Reef lighting

[Rayman]

I need help with getting a lighting system for my 55 gallon tank. I dont know what to get. I want a reef tank, mostly soft corals and coral friendly fish. Please help me!

 

[reefwiser]

Soft corals don't require as high a output as SPS. You have a choice of t5 bulbs and LED's. Many people love t5 lights and they will give you great service. Their draw back is that the bulbs need to replaced every 9 to 14 months. So there is an on going cost. LED's will work well and after purchase will last for years of service. How where you wanting to hang your lights?

 

[Rayman]

Do i have to hang my lights?? I really dont want to do that.

 

[jedimasterben]

You should, yes.

 

[NanaReefer]

No, you don't have to hang your lights. There are many tank mounting options available. Here's the best one I've personally found so far. My 40B. Lights are Reef Radiance LumenTek Pro180

http://www.aquastyleonline.com

 

[Wags]

There are really easy ways to do so. I bought a metal shelving brave at Home Depot for 3$, drilled it into the wall, works perfect for my LEDs

 

[NanaReefer]

For 3dees

 

[DFW]

I strongly recommend that you look at a tank with lighting that you really like and duplicate that. I like T5s with some royal blue LEDs with it. I have had the LED fixture mentioned above, and sold it at less than half of it's original price. And it was still under warranty. In other words, they lose their value as soon as you buy them, so you want to be sure that is what you want.

 

[Tank.Bro!]

I had Chinese LEDs on my 55 and they worked grey I know there is a lot of hate contributed to there cheap price but so far 1 year later they work great! I have now downsized to a twenty nine i just started

Just night lights/blues and yes I hung them but its easy just find a stud or a board in your ceiling and twist that sucker in. 4.00$ later and it looks better than bulky bars I'm sure you could mount them to. Kessle also sells a cool design for lighting with a goose neck clip on light. These are pricey tho. I would go the led route because it will bring out the color in softies better than t5s