Which lighting would be the best??? HELP ASAP PLEASE

[milomlo]

Ok I know these aren't the best but right now I can only do what I can afford

So I ordered a 110 W compact Dual Fluorescent strip fixture with one 55W bulb 10000K & one 55W bulb actinic blue.
With that set up I will have to do major modification to my tank hood. After I ordered it I found a T5 fixture.
It is a 48W T5 HO Fluorescent Fixture with one 24W HO T5 bulb 12000K, one 24W HO T5 bulb actinic blue & one set of flip top leg
Which one would be the best? I just started my cycle last night on a 30 gal with 15# lr, 15# base rock. I am going to be making a reef tank. Please advise ASAP so if I need to change my order I can.

 

[reefiness]

i would have to go with the PC's even though t5 put out better lumens i think that the 110 w pc is better the 48w t5.

 

[golfish]

I agree, I'd go with the PC's....You'll be able to keep just about anything you want under the PC's...no clams cause your tanks a little small for em and no acros..
Oh, and needless to say no anemones

 

[milomlo]

Ok what do you mean no anenomes? I can't keep those with this light or because of the tank? If it is the tank you are referring to I know folks with nano's under 6 gal with anenomes.
Well now I am completely confussed. I thought T5 lights were better than the PC lights. Even though the wattage is less I thought they gave out more light. Someone on another site told me to use the T5's. :help: I really need to figure this out. This is nuts.
I don't know what is the best. I do want to keep anenomes and things of course that is long down the road as I know my tank needs to be established a while before I should start with corals and things. I do want some soft corals and such (although I can't really tell you what as I have not gotten that far into research). I know I want a clownfish and a host anenome for him.
So that being said what is the best from what I have listed? I know they are cheap and by no means the best but all I have right now is a standard white fluorescent bulb and that can't be good to use.

Let me also say this. If i go with 65W Uni Strip Compact Fluorescent Light Fixture II will that be better than the T5? If I buy the 110W I will have to do MAJOR modifications to my hood and I don't think I want to tackle that just yet. So would this one be better than the T5 or should I just make the modifications?

 

[hagfish]

Are the PC's a retro? Just wondering why you have to change the hood. If you are going to end up changing the hood anyway why not just get MH? Go to the auction site a look for a used retro kit. There's usually some 250 watt retro's for around $100 available. Or you could buy a new retro for maybe $50 more or so. If you shop around enough, they really aren't that much more than PC's and certainly t5's, which are pretty expensive for the HO's.
FWIW, I don't think I'd try an anemone under either of the lights you mentioned. Some have done it, most have failed. Based on my own experience, a dying anemone can cost you more money than the cost of your lights. I had an anemone die (under MH's) recently and I suspect that it is the cause of death for a hammer coral, one green chromis, possibly a kole tang, some xenia, and a crocea clam. That's $100-150 of stuff.
So I suggest MH, or maybe t5, but more of them than what you mentioned.

 

[pyro]

I would say no anenomes due to the light. You might be able to keep them alive, but they won't thrive or look good. They will most likely die anyways.
I have a very similar setup to you. I have about 45# of LR in a 30g reef thats been set up since New Years of last year. I have 2 X 65W PC retro's and I am very pleased with them. They were hard to figure out a good way to put them in the canopy, but I got it with a little bit of work.
I currently have some green star polyps, a rasta leather, a ton of multiplying red shrooms, and a bunch of candy cane corals that I split and trade in for credit at a LFS. Fish wise I currently have a percula clown, purple firefish, and orange finned tang (is moving over to fathers tank shortly, he's still small (under 3" from tip to tail), but I dont' want to cram him into a small space.) I had a 6-line wrasse and another clown but both jumped out the back of my open canopy. So, I'm gonna buy some egg crate and bolt to the back of it.