably won't be what you wanna hear, but you haven't really got too far into it, therefore, I would recommend a different tank for saltwater. the hex tanks offer much less gas exchange due to lack of surface area from the geometry. As do "tall" tanks.

the more you read on saltwater, the more you'll uncover much more than you expected with regards to keeping a healthy tank. You may then feel restricted to do many of the things you like because the hex tank will become a burden, IMO.

As far as saltwater plants.... do you mean corals? If so, wait for your tank to mature a few months and make sure your nitrogen cycle is over.

 

[tecwzrd]

Welcome to AA

I have to agree with ryguy as far as the hex tanks not being the best for SW. It’s not so much because it’s a tall tank but because there is very little surface area for good oxygen exchange.

Using a ph with an extension tube attached to suck the water from the bottom and the top output pointed upwards to create a slight ripple in the surface helps though. If you can use a HOB overflow and sump it would help even more.

If you do want corals and considering your limited 16” width and 24” height I’d DIY with a 250W MH light in the 10K range. Captive Reefs has it for $190.00

 

[Brenden]

I agree. MH is the way to go. I will have to check to see if it still valid but the guy I bought my lights from was running a special on coralVue retro kits $175 shipped to your door.

 

[gvbender1]

Thanks for the advice, I will look into getting a MH light, just one more question with this type would I take the hood off and hang the light close to the water surface?? If this is not how you do it, I guess I"m not really sure how it would work.

 

[gvbender1]

Hey I found this light on the internet, seems like a pretty good deal, has anyone used this light before, and would this provide the type of light intensity I want if I hung it over my tank?

http://www.aquatraders.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=217

Thanks

 

[Brenden]

Odyssea lights are cheap crap. IMO I purchased 4 T5 fixtures from them that are not worth throwing in the garbage. You get what you pay for. If you have a problem with them you might as well mark it as a lost because the customer service dept does not exist. If they do answer the phone they will just tell you in broken english "they no understand...use email" In their defense Lando purchased a fixture he has had no problems with as far as I know. Good luck with that.