RobertN
Active Member
Hi All--
I have a 100g cube with a canopy that opens in the front and slides forward and back a few inches in each direction. The dimensions are: Ht: 24"; Width: 30"; Depth: 30". I currently have 2 cheapy LED strips that were put in by the guy who I bought the tank from and who set up the tank for me. There is one strip with alternating blue and white lights that runs the width of the tank and is set back from the front by 12". The other strip is just blue lights and that strip is 9" further back from the first strip. The inside surface of the canopy is 8" from the water surface.
I am a total newbie/moron about lighting--terminology and various options are still something that easily confuse and overwhelm me. But I am trying to learn. One very experienced store owner who came over to look at my tank and help me with learning to test the water said my lights were woefully insufficient. He suggested I get 3 Kessel 160W lights.
I am starting to look investigate what I could get to replace the 2 LED strips. I wanted to know if you folks could offer any suggestions of what I could use and why. I know the issues are the light being able to get to the bottom of a tank with a 30" depth, the presence of the canopy as it affects the distance of the lights from the water (spread, heat, water splashing on bulbs, too much light for corals closer to the upper portion of the tank), the type of corals I want to grow (I don't currently have any acros with these cheap LED's--even Montiporas that I tried didn't do well--but I am hoping to possibly put a few into the tank if I can get better lighting). I currently have a fairly varied mix of non-SPS corals.
Money to spend on lighting isn't unlimited for me, so putting out $1200 or more is not feasible.
I have a 100g cube with a canopy that opens in the front and slides forward and back a few inches in each direction. The dimensions are: Ht: 24"; Width: 30"; Depth: 30". I currently have 2 cheapy LED strips that were put in by the guy who I bought the tank from and who set up the tank for me. There is one strip with alternating blue and white lights that runs the width of the tank and is set back from the front by 12". The other strip is just blue lights and that strip is 9" further back from the first strip. The inside surface of the canopy is 8" from the water surface.
I am a total newbie/moron about lighting--terminology and various options are still something that easily confuse and overwhelm me. But I am trying to learn. One very experienced store owner who came over to look at my tank and help me with learning to test the water said my lights were woefully insufficient. He suggested I get 3 Kessel 160W lights.
I am starting to look investigate what I could get to replace the 2 LED strips. I wanted to know if you folks could offer any suggestions of what I could use and why. I know the issues are the light being able to get to the bottom of a tank with a 30" depth, the presence of the canopy as it affects the distance of the lights from the water (spread, heat, water splashing on bulbs, too much light for corals closer to the upper portion of the tank), the type of corals I want to grow (I don't currently have any acros with these cheap LED's--even Montiporas that I tried didn't do well--but I am hoping to possibly put a few into the tank if I can get better lighting). I currently have a fairly varied mix of non-SPS corals.
Money to spend on lighting isn't unlimited for me, so putting out $1200 or more is not feasible.
