Pls help with a lighting question

[bnutz24]

In my tank this is kind of weird but I want a FOWLR tank BUT.. (this it the weird part) I want an anoneme and a few clams will they be ok without corals and what would be a decent light setup for a 130g tank? (72in long, 24in deep and 18in wide) MH are wayyy to expensive for me at this point and I see many PC's and VHO getting a little lost on needs and wants. so if any of you experts could give me a few pros and cons for PCs and VHOs I would be greatful.

 

[rbaldino]

Most clams really need to be kept under halides, and anemones are pretty light hungry as well. Sorry, but I don't really think there's a cheap way for you to do what you want to do. And in my opinion, if you're going to spend the bucks on a light setup for a tank as big as yours, you might as well go with a full reef.

 

[bnutz24]

Originally Posted by rbaldino
Most clams really need to be kept under halides, and anemones are pretty light hungry as well. Sorry, but I don't really think there's a cheap way for you to do what you want to do. And in my opinion, if you're going to spend the bucks on a light setup for a tank as big as yours, you might as well go with a full reef.
well as far as the lighting it is just a matter of time(saving up for MH) and the reason I am wery of going full reef is I love saltwater fish and I don't want the reef to take away from the beauty of the fish by overpowering them so at most I would do a 60%/40% split with more focus on the fish but I love some of the anomene and the blue clams they just light me up like a kid on christmas

also is it a must to put MH from end to end over the tank or can you grab two and move them off the tank for spread for example my tank is 72in long can I grab 2 24in MH fixtures and put them say 4-5in off the top of the tank in teh canopy and still be safe or would I still need 2 36in mh or 1 72in mh to cover?

 

[rbaldino]

Originally Posted by Bnutz24
well as far as the lighting it is just a matter of time(saving up for MH) and the reason I am wery of going full reef is I love saltwater fish and I don't want the reef to take away from the beauty of the fish by overpowering them so at most I would do a 60%/40% split with more focus on the fish but I love some of the anomene and the blue clams they just light me up like a kid on christmas

also is it a must to put MH from end to end over the tank or can you grab two and move them off the tank for spread for example my tank is 72in long can I grab 2 24in MH fixtures and put them say 4-5in off the top of the tank in teh canopy and still be safe or would I still need 2 36in mh or 1 72in mh to cover?
Trust me when I say that corals in an aquarium enhance fish as opposed to detract from them. For one thing, when you have a lot of corals in a tank you see much more natural behavior from fish. Plus, the look just can't be beat.
How much of your tank is covered by halides really depends on the strength of the bulbs. Obviously, you will need more than one bulb, but you won't need to have bulbs from one end of the tank to the other. Reflectors help to spread the light out, and many halide fixtures also use PC bulbs to help increase the amount of light and provide some different coloration.

 

[bnutz24]

thanks that helps and I guess I have t o see more pictures of tanks to get a good grasp on some of the options with reef setups. many look to me like they are over filled wtih coral but that may just be the aquascaping.

 

[1journeyman]

Clams are also delicacies to many "non reef safe" fish.

 

[bnutz24]

Well at the moment I have 4 temorary tenants in my tank outside of the live rock which are 4 damsels after 2 weeks of LR only and bactabacker I thought I would try some damsels to gauge where my cycle is and help it along. so I am still in the very early planning stages. the plan is starting to form up so compatibility will be taken into account before the permanet tenants are put in the tank but thanks for the advice.