No idea here need help!

[lferg]

I want more lighting on my 55g. I have an All-glass with the generic 2 hood center brace and 2 (15W) hood and fistureas and I want to change it. I don't want to spend major $$$ doing it. I don't think I will ever do corals. Is this what I am looking for????? An easy change that is painless tha is going to give me the best lighting for the least amount of $$$?
http://www.current-usa.com/smartpaq.html

[fsn77]

You would need at least 2 of those, as well as a wooden canopy to install them in. Those are retrofit kits -- kits of pieces that you assemble yourself and install into a canopy of some sort (i.e. -- there's no fixture housing to hold everything).

Are you wanting more light just to see things better, or are you looking to have more lighting with the thought of mixing a couple different spectrum bulbs to create a different color effect? Or, is it both?

Power compact set-ups (the bulb style you linked to) are ok for adding more light, especially since you said you don't want any corals. The bulbs, however, are kind of pricey to replace over time compared to T5 HO lighting, for example. If you want the tank brighter, a 2 x 54 watt T5 HO set-up will definitely brighten up your tank. The T5 HO bulbs last at least twice as long as the power compact bulbs when it comes to retaining their original color spectrum.

If you want an example of a fixture like I'm talking about, here's a link to one (http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~SearchStr~2x~action~view~idProduct~CU0 1126~idCategory~FILTFIT56U~category~48_inch_Curren t_USA_Nova_Extreme_2x54_watt_T5_HO_10K_460nm_36in_ Units~vendor~.html).

[lferg]

Thanks yea I dont want a canopy I really wanted to keep my "crappy" fixture that I have now. The ones that came with my All-Glass tank and just get better bulbs than the 15W ones in there now but I was assuming I would have to replace the "guts" of those fixtures to get more than 15W out of them.....

[lferg]

Or even this http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl3684/cp18369/si1381730/cl0/currentusasatellite482x65wattpowercompactsinglestr ipw2lunarlights
But I don't know if I can use one of these due to the center brace on my tank.... Don't these lights get hot and might compromise the integrity of the brace?
Better yet, will this work? Is it unsafe?
http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m211/internationalfarmer/IMG_7936.jpg

[fsn77]

It's hard to strip the guts out of a normal fluorescent fixture and replace them with something better. Typically, there's just not enough space.

If you look at the fixture I linked to, it's a T5 HO alternative to the Power Compact fixture you linked to. The T5 fixture might consume less wattage, but it will put out more light than the 2 x 65 watt Power Compact fixture and T5s tend to run cooler than PCs.

The center brace on your tank really isn't a factor for any lighting option you're looking to get.

The aluminum foil in your existing fixtures might help a tiny bit, but I'm not sure how safe it is.

[lferg]

Agreed I should just bite the $$$ bullet and do it right. Thanks. :)