Lighting for some nanos?

1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
ok i haqve 2 nano tanks that i am in the process of building and i have come to the point of needing lights. i just dont know what to really look for. here are my goals:
softies, zoa's, & a leather.
i need one light of a:
10g - 20"
20g- 24"
no i do not know what type of light to buy. my LFS said PC would be just fine, but i have herd others say i need T5 HO's.
i am not looking to spend a huge deal of money on the lights under $100 for each if possible.
thank you for all the help
 
wangotango

wangotango

Active Member
Don't know of many decent 20" T5ho fixtures, but since a 10gal isn't that deep PC would be fine for what you're looking at.
A four bulb T5 fixture would work great for the 20gal. Don't go with the Icecap retro; you don't need to overdrive the bulbs, and you'd end up melting softies if you did. A decent fixture would let you keep whatever you wanted.
-Justin
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
ok so a nice PC for the 10g and a T5 HO for the 20g should do me just fine then?
what kind of watts should i be looking for?
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
ok here are my thoughts on the lights:
20g--Nova Extreme T5HO X2 - (10K Daylight / 460nm Actinic) 2 X 24
10g--Satellite - 10K / 460nm Actinic 1 X 40
any thoughts:
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
i am just worried about the wattage. is that gonna be enough? i dont want to underpower them and have my corals go poopish.
 
teresaq

teresaq

Active Member
I would do the dual satellite on both. 20 inch and the 24 inch unless you want more then just softies.
T
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
the tank is gonna be softies and zoa's thats about it. i was looking at the DS but isnt that to much wattage. got the 10g thats 80watts and my LFS said that would burn them up. the 20g im not to concerned about the lighting(at this point, looking for something cheap to make due until my GF figures out what she really wants)
 
teresaq

teresaq

Active Member
naaa, I have 150 wtts MH on my ten gal. I dont think 80 wtts of pc is too much-with one bulb 10k and the other actinic. Just be sure the fixture has legs and isnt sitting right on top of your tank.
T
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
what kind of watts per gallon should i be looking for to keep the sofites?
i have a few ppl telling me a few different things.
1. you can never have enough light
2. to much light will kill the corals.
3. you need 4wpg
4.you need 10wpg
5. dont use PC's
6. T5's are to strong for your tank
so im kinda lost. all from different places.
 
spyder78

spyder78

Member
I just got a 150w Sunpod for my 30g. I have a 96w Coralife Aqualight PC that is 20" long that I can get rid of, if you are interested. That would be great for either if all you want is softies.
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
not really looking at that model. i have 3 different used ones in my area but they are all different with the same price. so i dont know which dirrection to go.
thats y i have all those questions to figure things out
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
ok all the fixtures are the same price $50. so here it goes the list:
20" 1x40Watt Satellite - 10K / 460nm Actinic -new $60
24"-Nova Extreme T5HO X2 - (10K Daylight / 460nm Actinic)- used $50
20" 2x40Watt Dual Satellite - Dual Daylight / Dual Actinic - used $75 (knocked down to $50)
20" - 1 x 96 Watt - 4 Tube Quad - (20" x 7" x 2.6")- used $50-needs new bulb 2 years old
i think that is it.
 
1990jpyj

1990jpyj

Member
Coralife 24 Inch Aqualight W/ 2-65W Straight Pin Base And 2-3/4W Lunar Blue-Moon-Glow LED Lamps Two 3/4 watt Lunar Blue-Moon-Glow LED lamps
last one. $50 but needs a new antic
 
spyder78

spyder78

Member
The Nova Extreme seems like a good deal for the 20g. As for the 10g, I like the quad tube. That is the light I had on my 30g and it worked really well.
 
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