lighting question

chris0799 · 09/21/2009, 10:04 PM

i an wanting to st up a 46 gallon or 55 gallon reef and i am only 15 years old so i dont really have alot to spend.
this is what i have:
fluvel canister filter
35lbs of live rock
sand

i need to get a lighting fixture and a protein skimmer(HOB)

but the lighting for me is way too expensive.
the only ones i can really afford are the odyssey fixtures on aquatraders. i want to keep corals and an anemone.will one of these fixtures be food enough? im looking at the 36" metal halide system and i think its 250 watts.

and any suggestions for a HOB protein skimmer?

silentscream · 09/21/2009, 11:00 PM

My advice would be to join a reefing club closest to you, many veteran reefers are very generous to new hobbyists. Patience will bring about a very quality setup using only a limited budget. Good luck!

Tadashi · 09/21/2009, 11:43 PM

That and check out ebay and craigs list for used stuff. I gave a ton of my stuff to a coworker to start up a tank. Mainly to get it out of my house before the wife hollered at me about all the equipment piling up. LOL

One 250W MH should be okay on a 29-gal to allow you to meet all the lighting requirements of livestock. Some even have LEDs to help spread out the light better. That being said you need more than lights...

You will need to address more issues than just lights for an anemone. I am going through the process now. I basically setup my tank for the anemone and everything else is secondary and it is still not going as planned. Other than the purchase the anemone has out voted me on all aspects of it's home.

I only have experience with the Seaclone (not my favorite but cheap and many like it), Skilter (not sure they are around anymore), AcquaC Remora (not bad but noisey, hard to utilize second chambers for heaters and stuff), and the CPR. The last is probably my favorite. I can throw stuff in the HOB compartments to reduce clutter in the tank. I have been able to modify various pumps depending on the space I have. At the moment I am running it with a Rio 800 vlt and 2 3" wooden skimmer stones. CPR even sells one with a HOB refugium.

You might want to look into a smaller tank to allow you to shift the funds to the other equipment like skimmer and lights. Also, does you no good to spend tons of money on a big tank and have nothing to spend on livestock. In my 14-gal I easily topped $700 on livestock alone but do not have anyone to trade frags with around here.

Then again the other camp is to get as big as possible because you will run out of room quickly. You will need to map out a budget over time. Look at all the equipment, livestock, and maintenance (water, food, supplements, etc). This hobby can easily become a money pit if you are not careful. Do not forget to include your other needs/wants in your budget (car, girlfriend - this will totally sink your budget LOL, other hobbies).

09/21/2009, 10:04 PM	#1
chris0799 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Louisiana Posts: 116	lighting question i an wanting to st up a 46 gallon or 55 gallon reef and i am only 15 years old so i dont really have alot to spend. this is what i have: fluvel canister filter 35lbs of live rock sand i need to get a lighting fixture and a protein skimmer(HOB) but the lighting for me is way too expensive. the only ones i can really afford are the odyssey fixtures on aquatraders. i want to keep corals and an anemone.will one of these fixtures be food enough? im looking at the 36" metal halide system and i think its 250 watts. and any suggestions for a HOB protein skimmer?

09/21/2009, 11:00 PM	#2
silentscream Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,136	My advice would be to join a reefing club closest to you, many veteran reefers are very generous to new hobbyists. Patience will bring about a very quality setup using only a limited budget. Good luck! __________________ Justin

09/21/2009, 11:43 PM	#3
Tadashi Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Ft. Hood, TX, USA Posts: 2,252	That and check out ebay and craigs list for used stuff. I gave a ton of my stuff to a coworker to start up a tank. Mainly to get it out of my house before the wife hollered at me about all the equipment piling up. LOL One 250W MH should be okay on a 29-gal to allow you to meet all the lighting requirements of livestock. Some even have LEDs to help spread out the light better. That being said you need more than lights... You will need to address more issues than just lights for an anemone. I am going through the process now. I basically setup my tank for the anemone and everything else is secondary and it is still not going as planned. Other than the purchase the anemone has out voted me on all aspects of it's home. I only have experience with the Seaclone (not my favorite but cheap and many like it), Skilter (not sure they are around anymore), AcquaC Remora (not bad but noisey, hard to utilize second chambers for heaters and stuff), and the CPR. The last is probably my favorite. I can throw stuff in the HOB compartments to reduce clutter in the tank. I have been able to modify various pumps depending on the space I have. At the moment I am running it with a Rio 800 vlt and 2 3" wooden skimmer stones. CPR even sells one with a HOB refugium. You might want to look into a smaller tank to allow you to shift the funds to the other equipment like skimmer and lights. Also, does you no good to spend tons of money on a big tank and have nothing to spend on livestock. In my 14-gal I easily topped $700 on livestock alone but do not have anyone to trade frags with around here. Then again the other camp is to get as big as possible because you will run out of room quickly. You will need to map out a budget over time. Look at all the equipment, livestock, and maintenance (water, food, supplements, etc). This hobby can easily become a money pit if you are not careful. Do not forget to include your other needs/wants in your budget (car, girlfriend - this will totally sink your budget LOL, other hobbies). __________________ Honey, put down the bleach and step away from the tank. I promise we will spend more quality time together. Current Tank Info: 14-gal Oceanic BioCube (see homepage link for current status)