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Unread 03/22/2007, 03:06 PM   #1
mapleredta
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Lighting Question

I have a 55 gallon tank with 2, 24" hoods what does everyone recommend me getting lighting wise? I fell in love with this snowflake eel and I was told the hood had to be very close fitting. Im just confused. HELP!


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Unread 03/22/2007, 03:22 PM   #2
Kengaroo131
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im not 100% sure on this but if your setting up a reef. i would go with some kind of coralife or t-5 lighting systems there a little expensive but it will be worth it i have a 10 gallon nano, when i changed from my old light to my new ones the coralife 50/50 it made a noticable differance. hellonlights.com has a pretty good selection of all kinds of light.


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Current Tank Info: 75 gallon mixed reef, 12 gallon bookshelf reef
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Unread 03/22/2007, 05:06 PM   #3
mapleredta
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Thank you, anyone else have a suggestion?


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Unread 03/22/2007, 05:44 PM   #4
Pooks
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Hellolights do not carry T5s try here...http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/IceCap/


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Unread 03/22/2007, 05:57 PM   #5
MusMusculus
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Snowflake eels like to explore and will slip out of tanks given the slightest opening around the edge. Mine could extend to about 5 inches out of the water. I put a ridge of plexi extending from the top edges of the tank about 3 inches inward (2 inches above the waterline) and this stopped his carpet surfing attempts. YMMV.

As for lighting, obviously the eel doesn't need any. What else would you like to keep?


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Unread 03/23/2007, 07:06 AM   #6
mapleredta
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The eel is so cool looking, im wanting a pair of clownfish, and some corrals and annemoes.(sp) Not to sure other wise. my girlfriend wants some real colorful fish so im not to certain on what to get after that.


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Unread 03/23/2007, 11:20 AM   #7
MusMusculus
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Hi mapleredta,

Got your PM, but I don't have a pic of that tank (it was from almost 20 years ago ). Here is approximately what it looked like:



The rim (in grey) was made from 3/16 acrylic and rested on the plastic top edge of the glass aquarium, extending out 3 inches or a bit more. There was a center brace on the tank, but I didn't draw that. This tank was drilled for both the overflow and the return line from the sump so I didn't have anything that had to hang on the tank. If I did, I would have made the holes as snug around the equipment as possible and filled any gaps in with a wad of saran wrap.

The rim stopped him because he could only get out of the water by sliding up the tank sides. He did not like to be in the water column were the currents were strong and would stick around the bottom, glass sides, and rockwork.

My eel went down the overflow a few times. It didn't kill him because there was 6 inches or so of water at the bottom, but I'm sure it was uncomfortable and eventually he figured out that it was a place to avoid.

The lights hung over the tank at about 8 inches off the water surface. The rim was removable (resting only by its own weight) so I could clean easier.

As for lighting, it is the most expensive part of most setups. Decide exactly what you want and buy lighting that you need. If you want to keep the light intensive creatures like clams, most corals, and most anemones, I would stick with a combination fixture of metal halide and fluorescent. This will run in price from about $350 to $1000 depending on brand for a 48 inch long tank. For around $250 you could get a rack of 4 to 6 HO T5 flourescent bulbs that will allow you to keep many, but not all, reef creatures. Others can give better advice than I on lights if you give them specific animals you want to keep.

The main thing to do is visit the "New to Hobby" forum and check out the links at the top. Good luck!


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Unread 03/23/2007, 04:38 PM   #8
THEKIDSTA1
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I WOULDNT KEEP AN EEL IN MY REEF TANK...I THINK ITS A WASTE OF SPACE...IN MY OPINION...I DONT WANT TO WORRY MORE THAN I HAVE TO REGARDING MY TANK...I THINK AN EEL IS CRAZY TO KEEP IN CAPTIVITY....I.M.O


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