55 gallon lighting options

[drcole]

Anyone with a SPS heavy 55 gallon out there?? I would love to see pictures. The main reason for this post is to get lighting suggestions, what do you all recommend for lighting? Keep in mind, tank is only 12” wide

 

[kevin_e]

This was my old 55 from 2015. I had 2 250-watt metal halides and 4 t-5s running at this point. All retrofitted. Good color, growth was good. Tank split at about 1 year old though, so it came down.

 

[HB AL]

How about 2 or 3 Kessil 160we. I set up my current tank in my bedroom so metal halide and t5 where out just because of the heat + chiller and it’s heat. So I already had 3 160’s on 2 other tanks and bought 2 more for my current a 92 gallon. Happy with the results they have produced. Good thing is there are a lot of options to choose from. Here’s a pic of the 5 pucks over my tank.

 

[jda]

This is going way back, but the last time that I tried a reef in a 55G, it was 4x VHOs - two Super Actinic and two Actinic White.

Can you get a 6 bulb T5 fixture over it? 13 inches is pretty shallow.

 

[DesertReefT4r]

What do you want to keep coral wise and how much are you wanting to spend on lighting? When I had a 55g I ran 2x 150w MH with Coralife 20k bulbs. I had no issues growing anything with that light setup. Today I have a 75g with 2x 250w MH Phoenix 14k bulbs this will be my second 75g sps reef light with the same lighting method. SB Reef and Photon V2 have me very interested as an alternative however.

 

[drcole]

What do you want to keep coral wise and how much are you wanting to spend on lighting? When I had a 55g I ran 2x 150w MH with Coralife 20k bulbs. I had no issues growing anything with that light setup. Today I have a 75g with 2x 250w MH Phoenix 14k bulbs this will be my second 75g sps reef light with the same lighting method. SB Reef and Photon V2 have me very interested as an alternative however.

So just 2 metal halide bulbs as a whole? Any pictures of this??

 

[themcnertney]

I ran a 4 bulb T5 combo over my 55 standard that I absolutely loved.

 

[drcole]

I ran a 4 bulb T5 combo over my 55 standard that I absolutely loved.

Love that look, what bulb combo?

 

[themcnertney]

Honestly, I can remember. This was a tank I had setup many years ago. I do know I ran all ATI bulbs though.

 

[29bonsaireef]

IMO, I would go T5. I have been around the block with so many different lighting options in the past. Always come back to T5s. Just cant beat the simplicity of them. Hang and done.. plus the colors and growth are always on point under T5. I've been using ATI fixtures for the past 5 or 6 years and have been very pleased with them.

 

[drcole]

I think a 4 bulb is what I’m leaning towards, I just don’t have the $500 to drop on an ATI Sunpower at the moment. Thinking about a cheaper option like listed above to get me bye for a few years. Bigger tank and I will do a T5 led hybrid in the future but I’d like to try my hand at some SPS in this 55

 

[29bonsaireef]

I think a 4 bulb is what I’m leaning towards, I just don’t have the $500 to drop on an ATI Sunpower at the moment. Thinking about a cheaper option like listed above to get me bye for a few years. Bigger tank and I will do a T5 led hybrid in the future but I’d like to try my hand at some SPS in this 55

My first reef tank was actually a 55g. At the time I had a wavepoint 48" 4 or 6 bulbs cant remember, but it was not too pricey and worked well.

 

[cracker]

I'd recommend T5's also a 48" 4 bulb fixture would be perfect .
I use the 6 bulb 48 Ati on my 75 it's the same length just wider. I really like it