light ?
- Thread starter nu2salt
- Start date
scubanoah
Member
depends on what coral you want to keep. power compacts are fine for softies, but 15watt is not near enough for your 55. 50/50 bulbs are fine. try to get at least 200 watts of pc lighting for basic soft corals. If you want to do some more difficult corals and clams you will want to go metal halide.
chipmaker
Active Member
Well MH is not necessary for the majority of corals out there.LOts more $$$$ to operate and buy plus the problems of associated heat build up with them. PC are more than adequate for the majority of things folks play with, but then there are those that think they are a must have even if they only have shrooms in the tank.....
YOu can use all actinic lights perfectly well, if you do not mind the color. It does enhance the corals better, and makes em stand out, and thats one reason some shops tend to run more actinic lights overall, so as to make their coral selection stand out more. Looking at all actinic lit tanks after a bit tends to give me a headache. I usually run a 50/50 and then add actinic to the point that the corals start to stand out more pronounced but not to the point the tank itself takes on the blue hue.
YOu can use all actinic lights perfectly well, if you do not mind the color. It does enhance the corals better, and makes em stand out, and thats one reason some shops tend to run more actinic lights overall, so as to make their coral selection stand out more. Looking at all actinic lit tanks after a bit tends to give me a headache. I usually run a 50/50 and then add actinic to the point that the corals start to stand out more pronounced but not to the point the tank itself takes on the blue hue.
chipmaker
Active Member
Originally Posted by cymbal67
snip ..eventually you will get the MH anyway....just get it now. you can look at it as saving money in the long run.
Can;t really say thats true. I have been playing with marine tanks for years on end and have no desire nor any future desire to get into MH lights, so buying it now or whenever would be a big heap of wasted money. There is more corals out there that grow perfectly fine without MH or HQI lights.......and have been doing so for many years long before the advent of these lights..
snip ..eventually you will get the MH anyway....just get it now. you can look at it as saving money in the long run.
Can;t really say thats true. I have been playing with marine tanks for years on end and have no desire nor any future desire to get into MH lights, so buying it now or whenever would be a big heap of wasted money. There is more corals out there that grow perfectly fine without MH or HQI lights.......and have been doing so for many years long before the advent of these lights..
nu2salt
Member
thanks guys iwas really wondering about those lights i really don't have the money for mh's but if you can get a good coral selection without them i want bother. i only work 6 months out of the year so in the later part of the year money is a big issue
thanks forall the help ive loved saltwater for years but have only been into my own tanks for a coulpe of months now just set up a 55 gallon last night
only has salt in it right now waiting for it to settle and in a couple of days i will get some lr any suggestions on how much to start with?
thanks forall the help ive loved saltwater for years but have only been into my own tanks for a coulpe of months now just set up a 55 gallon last night
only has salt in it right now waiting for it to settle and in a couple of days i will get some lr any suggestions on how much to start with?
S
suv
Guest
As a general rule you want 1 1/2 - 2 lbs LR per Gal. I started w/ 50lbs but am going to add mor in the future.
hot883
Active Member
PC's are fine for alot of soft corals. I started with a 55 and now I have a 125 gallon; both tanks had/have PC's. I keep,
gorgonians
featherdusters
xenia
mushrooms- rhodactis and ricordeas
zoanthids
open brain
sponges
kenya tree
button polyps
green star polyps
etc.
Any questions, just ask them here. We are fellow reefers and are here to help. Definatley ask here BEFORE you buy anything. We have made many mistakes and can help you from making the same ones. Alot of Local Fish Stores (LFS) just want your money so some give less than good advice.
Research the question by doing a search. Believe it or not that same question has been asked 1,000 times before. Go to the "search" button and type in your search subject.
Anyway, welcome to the boards.
Barry
gorgonians
featherdusters
xenia
mushrooms- rhodactis and ricordeas
zoanthids
open brain
sponges
kenya tree
button polyps
green star polyps
etc.
Any questions, just ask them here. We are fellow reefers and are here to help. Definatley ask here BEFORE you buy anything. We have made many mistakes and can help you from making the same ones. Alot of Local Fish Stores (LFS) just want your money so some give less than good advice.
Research the question by doing a search. Believe it or not that same question has been asked 1,000 times before. Go to the "search" button and type in your search subject.
Anyway, welcome to the boards.