Yet another question : lighting option

[jnocerin]

Hi All,
Sorry to be asking so many questions, but I want this new tanks to be just right. This question is on lighting. The tank is a 75G, which used to house Freshwater fish. My question is which would be better
1) use the existing twin 48" fluorescent lighting system paired to the tank and get new bulbs, and if so what bulbs are recommended

2) move my 2 20" JBL Aqualights to the new tank (I believe these are metal halide)

I want the tank to initially house the existing inhabitants (a damsel and 3 crabs) but also to house an anemone , some more fish and possibly some corals down the line.

Thanks again

Jess

 

[sir_dudeguy]

what type of setup are you going for? Fish only or reef? If its fish only, then that twin strip light is fine. But if you're doing corals, i either recommend t5's or Metal halides. If you do t5's, i'd say get like a 4x54w one to start off. For halides...not too sure. Either 2x175 or 2x250 but i'm not sure which...

 

[jnocerin]

So if I want to do some corals I am best off using my 2 JBL Aqualights (T5)? I am still trying to figure out the specs my my JBL's as I think the company has since been acquired since I bought them.

 

[chrisstie]

You say the tank you want to set up has already been used for freshwater fish? Be sure there were no copper or other metal based medications used in that tank. It can leech into the silicone that holds the tank sides together and back out into saltwater - if you end up keeping a reef or other sensative invertebrates this small amount of copper could very well harm if not kill them.

Can you describe what your jbj lights are like? if its metal halide it will be one "short" but big fat bulb, T5s are very thin flourescent tubes.. PC lights are not as thin flourescent looking tubes...

To learn more on lighting there is the RC lighting forum but for product specs and what not i can recommend a few websites to check out - i find looking at these sort of helps me study up on what i will need for a tank with all the dimensions and explanations they can offer

reefgeek.com
marinedepot.com
hellolights.com

hope this helps

 

[jnocerin]

Here are pictures of the current JBJ lights I have 2 of them:

Thanks for the help!

Jess

 

[sir_dudeguy]

ya you just have PC lighting right there.

If this is a standard 75g tank, i say go with a 4x54w T5 HO (high output) retro fit kit. The one i suggest is the Tek Light one, sold on reefgeek.com. You can get retrofit ones or a set fixture. I like retro's better tho, because you can always add 2 more bulbs later down the road if you wanted to keep some higher light needy corals/clams/anems.

 

[Genral72]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9577324#post9577324 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sir_dudeguy
ya you just have PC lighting right there.

If this is a standard 75g tank, i say go with a 4x54w T5 HO (high output) retro fit kit. The one i suggest is the Tek Light one, sold on reefgeek.com. You can get retrofit ones or a set fixture. I like retro's better tho, because you can always add 2 more bulbs later down the road if you wanted to keep some higher light needy corals/clams/anems.

Ditto

 

[jnocerin]

Would a 48" Satellite 2x65 watt SunPaq with Lunar Light/Current work, as I have a line on a used one, as the setup you recommend is far beyond my budget?

 

[jnocerin]

Or is that just another PC setup?

 

[sir_dudeguy]

thats just another PC setup, yes.

Also, have you considered the cost it will be to upkeep the PC fixtures? Say you get a "decent" Pc fixture for your tank (which 2x65 over a 75 is VERY little...) Say a 4x96w one like i have. Its recommended to replace the bulbs once every 6 months or so. So we'll say 2 times a year. 96w bulbs are 30 bucks (dont get the cheap ebay ones...i did and they burned out w/in a week). So thats 120 in bulbs, 2 times a year, so 240 a year just in bulbs. For me it costs 16 bucks a month to run my 4x96...so thats 192 bucks a year just to run..plus 240 and thats about 430 a year to run and buy PC bulbs for a decent setup (which would only allow you to keep softies in that big of a tnak...maybe a couple LPS).

Save up a bit and get that T5 one. The t5 bulbs last over a year...so we'll say you replace them once a year. They're about 25 bucks a bulb....so at least 20 bucks less just to buy them...but only do it once a year. So you're at 100 a year to buy bulbs...compared to 240 from a PC fixture.

Then they run on a lot less energy. For your tank, it would be 4x54, so almost half the wattage. It would cost about 10 bucks a month to run those. So we'll say 120 a year. So tops you're at like 220 or so per year to run and buy t5 bulbs. Thats not even counting the fact that they're 5 times stronger and you could grow pretty much anything you could want.