Lighting with a Coralife CF fixture

[jubbin2001]

Ok so I got a 30" fixture from my LFS to start my tank. Currently it has 2 21" 50/50 55 watt bulbs in it. Now As I am learning more and more about lighting, it has lead me to believe that, realistically these are pretty "meh" when it comes to usage. Currently I have these corals in my tank:
1 Green open brain
1 red open brain
1 double head frogspawn
1 kenya tree
1 colt
1 colony of radioactive dragon eye zoos
1 colony of bam bam zoos
2 frag of xenia (started as 1)

1 colony of cloves
1 hairy mushroom polyp
and numerous 'shrooms I got for free from a guy I work with.
Now as I was looking through the choices of lighting there are a few choices as to what I can do. I was thinking I should run a separate actinic and a regular "white" light, but where I am at right now is, I don't want to have som negative effects on the corals since they have been in this light for some time now.
What I was looking at was this:
1 21" 10,000k 65 watt and 1 21" actinic 65 watt.
Would this really be a better result for me? Should I maybe look at a 14,000k? Or should I stick with the 50/50 bulbs?
Going T5 is just not an option for me right now...wish I had started there, but alas we always think we aren't going to need it...well I did...heh. Thanks all for the input!

 

[mr_x]

i don't think it's going to make alot of difference. if what you have is working, i'd just stick with it until you are ready for a lighting upgrade.
what about purchasing a cheap fixture that has 1 or 2 bulbs and putting it on the tank as a supplement to the cf fixture? i did a quick search and found a 2 x 24 watt nova extreme t-5 HO fixture for 70 bucks.
i also found a single 18 watt aqualight t-5 (non HO) for 32.99.

 

[jubbin2001]

A novel idea, but it's not really a possibility. The CF fixture I have up there now pretty much takes up the top of the aquarium. I have about 2" of free space, so I don't think it would work

. I think I might have found part of the problem as well. Yes, not only is it CF, but the stock 50/50 bulbs that come with it are 6000k bulbs with the actinic lighting and possibly not a true 10,000k.
Exerpts taken direct from the website:
"Combines 50% 10,000K Super Daylight and 50% True Actinic 03 Blue Phosphors"
Then right underneath is the statement:
"The 50/50 Fluorescent Lamp is a mixure of 50% 6,000K natural daylight and 50% True Actinic 03 Blue phosphors." So which is it

?? You can go right to Oceanic's website and see for yourself. I thought it a bit odd.
This is why I was thinking of going Sunpaq. From what I understand their bulbs are a true 10,000k with the actinic.
I dunno, in hind sight I would have done things very different

, but its a little late now. Thanks for the input...I still dunno what to do yet.

 

[mr_x]

if it is true 6000k, it's fine for your corals. you might get less PAR from a 10k lamp.