Best lighting for a reef aquarium?

A

AlexHamilton

New member
I am currently working on starting over my 120g reef aquarium.

The lighting I have right now are 2 48" "reef capable" Led lights. (Similar to marineland or life aquatic) I don't remember exactly what brand they are.

I also have a variety or actinic lights I use during the day and some at night.

I am on a pretty tight budget and was curious what else I would need for a successful reef aquarium. Or would what I have work okay?

My tank size is 48x24x24
 
Hey Alex,

In order to answer this question properly, you have to know what types of corals you would want to have in your setup. For softies such as mushrooms and leathers you might be just fine with what you have now. For hard corals and some specific SPSs, you will definitely need an upgrade on the lights if the are indeed a marineland comparable. Reefbreeders sell a decent setup for a competitive LED set but there are many out there. I hope this helps.
Good luck!
 
I am planning in doing softies for the most part, In the start anyways. I guess I should of put that in there.
But if I were to upgrade what would you recommend?
I want to have a mixed reef eventually.
 
And each light strip is 36 White Leds, 6 blue leds. I have two of these lights. Then two strips of 18 led magenta actinic lights. And 9 led deep blue actinic lights.
 
Might want to google some led reviews... Advanced aquarist has a few articles talking about PAR, PUR, lumens, etc...

LED's when they first came out were just horrible, be sure you get newer tech.
 
I think the prevailing wisdom was that the early white/blue LED lights did not perform well. Whether this was due to poor technology or the spectrum limitations I cannot say. My experience over the last couple of years with full-spectrum LED has been universally positive.
 
I am also researching this can you recommend a few credible or detailed links? I am finding lots of discussion but not much recent (within the last 2-3 years) and nothing pertaining to the color spectrum for each type of corals.
 
I do not necessarily need to have led lighting. Led lighting is what I currently have. I have these lights for a couple years now. I've also had an anemone and a few softies and polyps with these light without issues. But since I am moving in starting over and I want to do a mixed reef. So I am just looking for good lighting recommendations, doesn't need to be led. Just good lights that are somewhat budget friendly.
 
I have a 20W 10000K Epi-star LED with a 120 degree beam angle that i picked up and couldn't be happier before that i was running a 48" VHO set and it was good but having to replace the bulbs frequently and cost of operation drove me to LEDs you should read this article:

http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/aquarium_lighting.html

it really helped me understand what lights to buy and what to look for, it is a lengthy read but a good one and its updated every now and then to keep its information up to date
 
Borky00 said:
I am also researching this can you recommend a few credible or detailed links? I am finding lots of discussion but not much recent (within the last 2-3 years) and nothing pertaining to the color spectrum for each type of corals.
Click to expand...

I don't know of any scientifically credible studies that you can read. I'm afraid it's mostly anecdotal reports from hobbyist in 'uncontrolled' and sample size limited environments thus the often conflicting results. My own experience is that most forms of popular lighting will grow the things we want to grow as long as you pay attention to intensity (neither too high or too low), photoperiod and perhaps full spectrum. I've successfully grown corals under metal halide, VHO fluorescent and full spectrum LED. No objections to T5 necessarily, just no experience. Currently I am using a pair of ReefBreeders LED fixtures over my tank running 12 hours a day with supplemental dual 150 watt HQI metal halides for 5 hours a day. I don't use the MH as a concession to growth problems; rather I just really like the look of 14K MH.

Asking what is 'best' is really a pointless question. What is best to me may not best to somebody else. The most you can hope for is a 'short list' of options give tank goals, budget, aesthetics, longevity, etc.
 
NJAB said:
I have a 20W 10000K Epi-star LED with a 120 degree beam angle that i picked up and couldn't be happier before that i was running a 48" VHO set and it was good but having to replace the bulbs frequently and cost of operation drove me to LEDs you should read this article:

http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/aquarium_lighting.html

it really helped me understand what lights to buy and what to look for, it is a lengthy read but a good one and its updated every now and then to keep its information up to date
Click to expand...

Where did you buy these?
 
Well MH is considered "best" for light demanding coral. I find that my 6 bulb 48" T5HO can grow pretty much anything at certain levels. Don't forget bulb costs though.
 
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