best lighting for the money?

[Alan&Rene]

What is the best lighting for the money? want to keep fish and some corals.

thanks.

 

[laskopyre]

It depends on a couple things. What size is your tank, and what type of coral would you like to, or plan to keep?

 

[Saltysteele]

It depends on a couple things. What size is your tank, and what type of coral would you like to, or plan to keep?

start out with T5's, and you'll be set

 

[ahayes13]

i have t5's and really like them. i can keep any coral i want and dont have to have a chiller or killer electric bill. i dont get quite the color pop that halides give but if you dont mind those above things then you could just go with halides.......

 

[FaviaFreak]

if you want strictly LPS go T-5's if you want mainly SPS go MH

 

[Poseidon]

T5's and you can keep whatever you want..... Halides are old school, they work no doubt, but they transfer more heat to the water, and have more limitations when it comes to color. Also, if you do halides, you may need to add T5 anyway for Actinic supplementation.

Get a QUALITY fixture, with individual reflectors, in a 4,6, or 8 bulb set up depending on your tank width and depth.

 

[Alan&Rene]

thank you all for the good info

 

[Alan&Rene]

we have a 65gal right now but are planning to upgrade to a 120 or larger in the next month.

 

[Poseidon]

A 120 would be the perfect tank for an 8 bulb Tek light, or 6 overdriven T5's in a retro canopy.

 

[Paintguru]

I plan to do T5's on all tanks in the future, but my current cube tank limits their effectiveness...so it is MH.

 

[kgross]

I also like t5's, but it really depends on the dimensions of the tank, and what you want to keep in it. I actually swaped 2 400 watt halides (old radium bulbs) for 8 54 watt t5's with good reflectors, and my par at the waters surface was 50% higher. I really like the improvement, 50% of the power bill and 50% more light into the tank.

Kim

 

[Alan&Rene]

thank you all i think we will go with t5's

 

[dieselab]

if you want strictly LPS go T-5's if you want mainly SPS go MH

That statement is wrong in so many ways.

 

[jkinros]

A 120 would be the perfect tank for an 8 bulb Tek light, or 6 overdriven T5's in a retro canopy.

What exactly do you mean by "overdriven"?

 

[kgross]

Overdriven means putting more power to the bulbs then they are designed for. When you connect a 54 watt T5 bulb to an Icecap 660 ballast it will drive the bulb at 80 watts. This will give more light, with a reduction in bulb life.

Kim

 

[bamachamp92]

A lot of people go with a combo of t5 and mh for the best of both worlds. For me I tried t5 only and I could not do without the shimmer of metal halides it just doesnt seem the same to me.

 

[poolshark181]

i agree, the shimmer is the dealbreaker for me, for my tank, 40g breeder, a 250w 20k SE MH

 

[jkinros]

Overdriven means putting more power to the bulbs then they are designed for. When you connect a 54 watt T5 bulb to an Icecap 660 ballast it will drive the bulb at 80 watts. This will give more light, with a reduction in bulb life.

Kim

What kind of setup would you suggest if I was going to go with a 4x24w setup for my 20g. What kind of life expectancy would I expect? I'm currently running 2x65w PC and was thinking of the best upgrade option without frying my tank/wallet.

 

[kgross]

What are you keeping in the 20 gallon tank?

Kim

 

[jkinros]

lps mostly and zoas/palys maybe some monti but not into sps yet.