Lighting questions and corals??

[gooyferret]

I have my 58 gal setup with just an attinic light it has been cycling for about 3 weeks now. Im debating what lights i can afford to get and what corals. Im thinking on getting 2X96 watt power compacts. That only averages out to about 3.3 watts per gallon. Is that going to be enough light for some soft/hard corals, if you could give me some sites that have good deals on lighting, or if you have any information on corals and what certain corals would need for light that would be great

 

[d9hp]

Is that a corner tank? If so I would put a 250 halide on it with some actinics and that would do it.

 

[loganj]

3.3 wpg is pretty low on the lighting curve. Wpg isn't really a good method for deciding on a lighting system though. What are the measurements of the tank (LxWxH)? How much and what kind of light you need depends on the depth of the tank. If it's a 4' tank, you'll get better coverage with 55/65w PC's than 96's. I'd hazard a guess that you could only keep the low light softies and maybe some of the non-photosynthetic hard corals (tubastrea.spp). Be warned that these hard corals require frequent and heavy feeding though. You need to think about what you really want to keep in there also. It's better and cheaper to buy the right lights first than to have to upgrade the whole system later. If you want to have SPS corals later, PC lighting is going to be marginal at best IMO. I'm not saying it can't be done. There is only one absolute rule in this hobby and that is that you must have water in the tank . Everything else is subject to exceptions.

 

[BrianH]

Is this a 36" tank? If so I would go with the 96 watt PC's. A good web site for lighting is www.hellolights.com. I have 4 x 96 watts over my 50gal. which is 36 x 18 x 18. Another option is to check ebay. You can get some great deals on new/used hoods and retro kits there.
Does your tank have a center brace? If you plan on going the halide route, you will need to go with 2 fixtures. Putting a metal halide bulb over your center brace would most likely weaken and possibly break it.

Brian

 

[gooyferret]

My tank is 36" long 18" wide and 20" deep it has no center brace over the top. All i have for lighting now is an attinic light. Im confused to what i should use for other lights, the LFS said that 2x96 PC's would be fine....but in my opinion and research that wasnt enough. To be honest im not sure what corals im going to be looking for so i wanna make sure that i have enough lighting so i dont have to do it all over again.

I have 4 x 96 watts over my 50gal. which is 36 x 18 x 18.

thats what i was going to put on my tank and the LFS said that was too much so what is your guys opinions? And what kinda PC bulbs should i use?

 

[Guest]

Can never have too much light. Too much heat? Yes. The Sun is much brighter than we can create in the home. If you are going to do corals, you could do 2-150 watt HQI MH and the 2 96 watt PC's and it would be right on for any coral you would like to keep.

 

[loganj]

With a 36 tank, you'd need the 96w PC's instead of 55/65's. You could get by with a 2x96 setup. That would be the absolute minimum though. The problem is the depth of the tank. The light from the PC's isn't going to penetrate nearly as well as the MH would. I agree with Timbo that the 2x150 HQI MH would be the best setup with either one or two 96w PC actinics. If you aren't willing to go with the MH, then I'd say a 4x96 PC would be the next best thing.

 

[gooyferret]

do you mean using 2-150 MH AND 2x96 watt PC's at the same time or just one or the other?

 

[loganj]

Both. Although if you go with 20000k bulbs in the MH, you might not need the extra actinic. I would probably go with at least one actinic in addition to the MH though. You could use VHO actinic as well if you wish.

 

[gooyferret]

Thanks guys your the best!

 

[bizzybeas]

aquaticlight.com has great prices on halides!