reptile lights ok?

weaselslucks

New member
OK so i am cycling a 29 gallon 17 inch high tank.eventualy i want to have soft corals however, my money problems have made me rethink the light for now.I would like to put in LR from refferrock.com because it has a lot of life on the rock.i have a regular 18 w bulb in the hood I have now i can change that out with a coral grow one or something. I also have two reptile(looks like florecent) full spectrum 18 w (each)units.my question is could i get away with one of these light set ups and keep most of whats on the LR alive?if so which one. eventually i thought i could get the light and add a little mor LR to seed the tank if most of the things die.

oh one more thing should i add it while cycleing or will all the goodies on the rocks die from the large spikes?

thanks
 
dont bother with the reptile lights. reptiles need and use a completely different part of the light spectrum.

reptiles need uv for their health, especially bone density. we actually do the same thing with vitamin d, but uv is far more essential to reptiles for this.

corals need photons. so the intensity of a given light (the amount of photons produced) feed the zooanthelae that reside inside the corals (which give them color) and the corals feed of the bi products off the energy conversion.

dont try to "save" with lighting. as ive mentioned ad nauseum, you are going to spend hundreds of bucks, near a grand, in the first year on throw away and minor supplies like filter pads, food, test kits, pumps, salt, etc.

when you consider this, it becomes really clear how silly it is to try and "save money" on a lighting system.

think of it this way. if you were going to buld a race car, which you skimp on the engine and get a 4 cylinder 125hp block and spend the rest on rims, paintjob, and the interior?

there is no escaping the fact that this hobby is a money pit. so all you can do, is spend it in the right areas so you dont regret any purchases and actually get the most of the hobby.

heres some wisdom earned the hard way.

buy the best lighting system you need (for what you want to keep) and can afford. then buy the tank that is the best fot for you and the light. then buy a skimmer that fits the tank (dont skimp here either, this is your tranny. without a skimmer, your not going anywhere, or at least not as fast an easy).

good luck,

nG
 
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