55Gal lighting questions

[james123]

So i just signed up for this site today, and i have a question about lighting my 55 gal want to be reef tank. Its been established for a few months now, and my water conditions have been very stable. salinity .022-.025, Ph stays 8.0-8.2, no ammonia or nitrites, and very little nitrates. I've got appx 40 lbs. of live rock and live sand as well. It wasn't until i went to purchase my first coral that i was told about the lighting requirements. So i'm looking at a coralife aqualight which my local fish store told me the 130 watt (2x65) 48" was what i needed for soft corals and anemones. Now that i've researched it a little bit i'm a bit nervous about not getting the same light fixture with double lights. (4X65). So my question is, will soft corals and anemones do well under 130 watts of light in a 55gal tank, or should i hold out for the 230 watt model? Also a co-worker hooked me up with several ballasts for a DIY fixture, but they are 6,500k while the coralife fixture has 10,000k bulbs. will the 6,500k be good lights or not?? Any advice in this matter would be appreciated!!! Thanks!!!

 

[Nolapete]

You can replace the 6500K bulbs, and should, with 10000K or higher bulbs.

 

[AABatteries]

The 130w fixture would be fine for softies and most anemones. I take it that, that is a PC fixture (power compact). Here it is for a really great price online. And it'll probably be around $150 with shipping. http://store.seacorals.net/48coaq13sili.html

This another and better alternative. It is a t5 fixture, and it has more wattage. And it's just little more than the fixture above. http://fishneedit.com/4ft4bulbs-with-l44.html

 

[james123]

cool, thanks!!!

 

[severum mama]

130 W of PC light is not really that much light over a 55 gallon reef. IMO you would not have enough light to keep anemones, but it would be decent for some soft corals like mushrooms, leathers, etc. The 260 W PC fixture would definitely be better (still not sure if that's enough light for anemones, but would give you a lot more options for corals). A 4 bulb HO T5 fixture is better still, but I have never seen one like the one that is linked so can't comment about it. If you choose to go for a HO T5 fixture, look for one that has individual reflectors like the Tek lights. If you want to keep sps, anemones, clams, etc, you will need to go with HO T5s (maybe 6 bulbs?) or halides, IMO.

Welcome to AC!!!

 

[AABatteries]

I'm getting a t5 fixture from fishneedit, the link I posted for the t5. I'll give some feedback on it.

 

[got2envy]

This fixture has individual reflectors and here is a coupon code comes with the bulbs so don't click anything for bulbs..$154 before coupun and shipping
rconly5po gives 5% off order pre-shipping
http://www.hellolights.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1717

here is a thread going on the fixture
http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=178487&st=0

I got the 24" and am very pleased so far! for $106 can't beat it
HTH

Maria