Lighting an Anemone question

[iopusl]

I currently have the coralife 130 watt pc setup. I know its not nearly enough to keep an anemone alive. From what I gather, I need at least 5 watts per gallon. With a 55 gallon tank I need 270 watts. So my idea is to make a canopy with crown molding, then rip the power compacts out of the coralife unit, then get 4 T-12 ballasts and wire them all into the canopy. With 40 watt T-12 bulbs that would bring me to 290 watts, over what I need if I buy the 5 watts per gallon theory. The reason for this idea is because I'm newly married and a new homeowner and really cannot go for $400 on a metal halide system, and the meiser in me refuses to let a $120 powercompact just be pushed aside.
So will this be enough to keep an anemone alive ?
Has anyone else done anything similar ?
Thanks in advance.

 

[sato]

130w over a 55 should be ok if you try to keep the Anemone centered under the light and in the top half of the tank, I would go with a Bubble Tip because they like to be in the rocks so it will be easier to get him up close to those lights.
Although I would reccommend upgrading at some point but you should be ok to keep an anemone as long as you can keep him fairly close the lights.

 

[thegrog]

I think your plan with the T4's and the PC combo would work great for most anemones. Just be sure to install a fan or two in your new canopy as that many bulbs will produce a bit of heat.
IMO, 130 watts is not enough for an anemone in a 55 for the long run. It may survive a little while, but it will suffer and die eventually.

 

[bang guy]

What kind of Anemone?

 

[andretti]

I'd stay from anemones. They need pristine water condtions and strong lighting. And even if they do survive, their lifespan in captivity is something like 7 months. Sure there are exceptions, but for the most part they die in a few weeks or months.

 

[shanev]

What kind of anemone. How deep is the tank?

 

[iopusl]

I was thinking of a bubble tip. I know they're survival chances aren't great but I really want to give it a shot, hence my light upgrade.
The tank is a normal 55 gallon which the depth is somewhere around 18".
I'm not too rigid in the species of anemone so any suggestions on anemones is appreciated.

 

[bang guy]

IMO if you use an IceCap 660 ballast with your proposed T-12 lighting the Bubble-Tip will do fine as far as lighting. You still need to keep high quality water, lighting is just one part.