LED lights for a 55 gal

[Jake4232]

I'm looking to upgrade my 55 gal fish only lighting so I can do soft corals and maybe some LPS. I haven't been very serious about the hobby for many years but want to get back into it. Last I knew, metal halide, power compact, and t5 HO were the routes to go but now it seems like the only thing available is LED.

I guess LED does not go by watts per gallon like the old choices so how do I know if I have enough lighting? What are some good choices for a 55 gallon that wont cost me a fortune?

 

[lmforbis]

It depends on how much you are willing to spend. There are some great LED options but they are really pricy. At least $500 and probably closer to $1000 to cover the 48" of a 55. You might consider T5s. I bought Odessea two bulb T5 fixtures on Ebay. They were inexpensive <$50. They came with bulbs but they were not good ones. I replaced the crappy bulbs with ADI and Giessman bulbs. I use mine to supplement my Kessil LEDs so I don't have to but more of the expensive LEDs immediatly. You might look into a similar T5 option but with 4 or maybe 6 bulbs. You do have to change the bulbs out regularly but the upfront cost is less. Don't get me wrong I absolutely love my Kessils and eventually I will buy more but it would be another thousand to cover both of my tanks and there are other expenses that are a higher priority.

 

[Jake4232]

I've begun looking into kessils. I've only heard about them for the first time today. Would those be comparable to a metal halide as far as the kinds of corals I could keep under them? Could I do SPS and how many would I need for a 55?

 

[lmforbis]

for SPS in a 55 you'd need 2 A360we fixtures. They make a controller for their lights that is really nice. You can adjust them and do a dawn to dusk effect. They also make a new one called the AP700 that has the controller built in. I have no experience with those. You'd need one of those. That is my dream fixture but I can't justify the expense right now. I have heard the phone ap for the ap700 is a bit buggy.
Are you set on the 55 gallon? If not a 75 or 90 would probably be a better choice. Lighting wouldn't change since they are all 48" but they are so much easier to maintain with that little extra front to back distance.

 

[Jake4232]

I already have the tank set up or I would totally go with a 75. I might do 2 Kessil A 160 and keep it softies and low light LPS.

 

[lmforbis]

That would work. If you go with the Kessils, I'd get the controller. You could always ad 2 more in the future for SPS

 

[jay0705]

Agreed on kessils

 

[Jake4232]

Great! Thanks for the advice!!