55 Gallon tank and lighting

ShadowReef · 03/01/2006, 03:20 AM

The 55 is usually the smallest tank that comes pre-drilled from AGA or Oceanic, so I was kind of leaning that way, but I have heard that the 13" width is kind of narrow and not ideal. What do you all think? Has anyone custom ordered a tank to be drilled and what was the cost? I was looking at the JBJ double strip power compact light, would this be a good light fixture for the 55 or 72 bow front? I'm a little adverse to MH lighting because of the added heat and the lack of desire to buy a chiller. Tons of questions, I know. But thanks for taking the time.

TriggerHappy17 · 03/01/2006, 07:26 AM

I would really go with a 75 gallon if you could. I know we wish we had now because the width of a 75 gives you much more room to aquascape your rock. The 55 is narrow on the sides & now looking at the 75 - what we could do with that... Even though we thought it was huge at the time since it was our first saltwater tank we found ourselves already wanting a bigger tank but like you military moves may slow our wishes for a huge tank down until retirement.

As far as lighting goes - I'm the same way with MH. We bought Coralife PC & they work great. I'm seeing growth from my zoanthids & mushrooms. We are adding some VHO URI bulbs soon though because I want a good Actinic light & the pc just really don't have that. We went to a store that had tanks set up with T5, T12 VHO, MH, & Power Compacts. The VHO tanks blew everything away in my opinion. They had SPS growing like crazy. They also had two tanks with VHO. They were the same size, same lights, only one canopy was painted white underneath. It made a huge difference in how bright it was. It's just something to think about if you get these types of lights. Also you could touch the bulbs they run so cool. The T5 lights you could feel the heat from about 4 feet back which is too much for me to feel safe leaving the house. Mh were really hot also.

ShadowReef · 03/01/2006, 11:51 PM

Thanks for the advice. I don't plan on getting everything set up until after I'm out 368 days from now, not that I'm counting. I'm just trying to get the shopping list together so I can buy parts when I find a good deal.

ChemE · 03/02/2006, 01:09 AM

I second the wider tank. I find the 55 too narrow as well. As for lighting, the only thing I'd recommend is 3.0 watts per gallon of T5 with high quality reflectors (IceCap SLR's or Aqualux's CDR's). My T5 runs much cooler than my PC bulbs do and put out a heck of a lot more light.

sales weasel · 03/02/2006, 10:18 AM

Back in the dark ages of marine tanks (mid '80s), I had a 70g. I bought three 55g tanks last summer from a pet supplier that was getting out of the business. I have to agree about the width. I built my stand 49"L x 18"W so I can accomodate a 90g which I plan to upgrade to maybe next year. Currently, I just have a 260w PC fixture running. However, I do have two 175w 10000K MH bulbs and two T5 actinics to mount in a canopy that I still need to build. The heat worries me. I have a 12g nano cube in my basement office and it's always around 80 with those little lights. Ill probably have to run a fan or something blowing into the sump or buy a chiller.

ShadowReef · 03/03/2006, 02:13 AM

Okay, so the decision is to go with a 72 bow front instead of the 55. I don't like the watts per gallon equation because it doesn't really give you an accurate idea of things. As far as inverts go, I have a list in mind that includes: green star polyps, blue mushrooms, bubble coral, and maybe a bubbletip anemone. I really liked the JBJ double strip PCs because the only complaint most people had was noise, not reliability and build quality. Any suggestions for lights? I am interested in reliability most and long term cost next and heat last.

hahnmeister · 03/03/2006, 02:51 AM

Watts/Gallon isnt usually a good idea, esp with halide lighting...but in this case...this exact case...ChemE was being very specific. I would go with a 6-8 bulb tek T5 unit though. I have found the best place to buy T5s to be ebay. Seedsetc sells the units for dirt cheap...as cheap as I have seen on the internet, and free shipping. I do agree that the SLR reflectors are nicer, but then you will have to retrofit, and a 55-75g isnt tall enough to cash in on their 'sweet spot' where they outperform the Teks> which is in the 18"+ range (by the time you add sand and all, the total height will be little over 18"...not worth the SLRs IMO).

marcom1234 · 03/03/2006, 04:39 AM

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...5&pagenumber=1

good t5 info

ShadowReef · 03/03/2006, 04:52 AM

Thanks a lot for your info. I'm sure I will have plenty of reading for the year between now and when I return to the "real world."

ChemE · 03/03/2006, 05:06 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by ShadowReef
... I don't like the watts per gallon equation because it doesn't really give you an accurate idea of things. As far as inverts go, I have a list in mind that includes: green star polyps, blue mushrooms, bubble coral, and maybe a bubbletip anemone.

Iwan's tank is amazing and not at all typical but this is possible none the less. There have been many dozens of reefers here who are reporting as good or better growth rates of their corals with 3.0 - 3.5 watts per gallon of T5. To my knowledge, this has almost always been on tanks 25" or shallower. At this depth or shallower, complete coverage with good reflectors (IceCap's SLR and Aqualux's CDR) just happens to work out to about 3.0 watts per gallon; thus the "rule".

You could always punch it up by using an IceCap 430 or 660 to overdrive the bulbs and push more watts into an area but there doesn't seem to be any need with high quality T5 setups.

ShadowReef · 03/03/2006, 05:38 AM

Where would be a good place to find the Tek T5 fixtures? Is it necessary to hang T5s or can you mount them on a canopy? Reading in other threads it was suggested using 4 bulbs on a 72 gallon not 6.

ChemE · 03/03/2006, 06:03 AM

ReefGeek is the place to get such things. Personally, I'd go with 4 rather than 6 based on the list of what you want to keep. For bulbs I'd recommend 2 blue+ and 2 auqablue for that 14K look or 2 blue+, 1 auqablue, 1 GE 6500K sunlight for that 10K look.
http://www.reefgeek.com/products/cat...ng/104192.html

If you want a canopy you'll need to a retrofit kit rather than a light hood.

ShadowReef · 03/03/2006, 07:27 AM

Thanks. I think I have a good idea where to go from here

hahnmeister · 03/03/2006, 04:25 PM

Ebay as well. Thats where I got my tek..much cheaper than geek even...cheapest I have seen around. There are many horticultural outlets that have better pricing (larger market) than reef places. There is also a 'new wave' fixture by tek...same reflectors, same ballasts...just a more inductrial looking housing...not an issue if you plan on a canopy anyways...but 1/2 the price.

For tek lights in general, check out other places beyond just reef stores...they often have better deals...but FWIW, the best deals I have found are on ebay.

03/01/2006, 03:20 AM	#1
ShadowReef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Baghdad, until I get back to Cali Posts: 19	55 Gallon tank and lighting The 55 is usually the smallest tank that comes pre-drilled from AGA or Oceanic, so I was kind of leaning that way, but I have heard that the 13" width is kind of narrow and not ideal. What do you all think? Has anyone custom ordered a tank to be drilled and what was the cost? I was looking at the JBJ double strip power compact light, would this be a good light fixture for the 55 or 72 bow front? I'm a little adverse to MH lighting because of the added heat and the lack of desire to buy a chiller. Tons of questions, I know. But thanks for taking the time.

03/02/2006, 01:09 AM	#4
ChemE Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Nashville, TN Posts: 1,607	I second the wider tank. I find the 55 too narrow as well. As for lighting, the only thing I'd recommend is 3.0 watts per gallon of T5 with high quality reflectors (IceCap SLR's or Aqualux's CDR's). My T5 runs much cooler than my PC bulbs do and put out a heck of a lot more light. __________________ Holding it down on the engineering tip y'all Current Tank Info: 190G

03/03/2006, 06:03 AM	#12
ChemE Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Nashville, TN Posts: 1,607	ReefGeek is the place to get such things. Personally, I'd go with 4 rather than 6 based on the list of what you want to keep. For bulbs I'd recommend 2 blue+ and 2 auqablue for that 14K look or 2 blue+, 1 auqablue, 1 GE 6500K sunlight for that 10K look. http://www.reefgeek.com/products/cat...ng/104192.html If you want a canopy you'll need to a retrofit kit rather than a light hood. __________________ Holding it down on the engineering tip y'all Current Tank Info: 190G

03/01/2006, 07:26 AM	#2
TriggerHappy17 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Fort Rucker, Alabama Posts: 39	I would really go with a 75 gallon if you could. I know we wish we had now because the width of a 75 gives you much more room to aquascape your rock. The 55 is narrow on the sides & now looking at the 75 - what we could do with that... Even though we thought it was huge at the time since it was our first saltwater tank we found ourselves already wanting a bigger tank but like you military moves may slow our wishes for a huge tank down until retirement. As far as lighting goes - I'm the same way with MH. We bought Coralife PC & they work great. I'm seeing growth from my zoanthids & mushrooms. We are adding some VHO URI bulbs soon though because I want a good Actinic light & the pc just really don't have that. We went to a store that had tanks set up with T5, T12 VHO, MH, & Power Compacts. The VHO tanks blew everything away in my opinion. They had SPS growing like crazy. They also had two tanks with VHO. They were the same size, same lights, only one canopy was painted white underneath. It made a huge difference in how bright it was. It's just something to think about if you get these types of lights. Also you could touch the bulbs they run so cool. The T5 lights you could feel the heat from about 4 feet back which is too much for me to feel safe leaving the house. Mh were really hot also.

03/01/2006, 11:51 PM	#3
ShadowReef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Baghdad, until I get back to Cali Posts: 19	Thanks for the advice. I don't plan on getting everything set up until after I'm out 368 days from now, not that I'm counting. I'm just trying to get the shopping list together so I can buy parts when I find a good deal.

03/02/2006, 10:18 AM	#5
sales weasel Registered Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Atlanta burbs Posts: 646	Back in the dark ages of marine tanks (mid '80s), I had a 70g. I bought three 55g tanks last summer from a pet supplier that was getting out of the business. I have to agree about the width. I built my stand 49"L x 18"W so I can accomodate a 90g which I plan to upgrade to maybe next year. Currently, I just have a 260w PC fixture running. However, I do have two 175w 10000K MH bulbs and two T5 actinics to mount in a canopy that I still need to build. The heat worries me. I have a 12g nano cube in my basement office and it's always around 80 with those little lights. Ill probably have to run a fan or something blowing into the sump or buy a chiller.

03/03/2006, 02:13 AM	#6
ShadowReef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Baghdad, until I get back to Cali Posts: 19	Okay, so the decision is to go with a 72 bow front instead of the 55. I don't like the watts per gallon equation because it doesn't really give you an accurate idea of things. As far as inverts go, I have a list in mind that includes: green star polyps, blue mushrooms, bubble coral, and maybe a bubbletip anemone. I really liked the JBJ double strip PCs because the only complaint most people had was noise, not reliability and build quality. Any suggestions for lights? I am interested in reliability most and long term cost next and heat last.

03/03/2006, 02:51 AM	#7
hahnmeister Moved On Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Brew City, WI Posts: 10,156	Watts/Gallon isnt usually a good idea, esp with halide lighting...but in this case...this exact case...ChemE was being very specific. I would go with a 6-8 bulb tek T5 unit though. I have found the best place to buy T5s to be ebay. Seedsetc sells the units for dirt cheap...as cheap as I have seen on the internet, and free shipping. I do agree that the SLR reflectors are nicer, but then you will have to retrofit, and a 55-75g isnt tall enough to cash in on their 'sweet spot' where they outperform the Teks> which is in the 18"+ range (by the time you add sand and all, the total height will be little over 18"...not worth the SLRs IMO).

03/03/2006, 04:39 AM	#8
marcom1234 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Battle Creek, Michigan Posts: 97	http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...5&pagenumber=1 good t5 info

03/03/2006, 04:52 AM	#9
ShadowReef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Baghdad, until I get back to Cali Posts: 19	Thanks a lot for your info. I'm sure I will have plenty of reading for the year between now and when I return to the "real world."

03/03/2006, 05:38 AM	#11
ShadowReef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Baghdad, until I get back to Cali Posts: 19	Where would be a good place to find the Tek T5 fixtures? Is it necessary to hang T5s or can you mount them on a canopy? Reading in other threads it was suggested using 4 bulbs on a 72 gallon not 6.

03/03/2006, 07:27 AM	#13
ShadowReef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Baghdad, until I get back to Cali Posts: 19	Thanks. I think I have a good idea where to go from here

03/03/2006, 04:25 PM	#14
hahnmeister Moved On Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Brew City, WI Posts: 10,156	Ebay as well. Thats where I got my tek..much cheaper than geek even...cheapest I have seen around. There are many horticultural outlets that have better pricing (larger market) than reef places. There is also a 'new wave' fixture by tek...same reflectors, same ballasts...just a more inductrial looking housing...not an issue if you plan on a canopy anyways...but 1/2 the price. For tek lights in general, check out other places beyond just reef stores...they often have better deals...but FWIW, the best deals I have found are on ebay.