Lighting for a 55g

[alwaysj]

Hi, everyone, I am pretty confused about all the lighting posts out there, and then everything comes with an acronymn! lol. Hopefully, you guys can help me with choosing the right lighting/make good recommendations.

Ok, first off, my tank dimensions are: 36" long, 18" deep, and 18" width. I'd love to keep anemones (especially BTA's), and as for corals, I haven't really done much research on them, except that I know I'd love to keep some really colorful ones (but don't worry, I will totally research first before buying!)

I noticed everyone recommending metal halide lighting for other poster's setups, but how do I know that applies to me? Is MH lighting the *must-have*? Then again, other people are getting compact flourescents? And others are getting away with Very Hight Outputs?

And then there are still others who are just using their normal outputs? (btw, are normal outputs those "aqua glo/marine-glo" lights that my tank came with? Could I just use those marine-glo lights instead of these MH lights? (the box said that they're good for corals and inverts)

Lots of questions--sorry! but thanks in advance!

Jamie

 

[Tackett]

Ok heres some answers.

Metal Halides are NOT a must have...but having said that, dang they are nice. I have powercompacts on my 55 gallon, they are nice, but I wish I had halides. Everyone uses the general rule of thumb of using about 5 watts per gallon of water.

As far as im concerned. Its a money thing. If you cant afford halides, go with PC (power compact). But keep in mind that Halides are well worth the money, and good lights will save you alot of anguish. Not to mention it will save you lots of money by purchasing the corect lights the first time, instead of trial and error. Having said that, I can help you pick out PC's but as I dont have halides, I dont know much about them other than the normal lighting concepts. But I'm sure the other guys will steer you in the correct direction.

So all in all, I would get Metal Halides if you can afford it. Probably a retrofit kit if you have a canopy.

as far as acronyms, what ones do you not know the definition of?

 

[Anonymous]

For my 55, I have PC's 4X96, 2 act, 2 10k. Just one comment, during the summer months, these lights heat up the water pretty good, so I prop open the canopy to circulate more air.

If you go MH, more power to you, just make sure you don't boil the water.

~wings~

 

[Tackett]

Thats a good point that I forgot wings. If you get MH, make sure you put some cooling on it. Fans work wonders. There are commercial setups for cooling. Also never hurts to invest in a water chiller. You can make one for cheap. WEll, not exactly cheap, but a little over a hundred dollars. There are probably tons of schematics posted in the DYI forums.

 

[carsimex]

I have 44 g tank, corner style. The one you can not easily build the canopy for, plus I do not really like how they look. When was the time to get the light I was very confused abut all the different types of light but with lots of reading I decided Metal Halide is the best way to go. So this is my setup: I got the fixture 24’’ , reflector, nice light bulb I believe 175W Coralight 20k, 175MH IceCap ballast and electrical harness with water prove disconnect for a little over $200. The only think I got from MarineDepot was the IceCap fan with temperature controller. I think it is another 40 dollars. I know it is not the cheepest but less then most of things you can get of an ebay and it was really easy to put it together myself. I will try to put all the details of the project with pics and post it here.

 

[alwaysj]

thanks for the quick replies, everyone! they were pretty helpful. just a few more questions:

1. tackett, when you were talking about PC's, are they the same thing as compact flourescents? also, when some websites were talking about MH lights, they mentioned DE and SE's ... what are those?

2. i was looking at Dr. Foster and Smith's website where they had some retrofitting kits to be used with compact flourescents, and I'm wondering, what in the world are they for? and i noticed that they also have retrofitting kits for MH too

3. when people are talking about their "canopy", do they also mean the hood? or is the canopy a seperate fixture from the lights?

4. whether or not i get MH or PC's, i'm noticing that my hood only supports 3 light bulbs, a single 30" in the front, and two 36" in the back ... so would I need to get a new hood? or is this where that retro-fitting stuff comes into play? (currently, my lights are actually *in* my hood, if that makes any sense!)

5. judging from what i've written, if i do need this retrofitting kit, how difficult is it to install? (as you can see, i am defintely *not* lighting/technologically savvy! lol)


thanks again,
~j~

 

[hillbilly]

2 250w HQI MH with 14K or 20K double ended bulbs would be my choice. VHO's would be my second choice, or T-5's. PC's on a 55gal. reef tank are a waste of money IMO, although they are OK on small tanks.

 

[Tackett]

1. tackett, when you were talking about PC's, are they the same thing as compact flourescents? also, when some websites were talking about MH lights, they mentioned DE and SE's ... what are those?

PC=Power Compact Flourescent

DE=Double Ended Bulb, look like the halogen bulbs that are in the tall floor lamps.

SE=Single Ended Bulb, look like a normal screw in bulb.

2. i was looking at Dr. Foster and Smith's website where they had some retrofitting kits to be used with compact flourescents, and I'm wondering, what in the world are they for? and i noticed that they also have retrofitting kits for MH too

Retrofitting kits are used whenever you want to add your own custom lighting setup to the canopy. PC retrofit kits will have everything designed to fit PC bulbs. MH will have everything designed to fit a MH bulb, be it SE or DE bulbs. Keep in mind that retrofit kits usually only come with reflectors and endcaps, ballasts are sometimes sold seperatley. If you are unsure of what ballast to get, do a search for metal halide ballasts and see what you can find. If you are still confused, just ask, we are more than happy to help.

3. when people are talking about their "canopy", do they also mean the hood? or is the canopy a seperate fixture from the lights?

The canopy is the big wood thing that fits over the tank. There is a lot of room to add your own custom lighting. But if you go with halides, make sure you make room for some fans and cooling in it. Check out the DIY (Do it yourself) forums, should be some good plans in there.

4. whether or not i get MH or PC's, i'm noticing that my hood only supports 3 light bulbs, a single 30" in the front, and two 36" in the back ... so would I need to get a new hood? or is this where that retro-fitting stuff comes into play? (currently, my lights are actually *in* my hood, if that makes any sense!)

Youll probably wind up with that hood in storage. I would go with the flat glass tops, and if you go with powercompacts that arent retrofit, they will just set down right on top of the tank. Just make sure that they will fit. (30gallons are usually 36"; 55 gallons are 48"..i think somwhere around there.) which is how I have my 55 set up. If you do go with PC's just remember that the more wattage the better.

5. judging from what i've written, if i do need this retrofitting kit, how difficult is it to install? (as you can see, i am defintely *not* lighting/technologically savvy! lol)

I wouldnt think that it would be that difficult, but you do have to be moderatley adept with some powertools. Like I said, check the DIY forum on here and see what the other guys have fixed up. You can purchase a canopy though if you dont want to make the entire thing. Thats probably what I would do, because, well, Im lazy.

I hope this helps a little.

thanks again,
~j~[/quote]

 

[Tackett]

One more thing, if you decide to go with MH lights, I would invest in a water chiller, they are expensive as hell if you buy them outright, but you can make your own with a bucket, freezer, and fairly high gph water pump. all for about 200 dollars. 100 for the freezer 100 for the pump. You can put it all together with a few hours work.

 

[hillbilly]

One more thing, if you decide to go with MH lights, I would invest in a water chiller, they are expensive as hell if you buy them outright, but you can make your own with a bucket, freezer, and fairly high gph water pump. all for about 200 dollars. 100 for the freezer 100 for the pump. You can put it all together with a few hours work.

If you use hanging pendants, and have whole house AC, you may find a chiller hardly runs at all.

 

[Entacmaea]

Hi AlwaysJ, you are getting good advice here- I would just add that for your tank (18" deep) a 175 watt halide bulb would probably be just fine. Tackett is right, your hood is designed for normal flourescent bulbs and needs to be taller for MH. Does your tank have a center brace? If so, I would use 2 175 watt 10K retro kits and build a new hood- you can take apart the lighting you have now and mount it in the new hood for actinic (blue) supplement for your new 10K bulbs. 175watt MH retro kits will run you $175 to $250 each.

As mentioned, you can go with hanging pendants as well, maybe 150watt DE (Double Ended) HQI pendants, but that is more expensive, probably upwards of $300 per unit.

On my first tank, I started out with VHO lighting, because I didn't want to spend the extra $200 bucks up front for MH. I really wish I would have gone MH from the beginning! I think you'll be really happy if you do...

 

[Tackett]

If you use hanging pendants, and have whole house AC, you may find a chiller hardly runs at all.

Thats true, I wasnt thinking about pendants at all, they are a good route to go if you have the space to hang them from. Though the HQI (double ended) are a bit expensive as far as pendants. I would consider the SE pendants or HQI retrofit (Im leaning toward retrofit If I were you and had the cash.)

 

[Anonymous]

I've never had a need for a chiller, but every house is different.
I would run 2 x 150W double ended bulbs over that tank, or a single 250 DE with a good reflector. If you get a Geissemann pendant, a single 250 will work just dandy.

Jim

 

[bradl.]

LOL

 

[Tackett]

LOL? what is funny, did I miss something?

 

[Anonymous]

click on his profile, click "find all posts by bradl", read from the bottom up.

 

[Tackett]

question answered.

 

[SnowManSnow]

<-- I have a 37 g reef tank that has been up for about 8 mos or so. I started with PC lighting, but eventually just went to 250w halide fixture. IMO you're better off to go with halide if you can afford it. I know they look expensive, but you can get some decent deals if you research a bit. Lots of times local fish stores will match an advertised web price. I bought my pendant like this for $250 from Jenn. Check out prices at hellolights, bigalsonline, and premiumaquatics.com

Good luck!

I'm no expert, but if you think I may can help feel free to pm me.