lighting advice for 20g- t5 or MH

[reefinmike]

so i am taking down my 125 sps/clam tank soon due to me going off to college in the fall, the fact that i cant find enough time to take care of my tank well enough, and the fact that i need to buy 3 new MH bulbs, 2 6'vho's , and an assortment of other equipment componets needed to keep the tank running.

i am planning on setting up a 20l which i would take with me to college(20g is the max size) but i am planning on having 2 10 gallon sumps below for increased water volume, a fairly large fuge(10g) and a decently large sump for a 20 gallon.

i pretty much have everything planned out except for lighting. i am thinking of going over to the t5 side because of recent sucess with them in sps tanks, the fact that i would get this http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merc...uct_Code=CU-USA01120&Category_Code=Current-T5 fixture which would look nice and should be quiet. Or i was thinking of going with the tride and true MH. Probably 2 70 watts. but the downside would be: possible heat issues, me needing to make a canopy, trying to find quiet fans, and it would cost about $100 more than the t5's.

So, in your opinion, what should i go with?

 

[cmaki]

Go with the t5 setup.

 

[hahnmeister]

cmaki should be more careful... I would go with T5s, just not THAT T5 setup. Individual parabolic reflectors make up about 60% of the output for a T5... those cheap Current USA/Coralife versions with their flat reflectors waste more than half the bulb's potential output.

My suggestion would be to get a 4x24wattT5 retro... OR, go with a 30L (its what, 6" longer and 4" taller?). A 30L will allow you to use 3' bulbs... much more economical, as with T5s, you pay by the bulb, not for length. You will find that a 4' bulb costs $1 more than a 2' one, and that a setup with 8 2' bulbs will cost 2x as much as 4 4' bulbs even though they are the same wattage. Its all about number of ballasts and number bulbs... a 4 bulb 2' unit is something like $20 less than a 4 bulb 4' unit. So when you can, go longer.

A 4x24wattT5 (or 4x39watt for a 30L) Tek retrofit from ReefGeek, but with ICecap SLR reflectors, would be my suggestion. Very bright and efficient.