lighting for my 5.5 reef...HELP!!

[Mel-E-Mel]

hello all! so i got my 5.5 gallon up and running but i cant find a fixture to fit. i was thinking of getting the coralife mini aqua but im not sure if it comes with mounting legs. can anyone suggest lighting for me? im currently using a 20'' power compact fixture but would like to get one that fits perfectly on top or something i can put together. diy suggestions also please!!

 

[sir_dudeguy]

well how big is the tank? (yes, i know 5.5 gallons, but what are the actaully lengths? cuz i mean, i got a five foot long tank, but its only 28 gallons...so who knows..your tank could be really long and narrow and short...so that will deside what light you can use.

 

[fkntank]

The coralife mini aqualight is to short length and width wise for your tank. Nobody has made a nice light fixture yet to fit the 5.5 exactly right. You would be better off in the long run going with a 70watt MH That is unless you plan on upgrading soon. There are plenty of way's to put together a nice MH light fixture. Do a search here in the DIY forum. Good Luck

 

[TavisB]

I have the Coralife mini on my 5.5 now, and yes it is a little too short. For now, I'm going to keep all the corals in the center area of the tank and not near the bottom, but Im looking for something better for a light source.

 

[Mel-E-Mel]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8272605#post8272605 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sir_dudeguy
well how big is the tank? (yes, i know 5.5 gallons, but what are the actaully lengths? cuz i mean, i got a five foot long tank, but its only 28 gallons...so who knows..your tank could be really long and narrow and short...so that will deside what light you can use.

Oh yeah, dimension is 16x8x10

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8272772#post8272772 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by fkntank
The coralife mini aqualight is to short length and width wise for your tank. Nobody has made a nice light fixture yet to fit the 5.5 exactly right. You would be better off in the long run going with a 70watt MH That is unless you plan on upgrading soon. There are plenty of way's to put together a nice MH light fixture. Do a search here in the DIY forum. Good Luck

Thanks fkntank, ill try to do a search but i usually have problems when using the search engine.....it always says server is too busy.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8273948#post8273948 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TavisB
I have the Coralife mini on my 5.5 now, and yes it is a little too short. For now, I'm going to keep all the corals in the center area of the tank and not near the bottom, but Im looking for something better for a light source.

Tavisd, how do you have it mounted on your tank? did you have to custom mount legs to it?

appreciate everyones info!

 

[Mel-E-Mel]

oops!! sorry about the last post i meant TavisB!

 

[sir_dudeguy]

you wont be able to use the search on here cuz you dont "support reefcentral' and pay them 25 bucks a year for the premium acount. So far i've had the thing work once at 1 in the morning last week, and that was after trying hundreds of times.

Maybe try looking at drsfostersmith.com and see what they got as far as pc's. But i agree with the 70w MH light that's called like "viper" or something...that would grow you anything in a 5.5g tank.

 

[TavisB]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8274046#post8274046 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rommelgin
oops!! sorry about the last post i meant TavisB!

I just have the fixture sitting on top of eggcrate.

 

[fkntank]

Instead of using eggcrate on my 2.5gal AGA tank. I cut 2 strips of arcylic about a 1/4 inch wide. Then I siliconed the corners of each strip. Right into the black plastic glass track across the width of the tank. So that in the future if I decide to use the tank for something else. I can take the arcylic strips off. If you need to raise the light fixture higher. Because your using a hang on back filter just make the arcylic strips a little wider. I've been into nano reefing for about 8 year's. Love the hobby.

If you want more help puting together a 70watt MH fixture. And the search button dosen't work here for you. Go over to Nano-reef.com and do a search on there DIY forum. You can find ballast's and lights at nanocustoms.com and aquabuys.com Make your own MH light fixture and save yourself a bunch of money.

 

[fishes2889]

There really is no point to setting a MH on such a little tank. Just go with some PC lighting. You wont spend as much money..............

Steve

 

[majestic sea life]

get 2 13watt retros and should be fine. Or 2 18watts if you can fit em.

 

[bigmayreefer]

i used the 2x18w PC fixture with lunar light from current. Its only 12 wide, so there is 2 inches on each side of the fixture, but with a piece of glass on the top of the tank it fits well and looks pretty good. Also the glass keeps evap down and the pc light doesnt add too much heat. The amount of light seems enough to keep the small monticap and all the zoas happy. I personally like MH lighting- but i feel its definately overkill on a 5.5.
Hope this helps.

 

[fkntank]

Hi bigmayreefer I got the same 2x18w fixture I'm using it on a 2.5gal. It work's ok and I like the sunpaq bulbs for it. But I wish it came with a tiny fan mounted on the left end. Where it's sloted and drilled for a little extra cooling. The lunar light look's pretty sweet at night to. But they should have made a switch for it. Or tied it into the actinic switch some how. So that you can shut it off without unpluging the adapter. The mounting leg's for the light fixture really could have been built a lot nicer to. But that's just my opinion.