need new lights, dont know what to get.

[tonyydeee]

Hiii, i wanted to get new really strong coral lighting, good enough for clams,
i have PCs at the moment, but idk what lights to get now, any suggestions?

i have a 75 gallon, i was thinking about getting these? http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+18700&pcatid=18700

[ErikH]

I would go with MH. 3x250 HQI mini pendants. Bulbs from Light Spectrum Enterprises are 25 bucks, and would only need to be replaced every 1 1/2 years. The life of a is about the same. When you overdrive the bulbs, which you would want to do with them for clams, the bulbs life gets cut in half unless you can keep them VERY cool.

Or you could try and go the LED route....

[jrsatx20]

i can tell u this. i have a current fixture t5x4 24 wts. and a retro glo fixture 24 wt x 2. the glow refelctors are way brighter than the current. i tested by leaving two actinics on the glo and then swaped they same actinics and put them on the glo fixture and i could see a big difference. just my 2cents

[FireWater]

It all depends on placement of the clams. That light will let you keep a lot of different items. I ran the 48" 6 bulb fixture over my old 90G for a long time and was happy with it although, I did not try to keep clams. The depth of my old tank was 25" w/ ~ 2" of sand.

Lighting is going to be a lot about preference and past experiences. Some folks swear by MH, other like T-5, and there is the LED crowd as Erik mentioned. Spend what you can for a quality fixture whatever route you go.

[ErikH]

http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/

All of the lights you will find there are good manufacturers. They all use single lamp reflectors (SLRs) and are very good. I honestly would go with one of those three (other than the retro on that link) and you would be more than happy. SERIOUSLY SAVE FOR A FIXTURE LIKE THOSE IF YOU NEED TO! 6 or 8 bulb configuration would be what you want. I have a 6 bulb T5 over my 40g breeder frag tank.

The biggest thing you dont want to scrimp on is lighting. Filtration has taken a back seat with the design of the Reef Octopus line of skimmers.

[tonyydeee]

Tanks so much guys! NOW im thinking about getting these http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/Metal_Halide/Hamilton_Technology/Pendants/ReefSun_Pendant_w!_1xMH_by_Hamilton_Technology

i would need 2 right?
do i have to hang them? or can i just put them over my glass canopy?
also, do i need to upgrade them? or are the standard specs well enough?

[StevenSeas]

I am going to have to throw my two cents in here. I don't think that you need 6 or 8 t-5 bulbs on your tank In order to grow clams. I know this because in my girlfriends (that's really mine, shh don't tell) she has had a Derasa clam for a little less than six months and it has grown at least 1/2-3/4 of an inch all the way around and is about a 6 inch clam now. This clam has been kept on the sand bed.
The kicker is that her lighting just comes from a Four bulb, T-5 retro fit kit that I installed. It was the hagen Glo ballast, with 4 individual reflectors. For 4 or 5 months the bulbs were the last months of her Glo bulbs. After that we did switch over to UVL bulbs for color choices. But my point is You don't NEED a huge mh or T-5 setup to grow clams. All I am saying is look at your options.

[Europhyllia]

I think it also depends on the clams.
Derasa and Squamosa will be happy on the sand and thus less light requiring. Maxima and Crocea would have to sit higher, prefer rock and require more intense lighting.
I grew Maxima at a very fast pace under a 5 bulb ATI fixture.
If you are a charter member consider checking our library on MAAST. We have a great book on clams available.

[Mike]

Usually less heat from a T5 set up, than with MH (T5s do produce some heat though, just less). Our T5s are on 13 hours, while our MH are on for only 5 hours. The MH are stronger, but therefore cause more nuisance algea when they are on longer. We get to enjoy our tank more each day with T5s.

[txg8gxp]

LED's........Yes I had to say it :)

[FireWater]

LED's........Yes I had to say it :)

Took you long enough.

If you want to run t-5 you should be able to get away with a "QUALITY" 4 bulb system. Look for individual reflectors as a must - they give better output because they direct more of the light downward where you need it.
If you want to look into LED prepare to pay $$$ up front. There are many good points that will equal out over a period of time such as possible energy savings and bulb life (you won't have to change out bulbs every 6 months or year). I purchased one of these from txg8gxp and bought another one from the vendor - http://www.evolutionledlight.com/


There are way too many variables involved - positioning of coral or clams, quality of fixture, and what type you decide on. Also, do you plan on leaving the glass tops on? If you go MH then that could cause some heat issues.

[cbianco]

LED's........Yes I had to say it :)

T5's........All I have to say is, color! :)

[Europhyllia]

I have been hooked on the color choices with T5s as well!

Backlit shadowbox only with a 3000K (!) bulb:
http://www.dominopads.com/theglow.jpg

All lights on including Actinics, Fiji Purple, GE Daylight, etc.:
http://www.dominopads.com/215tank100610.jpg

The LED people usually only use Cool White, Blue and Royal Blue so it sounds kind of limited (I happen to love that warm glow in the morning before the rest of the lights come on) but LEDs come in many different K ratings of white as well as different colors.

I should have an LED fixture ready with warm whites, neutral whites and royal blues before the end of the year for my seahorse tank.

I really like my ATI T5 fixture over my big reef tank and would have considered T5 again for the seahorse tank but the shape of the tank limits my lighting choices as far as T5 goes (tank is only 18" wide but 25" deep) so the LEDs seemed like a great fit for a narrow, deep tank.

Can't wait to try them out!

[Big_Pun]

ok I've done t5 had a tek fixture, worked fine with SPS for 4-5 months then sps started browning, with my MH I can go over a year with no probs and par readings after a year compared to a new bulb are not that drastic of a difference. yes sps and other high demand coral can be done with t5 just be consistent with bulb changes. changing 4-6 bulbs every six months is expensive. when I can change one mh bulb at $80 a year. and the cheap mh bulbs I'm not sold on or would risk my coral for 60 dollar savings.I run my MH for 13 hours a day with no algae or heat issues my fixture has fans and I have a walmart fan that kicks in at 77 degrees, tank only hits 78 all year.
Gabe had t5s on his show tank and noticed bulbs had to be changed at about 5 months. now with his MH fixture the tank is looking good and bulbs last longer. also talked to other people who have the same prob. now granted these are people who have very light demanding livestock so more bulb changes where needed to stay consistent.
as for heat i would not recommend more than one or two MH under a canopy without some good air movement. but any bulb under a box is going to create heat. if your not going to be running more than 2 mh bulbs electrical use is not a big deal in my opinion.
so in the end make sure you weigh out what your situation is going to be: what coral/livestock do you want, are you going to have a hood, and last how much do you want to spend.
LEDs are cool but i don't think bugs are worked out yet. people always have some kind of problem, controllers or lights going out, lil things really but still down time to fix it.

[Europhyllia]

I think with T5s the type of fixture and cooling provided with it is crucial.
I had a run of the mill T5 fixture and it didn't have any cooling fans in it and the bulbs started changing really fast. It just had some ventilation holes in the fixture and that was supposed to provide the cooling!
I used the same bulbs in the ATI fixture, which has fans in it for cooling and they lasted much longer.
That's not to say that they last forever. Changes are still needed. But my point is don't skimp on the fixture because you'll be paying it in bulbs...

[tonyydeee]

Thank you everyone for your input / help :D

[FireWater]

So, did we clear it all up for you? LOL

Lighting is kind of like asking what brand of salt to use. There are way too many variables and preferences.....good luck and keep us posted or ask some more questions.

[kkiel02]

Lights- MH
Salt- Reef Crystals or Red Sea Coral Pro

Call me old school. I have t5s over my 125 now and wish I had done mh, I miss the growth. Although if your corals are already grown out you can make your corals pop nicely with the bulb selection t5 have. I havent done leds so cant speak for them. I do plan on trying them in the future though.

[GsXtC_21]

In case you check this thread again b/c I was contemplating the same thing not too long ago, I run an 8 bulb t5 fixture on my 72g bowfront and have had 2 thriving clams on my sandbed for about 3 months now...