What coral can I have, with my light?

[wolffam]

My budget is tight at this moment for new lighting system, but wanted to know if there is any coral I can have with my current set up? I have 135 gal, with 4 - 40w lamps (2-03 actinic, 2-triclormatic) with 2- 50/50 35w lamps. My lighting is very low, and I'm saving for 1 Icecap 660 with 3-110w and 1 660 Icecap with 4-95w in the future. Any suggestions on coral I can add, or should I just wait until I can upgrade the lighting?

 

[ren]

Umm Mushrooms. I was also short on lighting but sucessfully kept a Leather Toadstool by keeping it high in the tank. Check ***********.com or books for low light corals.
I was planning on the 660's but $$$ turned me to GE electronic ballasts at lowes for 27 bucks each and each will support 3 48" VHO's.
Got them and payed the $ for URI bulbs take a look at the lighting effects : <a href="http://community.webshots.com/user/rebel122" target="_blank">http://community.webshots.com/user/rebel122</a>
just an alternative and HTH

 

[coralfishg2]

I am in the process of buying the ballasts that you are talking about, from home depot. do you happen to know what model number you bought. if you do a search on homedepot.com, ballasts, it brings up a list of about 10 different one's, and I can't figure out whitch one i need. I'm looking two run 2 for now, and add two more if needed

 

[ren]

can't see the model # on em but ... they are rated at 980Ma and the bulb type for VHO's is FO40. Mine are rated to run 3.

 

[bacchus_fl]

I started my 55G with only 2 40W tubes which is only 1.45W per gallon. I was able to keep all feather dusters, some mushrooms ( but stay away from the bright colored ones they tend to need more light or will lose color), I also kept a leather (most leather need little light to live), most all polyps (i.e. yellow, button, wood, seamat, zooantheds, ect., I even kept my open brain for a while, I would ask your LFS but MOST not ALL soft corals have small light requirments.
One thing is for sure I was only able to keep these things alive. They did not grow hardly at all so don't expect to much out of them. Also alot of things like the mushrooms and polyps will strech upward looking for more light. They will not lay down the way they do under stronger light.
They will still brighten up your tank and give you something to look at until you get stronger lights. Hope this helps.

 

[predator]

Well guys, I'm a little upset. I did fork out the money for a couple 660's when I saw those GE ballest several times. I had no idea that they were capable of running vho's. <img src="graemlins//yell.gif" border="0" alt="[yell]" /> But I have learned something new and I'm glad that you all have found a alternative!!!
As for low light corals. You could have mushrooms, a colt, some xenias, a sun coral or sun poylps(tubestrea) and maybe even a frogspawn. I kept one in 75 with regular ole' shop lights for awhile(Guys this when I first started out). So you have plenty of options.
<a href="http://hometown.aol.com/flmeangl44/indes.html" target="_blank">CLICK HERE TO SEE MY REEF.</a>

 

[ramey70]

I think those Home Depot/Lowes ballasts are capable of running VHO bulbs, however they will still only push out 40watts through each bulb. They will not be at the strength of a VHO ballasted bulb.

 

[coralfishg2]

Just to let everyone know. I also agree with everyone that these ballast will not properly run your vho's, but I do have a friend that is running 2 250w metal halide iwaski bulbs, on a also cheap 1000bulbs.com ballsast. and uses the vho as his atinics. he is very successful with this setup. he keeps everything from sps, to soft, he just gave me two cuttings from his toadstool that has grown to over the size of a computor monitor. I guess what i'm trying to say is that if you just want to use them to power your attinics then they will do fine. but I would not recomend you use them to power your hole lighting setup