corals/fish

[toytek]

What corals can you have in a 55 gal with
2 clowns,2 fire fish,2 PJ's and 3 blue dam"fish"
They are very aggresive,3 years old.
I have 2 umbrella shrooms and maybe 3 other shrooms
there size is small.
I would like to have something that is easy to keep.
HELP!!!!!

 

[toytek]

acttinic blue 50/50 40 watt second one is Fresh/saltwater 40 watt.(know I need someting different,but what?)I looked at a new light today,it was 125.00 used.It only had 4 small bulbs and one white/one blue.I really did not like the looks of it.It looked cheep,no fans either. (AND USED)
I want to order one, but no one has really gave me an Ideal
on what I should.I'm really new at this as far as wanting to
expand my tank. I have no ideal what to order.I would love to get the light now.Please Help.
toytek

 

[bdhough]

You need a 48 inch fixture. Look for those. They usually are dual 96 watt power compacts or quad 65 watt power compacts. You could also invest in a vho lighting ballast. If you have a canopy you can wire the ballast for 2-4 bulbs which would work as well. What kind of money do you have to spend on this? The problem with your tank is the length of it. You need a white spectrum and blue spectrum ideally. For the white spectrum you need the bulb to be a 10k or 20k the later being more blue. For the blue spectrum you need actinic 03. They make 50/50 bulbs which shine both colors.
Your flourescents are enough to keep quite a few corals alive and some may grow but not unless you get the corals near the light. I have corals growing in my 12 under 30 watts of flourescents. Kenya tree coral is one. Its doing REALLY well. I fragged a piece 3 weeks ago and the part has grown back already not to mention the single frag broke into 3 seperate frags and all three based on different rocks.... I love this coral....

 

[toytek]

So what can I have with the light I have now.
How much more will I have to spend to have more ??
200.00plus??how much are they??
My shrooms are not like the pictures I have seen on here.
I think that you guys feed them miracle grow,you know I have had mine for 3 years they don't look like that!!!
I read,study,look,do, and still not happy with my tank.
(after I look at the stuff you can have, and what I can't)
My tank is not pretty,and I'm not happy!
What is wrong >>??????
toytek

 

[sebae0]

if your any good at building you could try to build a canopy to fit your tank and get a retro vho kit online fairly cheap.
email me at jkinsman@wideopenwest.com and i can give you a quality site with great pricing.

 

[bdhough]

A 48 inch fixture is 150-250 dollars it just depends on who makes it, the wattage, and where you get it from. As far as whats best it doesn't really matter. Most anything you can buy from an online store is decent enough quality. The reason others shrooms are so good is because they have ALOT of light on their tank and may be doseing other things. Try moving your rock to the top of the tank near the lights. I take it you have a dual 48" flourescent fixture. If you move the shrooms around they will not open up well for a day to several days. Just leave them be and they will grow. Corals in general do not like to be moved around. They have to constantly readjust to their surroundings and are never given a chance to settle in.

 

[toytek]

Thanks,
I have looked at lights all day they are running from
175.00 to 300.00 , is that too much???
Do you guys have any pictures of a canopy that you
you have made???
What is the exact purpose of this ???
Is it to keep more light in the tank???
Or to keep it cool???
toyek???

 

[bdhough]

You can buy premade all wired fixtures or you can buy the ballast that drives the bulbs, wire it to a canopy, and then buy the bulbs seperate. One requires much more work than the other and it all just depends on you....