Nano Reef lighting question

[xkornstarx2]

Hey, just had a question about lighting in the 10 gallon nano im setting up......I just have a standard aquarium hood with 2 medium bulb sockets. Would 2 of these bulbs be good enough?........http://www.aquariumguys.com/minicompact3.html........thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[fishrfreinds]

depends once again on what are you looking at.

 

[fishrfreinds]

i belive those are 20 watts a piece 40 watts 4.0 wpg. reef lightning requires
(4.0 wpg).its fine for moderate coral and such.

(sorry i thought they where the stander 13 watt type)

 

[xkornstarx2]

id like to have a mostly reef tank with maybe 1 or 2 fish. Would the 40W, 10000k, blue actinic be enough to support most coral?

 

[lando]

This will not likely be enough for corals. Consider an upgrade.

 

[xkornstarx2]

what kind of upgrade would you recommend?

 

[lando]

really depends on what you wiah to keep. I would look at upgrading to at least CF lighting for most soft and LPS corals. IF you wish to keep clams and SPS corals then look at a MH pendant of some type.

 

[fishrfreinds]

Pc (power compact). are better then those "mini compact" and you can get more light loving stuff.

 

[GinaD]

What I've done for my 10-gal (until I upgrade), and relatively inexpensively is; replace the standard hood with a glass top. Then bought a second hood and added two lights that you are looking at.
So one hood is the standard, with a long fluorescent 50/50, and the new hood has two sockets for the two minis.
All bulbs are 50/50 and my corals seem to like it fine. My pulsing xenia started pulsing much more rapidly, for instance.

 

[xkornstarx2]

do you have a pic of your setup?

 

[GinaD]

It's a simple setup, but I think you'll find it works fine.

 

[xkornstarx2]

before i do anything i think im just gonna try these two 20W 50/50 bulbs. If your 10g is doing fine off of just 35W then i might be ok with those.....what do you keep in your tank?

 

[GinaD]

Clown, seahorse, anemone, pulsing xenia, 2 scooter blennies, mushroom coral, 2 lg feather-dusters, several very small poyps, anemones, grape caulerpa, and some other things.

It took a long time to get it to this point. I added very gradually to the tank. All params have been fine - 2-gal water changes every weekend.
(My female scooter blenny is so pregnant, she's about to pop. I have the refugium all ready to raise the fry.)

 

[xkornstarx2]

yea, your tank looks really good. id like mine to look like that one day. is the seahorse difficlut to take care of? in your opinion, is my lighting good enough for now?

 

[GinaD]

Well, maybe not optimal for some corals which require much brighter light, but you may find that some will do ok. Is this your first saltwater tank?

 

[xkornstarx2]

yea it is. ive been doing freshwater for a few years now and i wanna try something new. i would just rather not sink money into a new lighting fixture right now if i dont have to.

 

[GinaD]

Saltwater is much different than fresh. Also, small tanks are more difficult than larger tanks to maintain, since the water quality is more unstable than larger tanks. You'll need to do more frequent testing and water changes. You may be tempted to overstock too quickly.
ALso, Seahorses can be challenging. Go to www.seahorse.org to read up and ask lots of questions before you buy. 10-gal is really way too small for a seahorse. You'd need a 20H to be successful with them, especially if you want more than one.
I had a 55-gal fish-only tank a long time ago and had a seahorse in that, so this isn't my first one, and my setup is just temporary - until I upgrade in a couple months.
Good luck, do lots of research, ask lots of questions and be patient. Saltwater is a full-time hobby requiring dedication, but it's very rewarding.
Just my 2-cents.

 

[Florida8]

Hi! I have converted a 5gal and 10gal with the 50/50 screw in mini compact and they have been great, of course, a lot cheaper and perfect if you arent planning super needy corals either. I didn't want to mod my sons mini bow hood or make serious changes and all that so I was able to make a simple light bulb change and save money and get the much nicer brighter lights... so for LR, low light corals, and fish you will be great!!!

 

[xkornstarx2]

florida8, what do you keep in your tanks?