Not enough lighting?

[Spchampion2000]

Hello all i am currently running 2 65 watt coralife 50/50 bulbs on a coralife housing......i also have a moonlight that doesnt run very many watts probably somewhere around 50 watts now my question would be....is this enough lighting for corals if so what type of corals i was kinda hoping for medium lighted corals....i do have the option for using a florescent housing if need be what kind of lights can i use with it and how many watts is there a specific type of florescent blub i should be using or are they all pretty much the same? Thanks for any help!

 

[melosu58]

What size tank do you have?

 

[Spchampion2000]

100g

 

[roka64]

65x2/100-1.3WPG (the moonlight LEDs don't count, and I really don't think they are 50W, but I could be incorrect). I'm not a reefer, but that seems very low.
I think you might want to shoot for at least 4WPG. Let's wait for a reefer to come along and give better advice. Mel has a lot of medium light corals, in his gallery. Click on it and see what you think, it is very impressive.

 

[blazeyreef]

yes 3wpg for shrooms and low lights!

 

[Spchampion2000]

how about for medium lighted corals how many watts per gallon should i be running?

 

[morgan24]

if i was you i would upgrade my lighting to at least 3-4 wts per gallon before i would by any corals. I don't think 1.3 wtpg is enough for any corals, but i could be wrong lets see what the other reefers say

 

[melosu58]

I agree you`ll need at least 3 WPG which is what I have. Look at my gallery to see what type corals you can have. Hope all goes well.

 

[lando]

Do not rely soley on the "watts/gal" method. It is a bit more complicated then that. Consider it a very loose guideline instead of a rule. In general, Most softies and LPS corals will do fine with 3-5watts/gal of CF, VHO or T5 lighting. I would shoot more for the 5 mark. If you have intensions of clams, SPS corals or high light anemones, greater penetrating light such as MH will be a better option. Bottom line...lighting is one of the most expensive parts of a reef tank. Decide what you want to keep and build your lighting sytem around the animals.