Lighting emergency!

[alison]

Hi, I have a 55 gal. reef. Half my lights went out around 4 pm. tonight, and it's 10:30 now. How long is my reef going to be ok like this. I mean my right side of the tank with anemonie, and some corals is totally dark, and the left side is lit up. I have to order new lights, but that'll be a few days! Scared, will it be ok?
Next question: I have 2- 55watt compact bulbs on each side. So, I was total, 220. Now, I'm at 110. So now I was thinkin of either doin 2 - 65watts to replace basically since they don't make 55 watters anymore, or doin 2- 96 watters across the back of the hood, and puting the 2 leftover 55 watters in the front. Or doin dual 175 watt metal halide's. But I'm scared of metal halides, and the heat, and don't know that language if you know what I mean. But I found a deal on that for 224.00 brand new on the net, and it's by sunlight supply, and blue wave pulse start, but no bulbs. Now, do I want electronic or magnetic? Sorry for so many questions. ~Ali

 

[audisteve]

It's okay for the lights to be out for a little while, even the mighty oceans have cloudy days. But it is very important that when you upgrade your lighting to acclimate the tank to the new lighting. Use a towel for the first day or two to diffuse the new light. Just to correct a statement of yours there is no difference between the 55W and 65W bulbs, manufactures list those watt ratings as a "guide" it really depends on the ballast used to figure out total wattage output...it gets really complicated. Metal Halides are very tricky to figure out at first, I was just as scared as you so I went the route of T-5 flouresecnts, (not to get into to many details) T-5's have the same Lux output of MH's I use T-5's and have kept many different species of SPS's thriving under them. Although I did have a Crocea clam start to bleach after 3 months. But to get back to your question I always recommend Electronic Ballasts, they are quieter, run cooler, and save on energy. But don't take my word as God, read around and see what other people have to say.

 

[alison]

Hi, thanks soooo much for your reply! I was up 'til 3 am this mornin searchin and readin around to figure out this whole mh issue. I'm still not sure what I'll do. I guess it figures on cost. I definately wanna upgrade though, because what I had wasn't sufficeint to keep any hard corals really, except a few hardy ones, and most softies. So I'm thinkin of goin 2 times 175 electronic retro kit, but now I dono about brands. Theirs sooooo many. Cool touch, sunlight supply, hamilton beach, icecap. I probably would go with either cool touch or sunlight supply but dono which is better. I found good deals on both on ---- for new setups. Now I dono about T-5 flourecent. I heard it's just as good, but dono about cost, and where to get a good deal. If you know a good cheaper place could you email me? My address: alison19782004@yahoo.com ~Thanks, Ali I'll be deciding later tonight, and ordering rush delivery I think. Thanks