29 gallon advise

Kengaroo131

Fish Crazy
what kinda of lighting should i put in my 29 gallon i think i want to do a few zoos and shrooms and im deffinatly getting an anemone for the clowns i'll be getting(tanks cycling). and kind of advise or tips would be great! thanks.
 
Go with the Sunpod MH fixture. Buy it at Dr. Foster and Smith and use the coupon code dodge and save 15%.
 
I have a 28 gal & I bought a 24" 65w double compact flourecent lights!! Maybe a bit cheaper alternative!!
 
im probably going to get a BTA. they do fine under pc's i have a BTA in my 75 gallon under pc's and its doing pretty well.
 
get a 4x24 T5 with indivdual reflectors and you'll be able to keep anything. You will not be happy with pc and MH is not needed for 29g. I have the T5 on my 29g and can keep anything I want.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10407614#post10407614 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by colinadam
Note where he said he wanted an anenome, PC lights won't cut it IMO.......

MY BTA has grown to about 3x the size he was when i got him under PC lights. It's all relative to how much light in what freq., not which bulbs it comes out of.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10409475#post10409475 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Subliminal
MY BTA has grown to about 3x the size he was when i got him under PC lights. It's all relative to how much light in what freq., not which bulbs it comes out of.

agreed
 
The MH out put a much larger amount of light per watt than either T5's or PC's. Which is also why they get very warm.

Where abouts in your 29g (subliminal) is your anemone sitting? Probably right at the top, or near the top. T5's would be okay and much less cost, but I tend to prefer the different customization options that you can have with halides. (i.e. different K's, combo fixtures, a little easier to DIY.)

My $0.02

BTW: I would go with what Colinadam said, get the Sunpod fixture.

Your anemone will be much happier than it would be under florescent lights.
 
Lol. That's just silly.

Sure, my 210 watt PC setup might put out the same amount of light as a 150 watt metal halide setup, but it cost me about 1/3 as much, costs less every month, covers a larger area in my tank, puts out less heat, and gives all my coral all the light they need.

I hear people talking trash about PCs all the time, and most of it isn't even based on experience...it's just hearsay passed on.

I'm sure there are situations where PCs just aren't worth a crap, but, like in my scenario, I've got over 8 watts per gallon. Who cares if it isn't the best bulbs in the west, it's damn sure sufficient for everything I have...including my anemone.

Anyway, I wasn't saying 'get PCs over Halides', but rather 'you can find used equipment for very inexpensive prices due to the high rate of turnover in this hobby, and if you keep an open mind you can get a great deal on good equipment'.

:)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10410369#post10410369 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Subliminal
Lol. That's just silly.

Sure, my 210 watt PC setup might put out the same amount of light as a 150 watt metal halide setup, but it cost me about 1/3 as much, costs less every month,


How in the heck can 210 watts be cheaper per month than 150 watts ?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10410369#post10410369 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Subliminal
Lol. That's just silly.

Sure, my 210 watt PC setup might put out the same amount of light as a 150 watt metal halide setup, but it cost me about 1/3 as much, costs less every month, covers a larger area in my tank, puts out less heat, and gives all my coral all the light they need.

I hear people talking trash about PCs all the time, and most of it isn't even based on experience...it's just hearsay passed on.

I'm sure there are situations where PCs just aren't worth a crap, but, like in my scenario, I've got over 8 watts per gallon. Who cares if it isn't the best bulbs in the west, it's damn sure sufficient for everything I have...including my anemone.

Anyway, I wasn't saying 'get PCs over Halides', but rather 'you can find used equipment for very inexpensive prices due to the high rate of turnover in this hobby, and if you keep an open mind you can get a great deal on good equipment'.

:)

Mine is from experience, I use to have 3x65w PC over my 29g and now have 4x24w T5. Despite being less watss, the T5 are MUCH MUCH brighter and tests after tests shows that PAR is significantly greater. Not only that but I can say from personal experience, coral growth has been amazing since I got my T5. Less watts is a great plus for T5. It means less on the electric bill, less heat, ect. In addition, PC bulbs last 8 months while T5 can last 18months. There are a ton of different color schemes you can play with on T5, with PC you only have two options. T5 bulbs also cost less.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10409912#post10409912 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefman13
The MH out put a much larger amount of light per watt than either T5's or PC's. Which is also why they get very warm.

Where abouts in your 29g (subliminal) is your anemone sitting? Probably right at the top, or near the top. T5's would be okay and much less cost, but I tend to prefer the different customization options that you can have with halides. (i.e. different K's, combo fixtures, a little easier to DIY.)

How are you more able to customize more with MH? The only option you have is 10k, 14k, 15k, 20k per bulb. With T5, theres 3k, 6k, 6.5k, 10k, 11k, 12k, 14k, pure actinic (plus theres multiple brands of each K bulbs so more variation). With a 4 bulb setup the number of combos is more than I feel like spending time on counting.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10423842#post10423842 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Phong33
How are you more able to customize more with MH? The only option you have is 10k, 14k, 15k, 20k per bulb. ...


Next time know what you're talking about before you present something as factual. MH bulbs come in 5500k, 6500k, 12k and 13k as well. Why would you ever want a 3k bulb, anyways??

Furthermore, for those of you saying "Oh, PCs are just as good as MH!" Do you read? Anything? Ever? MH bulbs put out much brighter light at lower wattage than PCs. MH bulbs last longer than PCs. MH bulbs waste less light to useless spectrum than PCs.

PCs get a lot of trash talking for a simple reason...they're trash.

Let's compare:
4x55w CF retro: $170
250w MH system (ballast, pendant, bulb): $160

OHNOES!!!! What have we here? A higher wattage system which will produce probably twice as much light (and it will actually be good, crisp light) for less money? Yep. It's true. Not to mention the fact that a 150w or 175w MH would still EASILY outdo the PCs and be even cheaper...plus the bulbs last almost twice as long, and it's much cheaper to replace one MH bulb than 4 CF bulbs.

Winner...MH. Kthxbye.
 
^ I also prefer mh and T5 to pc's...but I'm wondering what mh setup you're talking about?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10423903#post10423903 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Slakker
Next time know what you're talking about before you present something as factual. MH bulbs come in 5500k, 6500k, 12k and 13k as well. Why would you ever want a 3k bulb, anyways??


Exactly!! Who would run a 3k bulb, thats why I didn't mention the 5.5k or 6.5k bulb of the MH. Does anyone run those on a reef display? Those K ranges are regularly used in T5 setups because they can compliment the other K bulbs of a T5 setup. Again those are jus single bulbs for MH, my main point was that with T5, theres a lot more color options with T5.
 
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