T5 Lighting fixture.

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No, I'm sorry but something like that would be good for a FOWLR, where light isn't really required.....

I don't know what your budget is but if you are going to do reef on a 65 hex, you could do a 250 watt Metal halide...but if it was me I would go with a 400 watt MH.
 
MH is out of my price range:(
I thought the T5HO were good for reef's was I misinformed? Or is it just not enough watts?
 
T5HO is a good thing because of it`s intensity. The bad part is that the link you gave is not High output. Just regular T5`s which will not be enough.
 
T5's work best on shallower tanks (less than 20-24 inches deep) and the deeper it gets, the less light penetrates to the bottom. If you did get a T5 HO SLR fixture or retro (I believe Melosu is refering to) then on a tank like yours (which is about 30'' deep) you would basically have to keep most of you corals in the top half of the aquarium.

If you got a 400 watt metal halide you can keep softies and lps corals on the sand and near the middle then place sps near the top.

You can get a good 400 watt MH retro for around $300-350.
A T5 fixture would cost you about the same, but the operating costs and heat would be less and the light will not penetrate as deep.

The fixtures you are looking at are (not trying to be rude or anything) cheap and you will only want to upgrade once you get more experience and see how limited you are.
 
Okay, Thank you all for the input. It is greatly appreciated! Otherwise I would have ended up with a cheapo. I guess it will be worth it to just spend the extra money and get MH. If any of you see a good one that is under 400 like lance said could you send the link my way?
Again thanks for the help!
 
Check out this page, you'll have to scroll down, there's a 400 watt retro that would be good-

Reef Exotics

or check out-

hellolights.com

reefgeek.com

I have ordered from both of those online vendors and I like them both.

Or look through the classifieds on this forum and others to find a good used one.

Good luck!
 
That first one is a T5HO (they left out the HO part) but if you click the replacement lamps link, it shows 18w T5HO bulbs. I don't think they make Nova Extreme Pros that are regular T5.

Its not enough watts though, IMO, even being t5HO. It is going to be hard to light your tank enough for a reef, since its a hex tank. The first link for the fixture is around $300 and MH wouldn't be much more (if any more)...plus you'd know you have enough light to keep what corals you want. Just keep in mind that heat could be an issue with MH, but its a worth it risk IMO. :)


edit: Found this on aquacave.com: http://www.aquacave.com/detail.aspx?ID=2026 Its an ice cap pendant that accepts 250w and 400w bulbs...you'd have to hang it somehow but that price is good....just need a bulb which is what, $100 or less more. Not a bad deal, if that one is good.
 
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JOM20, it seems that the aquacave is just the pendant and he would have to buy the ballast seperate or did I read it incorrectly?
 
Thank you! I will look into all of those. The time and effort you put into finding those is appreciated!
 
I just looked at that link JOM20

like thincat says, It is just the pendant, you'd have to buy a ballast and a bulb, but that setup would be very good IMO.
 
Seems like a reasonable price. How much would a matching ballast be? And how do I know which one will work with that pendant?
 
Here is the matching Icecap 250 watt ballast- $130
IceCap 250W Metal Halide Electronic Ballast - AquaCave

Then you would need to buy a bulb (anywhere from $50-80).

I looked right next to the ballast and found this Icecap retro kit-

250 watt, when you pick your options for bulbs, the coralvues are included in the base price and the normal spider reflector is also included in the price but you can see how much it would be to upgrade to better reflectors. $215

IceCap 250W Metal Halide Retro Kit with Electronic Ballast - AquaCave

Edit- If you buy one of these retros then all you have to do is figure out a way to hang it, wouldn't be too hard though.

400 watt version $265

IceCap 400W Metal Halide Retro Kit with Electronic Ballast - AquaCave
 
Thanks!

Iam mostly interested in the first one you listed that would go with the seperate pendant. That pendant can hold a 250W or 400W, so if I put a 400W in it would that icecap 250 ballast be okay?
 
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