need help finding a light fixture

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jgraeff

Jgraeff
Joined
Jan 22, 2009
Messages
231
Location
Bradenton, Fl
I have was going to rebuild my tank and decided to upgrade to a 60g tank from my 30g. I want to know what kind of lighting i should get, i know t-5s are cheaper initially and to replace the bulbs, and dont run as hot. I am going to be keeping sps, lps, mushrooms, and pretty much a variety of everything. Also where is a good place to purchase lights at? My Lfs doesnt really have a good selection mainly only nova extreme fixtures.
 
Ok sounds good, about how many watts should I need? which sites are the best to buy from?


I think all of these are pretty reputable

marineandreef.com
drsfostersmith.com
marinedepot.com

What is the length of the 60 gallon tank? I would put as powerful of T5 fixture that I could fit on the tank, basically as many bulbs as you can get from front to back. Sometimes they sell 4 or 6 bulb fixtures that will fit the same length tank, I would go with the higher bulb configuration, unless it is an especially shallow tank. PM returnofsid and see what he thinks.
 
Tek5 T5HO fixture, made by Sunlight Supply. If you wanna go up in quality from there, you can look at the SunPower or Power Module fixtures, made by ATI. These 3 are about the best, in T5HO lighting. They'll all allow you to grow whatever you want. Pick a fixture that offers as many bulbs as will fit over your tank, and still allow you access to your tank. All 3 of the above mentioned can be found here. Greg is great to deal with. http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/
 
http://www.truvuaquariums.com/marr0060r.html

this is the tank im considering buying, do you think its a decent price? I know acrylic tanks scratch easily but what do you guys think acrylic or glass? As far as i can tell its a good tank, and its shipped for free, any thoughts or comments would be great. Or if you have any other sites or manufactures that would be much appreciated!

As for the lights, im hoping i can get a 6 bulb fixture, and i know you mention the nova extreme pro is a really good fixture, i was reading up on the wavepoint brand and they are a little cheaper and from what i have read seem to be just as good, does anyone have this brand or know if they are good fixtures or not? And what is the difference between 10k and 12k?
 
These are the lights im considering buying, with the long run in thought your suggestions would be greatly appreciated and thanks for the help finding those lights Sid.

1)http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5...t_Fixture_w!_Bulbs_(Black)_by_Sunlight_Supply

My only concern with this one is that it would cover the entire tank although if i got the cable suspensions i could hang it above, would this work?

2)http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5...t_Fixture_w!_Bulbs_(Black)_by_Sunlight_Supply

3)http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+13822+12772&pcatid=12772

4)http://www.marineandreef.com/Nova_Extreme_Pro_T5_48_inch_Current_USA_p/rcu01081.htm

I am mainly concerned with not having to upgrade in the future and end up spending more money like i already have, pays to research before you buy, so i have been reading and reading as much as i can. If you have any suggestions let me know, also if you have any ideas for a tank shoot them this way, thats the only reasonable one i could find that was drilled. If you have any good sites or dealers that would be awesome.
 
If I were you, I'd go with a glass 75 gallon tank, instead. IMO, glass vs. acrylic is a personal choice and a lot of people really like acrylic. Acrylic is stronger, lighter, has a higher insulation value. Some say that acrylic is more clear than glass, but I would question that claim. Acrylic scratches MUCH easier than glass. No matter how careful you are, you WILL scratch an acrylic tank. Once scratched, it really interferes with viewing pleasure. Especially when algae starts growing in the scratches. Acrylic tanks also have a top that I hate!! They offer you two square holes, to access the tank through, usually.

The tank you're looking at has a front to back dimension of 15". You'll grow to hate this!! A 75 gives you 18", which is only 3" more, but will drastically improve your ability to aquascape. A 75 glass will also allow you to go with a 6 bulb Tek5, just fine. The 6 bulb fixture will allow you more flexibility with future upgrades and will grow more corals than a 4 bulb fixture.

Yes, you can suspend the fixture above the tank, but the higher you suspend it, the more light you lose.

As for your question about 10K or 12K...10K is going to be more white and 12k a lil' more blue.

With T5HO lighting, you have way more flexibility in color than you do with any other lighting. For instance, in my 6 bulb Tek5, I have 4 different color bulbs, to create the color in the tank, that I want. Check out the bulb selection at reefgeek and you'll get an idea what I mean.
 
Ok, sounds good, i really do like acrylic but i was also concerned with the top and not being about to get to the inside of the tank. Il see if i can find one around the same price, if not i may have to go with an arcylic 75. Now before i cracked my tank i had purchased a vortech mp10 for my 30 which i will now be upgrading, will this still be ok for a flow option with a maxijet 900? Thanks for all the info, i would really like to get the 6 bulb fixture so il have to look around and see if i can find a tank in my price range.
 
Ok i may just wait and save up and add a mp20 down the road and put the mod on the maxi 900 for now.This is what i am thinking of doing for my setup:
Tank-75g drilled w/ overflow
flow-mp10, maxi 900(moded), 2 koriallia nano pumps -for now. Later add another mp10 or mp20.
Lighting- Sunlight Tek 5 48x 16" with 6x54 bulbs.
Return pump-mag 7
will be using old sand and will be adding 40lbs more new sand. will add LR slowly.
I will be mixing new water and combining with old water. should i acclimate anything since it would be 40g of new water?

Any ideas or anything i have forgot about?
 
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Unless you already have the Koralia Nanos, I would skip them, they do not put out much flow at all, just my 2 cents. :)
 
Unfortunately i do have them, a stupid noob buy, but i normally use them to help mix my saltwater so i guess i get some use out of them. Im just gonna put them in there until i get the money for another mp10 or mp20.

Do you have any suggestions on how i should place my mp10 in the tank, i was thinking it would be kind of a long shot to go from one side to the other, i could be wrong, but i want to make sure i get decent flow just about everywhere?
 
Do you have any suggestions on how i should place my mp10 in the tank, i was thinking it would be kind of a long shot to go from one side to the other, i could be wrong, but i want to make sure i get decent flow just about everywhere?

I would place the MP10 in one end with the modded MJ on the other end pointing towards the center/each other. That way you should get some pretty random flow in the middle of the tank. Make sure that one or both pumps churn the surface of the water. Then you could use the nanos to hit any dead spots, maybe place them on the back of the tank pointing towards the front, maybe in the back towards the corners. Of course, all of this will depend on your live rock configuration. Just play around with the placement until you get something that looks like you are getting good flow everywhere.
 
Ok Sounds good thanks for the help really appreciate it. Il mess around with it with just the live rock in there so i can see where the dead spots are, is there any advantage to have a DSB in the display tank if im going to have one in the refuguim?
 
Oh man, DSB's, there has been lots of discussion on the pros and cons of a DSB. Here is one post for example.

http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43235&highlight=DSB

I think I would run a DSB in the fuge, 3 inches or so, with just an inch or so of sand in the display tank, unless you plan on going bare bottom in the DT. Hopefully someone else with a little more knowledge of DSB's will chime in.

Ok Sounds good thanks for the help really appreciate it. Il mess around with it with just the live rock in there so i can see where the dead spots are, is there any advantage to have a DSB in the display tank if im going to have one in the refuguim?
 
Ya i just read up on a couple threads i think i will just go with enough in the display as needed and do a dsb in the refuge like i had on my other tank.

Ok so this is what im thinking-
75g 48x18x20
25g refuge DSB with chaeto and mangroves/ bubble magus NAC7 skimmer and mag 7 return pump
I will be using tek t-5 6x54 lights
and have aprox 70lbs of LR to start from my other tank.
I will have a vortech mp10, moded maxijet 1200, and two korallia nanos(temporarily)

I believe all that will work together, if anyone has any suggestions let me know but all seems to be fine with what i have planned. will post pictures as soon as i get the tank hopefully thursday.
 
In the display, go with either a DSB of 3" or more, which will require a lot of maintenance, OR, 1" or less. If you go with deeper than 1", but less than 3", you could run into some issues. I'd recommend 1" or less in display and as deep as you want in refugium. The deeper the better, at least 4". 4"-6" would be ideal.

Replace the 2 K Nanos with another Modded Maxijet. You'll love it!!

I'd research Mangroves before buying them. They do require a bit of maintenance and have some special planting needs. They also grow quite slow, so don't really reduce nitrates much. Regularly trimming your Chaeto and a DSB in the fuge will give you great nitrate reduction.
 
Ok, il go with less and 1 inch in the display, and as for the flow i will be adding another mp10 i believe i love that you can control the flow to replace the nanos. Ill also go with the dsb in the fuge, should be about 5 inches deep i believe. I got mangroves from a friend and though they looked cool so i put them in there, havent grown much at all but are still alive. lol . As for the display i have a sand sifting starfish will i need to move him to the fuge or will that be enough sand for him in the display?
 

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