Lighting for 55 gal

[ZOOH]

Hey guys,
I'm new here. I have a 55 gal tank and am looking for lighting to give me nice color. Something that will make the color on my corals and fish really stand out. Right now I'm using lighting from when my tank was freshwater...not sure what kind of lighting, but it has a 55w blue bulb and a 55w white bulb. The corals and fish have been doing ok, but everything in the tank looks bland and yellowish. I'm a rookie with saltwater tanks so I'm not really sure what I need. I'd like to keep the price within $200-$300. I'm guessing T5 is the way to go? Actinic? Pure Actinic? What do I need? I'd appreciate any suggestions you can give me. Pictures of your tank and type of lighting system it has would be even better. Thanks.

[GSMguy]

i think for a good 48inch t5 fixture 300 may a lil short
the best you can do is to call reefgeek and get the preorder price n the ATi t5 HO fixture

[ZOOH]

What would I need though? How many bulbs do I need? Which color bulbs? How much do good 48 inch t5 fixtures cost? Which fixtures are good?

[kodyboy]

get an aquactincs 5 bulb t5 unit, a decent price, great reflectors, active cooling. aquariumspecialty.com

[ZOOH]

Anyone else have suggestions? What about the Nova retrofits?

[aclos3]

Individual reflectors are pretty key to having good light output from T5 setups. The nova fixtures (unless they have changed) are one reflector units.

[kodyboy]

Yep, Nova units do not have individual reflectors. An 8 bulb nova unit does not have as much par as an aquatinic T5 5 bulb unit.

[shiftyfatdwarf]

i can help you build your own. that is it you don't mind a canopy on top of your tank. i can get ballast, starter, cap, and socket for really cheap and all you need to do is get the bulbs and reflectors and build a canopy on top of your tank to hold it all

[GSMguy]

he asked about nova retro and they do have individual reflectors a bulb nova would be ok
i really reccomend the Aquatinics Tx5 it is great

[REMF]

Build your own canopy and use a Sunlight Supply 4 x retro from the geek and upgrade reflectors to IC. Should be just over $300.

[HowardW]

You failed to mention what fish and corals you are keeping in this tank. If it is mainly a fish tank with a few soft or LPS corals, then a T5 setup with individual reflectors like a 4-bulb Tek or a 5-bulb Aquactinics fixture would probably be overkill and unnecessary.

[SoonerReefer]

Depends upon if your tank is Reef ready or not if it is you can build your own canopy and do a retro,If not you may think about a Tek hood with the leg extentions, that way you can add a hang on skimmer and such,I have my 55 setup with the 4 bulb T-5 Tek light.

[ChemE]

This has worked amazing well for me for over a year. I've had success with both softies and SPS under this setup.

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f26/cdl1051/RC/55_lighting.png

[ZOOH]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9329159#post9329159 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ChemE
This has worked amazing well for me for over a year. I've had success with both softies and SPS under this setup.

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f26/cdl1051/RC/55_lighting.png

Hey ChemE got any pics of your tank? I'd like to see what kind of color this lighting puts out. This setup looks like it's right in my price range. Anyone got some input on this setup?

[specialreef]

ChemE,
Would this list be for a DIY canopy setup? Why only 3x54 bulbs for the 55? If not too much to ask i would like to see some pics also.

[ChemE]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9332464#post9332464 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by specialreef
ChemE,
Would this list be for a DIY canopy setup? Why only 3x54 bulbs for the 55? If not too much to ask i would like to see some pics also.

55 lit with ATI Aquablue, ATI Blueplus, UVL Super Actinic
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f26/cdl1051/55/All_bulbs.jpg

55 lit with only 1 54 watt ATI Aquablue
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f26/cdl1051/55/Aquablue_only.jpg

Yes, the shopping cart from ReefGeek is a DIY canopy. I could have crammed a fourth bulb in but I elected to start out with as few watts as would work and go up if I needed to. I get very good growth out of most of my corals (can't get my LPS to grow for anything, SPS grow like a champ) and so I'm staying with 3 bulbs.

The ATI Aquablue is an absolute PAR monster so if you wanted the 10K look, 3 of those would be plenty for a 55. Even better would be 2 and a GE 6500K starcoat. I prefer a 15K look so I run an ATI Blueplus and a UVL Super Actinic. Hope this helps.

[ZOOH]

Very nice. Thanks ChemE. I'm definitely going to consider this setup.

[i dont eat fish]

Here are a few pics of my 55. I'm running one of each: blue+, aquablue special, geismann actinic, ge 6500k, and an URI aquasun. All are 54 watt driven by advance icn2s54's. I also have icecap reflectors.

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid224/p2571897712a5e61bc14178079a08588f/ea90f84b.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid224/pff597b760cef14cf6285425a0ab61027/ea90f6ed.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid224/pb048df58972812fc00327695a402cf15/ea90fbf7.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid224/p5bf0eea128c44287fb57dc041da4e70a/ea90fa13.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid224/pb2c217bd41123ba0197607a6a797fe4c/ea90fbf6.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid224/p23a0a0f1e9d102c8a79fd6646b58c878/ea90f54f.jpg

[specialreef]

I wish i knew how too build a canopy for my 55. It'll be a wrap! OH boy, am i moving towards T-5's or what!

Good looking tank, I dont eat fish.

[ZOOH]

Nice. That's the type of color I'm looking for.

[i dont eat fish]

Thanks specialreef for the compliment. This tank is pretty new as far as my sps corals go within the last 3 months). PE is looking good and color is getting a little more vivid than they were when I brought them home from he lfs. IIRC The monti was under a 250watt halide and the acro was under a 400.

I just arrived at that color about a week ago. I previously had a blue plus in place of the 6500k and it was a little too blue for my liking. Also, I'm sure the sps don't mind the little bit of added par.

My camera sucks too, but the color is pretty accurate to real life.

[hahnmeister]

The retro is nice way to go if you dont mind putting it together. One thing ChemE left out is the fans... you will need some sort of active cooling solution to get the most from your T5s. If you want a nice fixture, you can get the aquatinics or the ATI powermodul... they seem to be the best ones out there. I can no longer suggest the Fauna-Marins until they figure out their reflector/ballast specs, and Teks (current and old) just have too many design problems.

http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=586

or

ATI powermodule (you have to call reefgeek, but pre-orders of the 4x54 are $489 and include the bulbs). This thing is sick looking and perhaps the highest output per watt of all fixtures, except perhaps the Solar-Flare... but thats debatable.

[ZOOH]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9340393#post9340393 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
The retro is nice way to go if you dont mind putting it together. One thing ChemE left out is the fans... you will need some sort of active cooling solution to get the most from your T5s. If you want a nice fixture, you can get the aquatinics or the ATI powermodul... they seem to be the best ones out there. I can no longer suggest the Fauna-Marins until they figure out their reflector/ballast specs, and Teks (current and old) just have too many design problems.

http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=586

or

ATI powermodule (you have to call reefgeek, but pre-orders of the 4x54 are $489 and include the bulbs). This thing is sick looking and perhaps the highest output per watt of all fixtures, except perhaps the Solar-Flare... but thats debatable.

I like the aquatinics fixture, mainly because of the lower price. I'm so close to ordering it right now. Does anyone have this fixture or have used it before? Any thoughts? Any pics?

[ZOOH]

If I decide to go MH, what size would I need for my 48" tank? Which MH fixtures are good and somewhat affordable (under $400)?

[hahnmeister]

Not gonna happen (at least not for a good system). For a 4' long tank you will need dual halides, and ballasts alone are going to be over $200. A 55g is tall enough to warrant dual 250s, but thats also 500watts. Considering pendants sit a good 6" or so above the water, most of the light they produce will simply spill out the front and back of the tank. If it was a 50B or a 60cube, hey, Id be telling a different story, but with a 55g, you can quite literaly get more light in your tank with T5s for much less wattage. A 55g is THE posterchild candidate tank for T5s.

[ChemE]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9363463#post9363463 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
...A 55g is THE posterchild candidate tank for T5s.

I couldn't possibly agree with Hahn more.

[ZOOH]

Thanks guys. T5's it is. I'm still not sure how many bulbs I would need though. Should I go with 2 or 4? Would 4 be too much? Do I need to go with a 48" system or would 36" be ok? Sorry, I've usually dealt with cichlids who aren't too needy with light so I don't know much about it.

[ChemE]

Conventional wisdom is to use 4 48" bulbs over a 55. I've had success with 3 48" bulbs but I'm the only person I know so frugal as to do that.

[DGL]

DIY your own canopy, use 4(four) VHO URI bulbs, 2(two) Actinic, 2(two) Actinic/White. They have available a 48" or 46.5" bulb, both are 110 watts each. That’s 440 watts for a 55 gal. / 8 watts per gallon. You can drive all four bulbs with an Ice Cap 660 Electronic Ballast. You will need four pair for VHO sockets & four pair of mounting brackets for the sockets. The URI bulbs have built in reflectors which means the majority of the light produced exits the bottom of the bulb. The canopy should be tall enough so the bottom of the bulbs are about 10" above the surface of your aquarium water. I would use the 46.5" bulbs which allows plenty of space to accommodate your bulbs. Leave the back of the canopy open except for about 1" - 1.5" brace on the under side of the canopy top for support. You can attach one or two 4" fans to this brace blowing inward to keep the canopy cool. Paint the inside of the canopy with several coats of a good semi-gloss white paint for maximum light benefit. Finish the outside however you desire, making sure your entire canopy is sealed well the finish you choose. Construction is pretty straight forward and simple. If you don't have the wood cutting equipment you should be able to take your measurements to you local lumber store and get almost everything precut. You should be able to easily construct this from one sheet of plywood, one solid board for your rear support and for supports for the inside of the canopy where it will sit on top of your aquarium and any desired trim to dress up the edges of the plywood. This system will give you great color and should allow you to any type of coral or clam you wanted.

Happy Reefing

[i dont eat fish]

^ or you could use t5, like we have been discussing the whole thread.

I had 4 uri vho's on my 55 and my t5's are noticeably brighter, even with only 4 bulbs lit.

My canopy fits 5 bulbs with IC reflectors. That's my recommendation for sps, clams and anemones.

[ZOOH]

Okay guys, I think I finally made up my mind and am going with the Tek system. My final question is what color bulbs do I get to make all the colors "glow". I like that slight blueish (but not too blue) color that really makes the corals stand out. Actinic? Pure Actinic? 11,000K?

[ChemE]

2 ATI Aquablue Specials (12,000K)
1 D&D Midday (6,000K)
1 ATI Blue Plus (20,000K)

This will give you tons of PAR and should give you a predominantly white light but the Midday will pull out the reds and yellows and the Blue Plus should pull out the purples and blues (and mine makes my orange rics looks radioactive). If you're going to DIY make sure you upgrade to IceCap SLR's (they beat the Tek reflectors handily) for $2/each. Beware that the Tek fixtures have serious heat problems and you'll need to cool it in order to not lose a lot of the PAR.

[hahnmeister]

Thats alot of output that he may not even want, not to mention pretty 'white'... where's the actinic?

Id do something like this...
1x Giesemann midday/ UVL sun
1x ATI aquablue
1x ATI blue+
1x UVL super actinic

These four bulbs represent the 4 major categories of bulb available, so you will be able to mix/match to see what you might like next time you buy bulbs... but the given combo should give you a white/blue look.

[ChemE]

I went for a whiter mix because he previously preferred the whiter look. I run exactly what you recommend less the midday and it was too blue for his taste.

[ZOOH]

Thanks guys. I'm looking for a color similar to this image that is in Hahnmeister's gallery. Just a little more brighter/whiter though. Would that combo Hahn mentioned above give me something like this?

[jbittner]

Hard to tell from that huge pic, but I run
2 geismann Actinic +
1 Midday
1 UV Super actinic

And here is my work in progress

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i87/jeremybittner/IMG_3227.jpg

[hahnmeister]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9377050#post9377050 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ZOOH
Thanks guys. I'm looking for a color similar to this image that is in Hahnmeister's gallery. Just a little more brighter/whiter though. Would that combo Hahn mentioned above give me something like this?

I use a 1:1:1 mix of aquablue, blue+, and true actinic03 (2 of each for 6 bulbs total). In a few months, I may be changing the bulbs (though the PAR levels are holding constant, so I may have to wait another year)... anyways, when I do, I will be subbing one of the aquablues for a daylight bulb. Its so blue its to the point where I could use some more daylight to counter the blue really. Thats why I said just get one of each... you can mix and match to see what you really like, and go from there. One of each will give you the opportunity to mix/match and play a bit, and hey, if you determine you want to replace the aquablue with another blue+ and just run 2x blue+, 1x actinic, and 1x midday... its only one more $20 bulb and a spare for later.

[ZOOH]

thanks for all the help guys

[Zoos]

Hey Hahn do you know anything about the Maristar 2? I saw the picture in your gallery, but it almost seems like SLS decided not to go through with it, i can't even find any info on it? I think there used to be a thread about it, but i can't find that either.
Thanks
Felix

[hahnmeister]

Well, the Maristar 2 is due out shortly after the Tek 2. The Tek 2 was supposed to be out by now, but we all know how thats going. Its still on its way. All I know is that it will be the 4' 2x250wattDE with 4x54wattT5s at first, then 3' and 2' and 6' versions will follow. They have enlarged the reflectors as much as possible for a better spread than before (and loads better than those smaller ones used by Giesemann/Tunze/Aqualine fixtures. There will be a fan system to keep things cool, and the price should be no more than the current Maristars.

[Zoos]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9386428#post9386428 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
Well, the Maristar 2 is due out shortly after the Tek 2. The Tek 2 was supposed to be out by now, but we all know how thats going. Its still on its way. All I know is that it will be the 4' 2x250wattDE with 4x54wattT5s at first, then 3' and 2' and 6' versions will follow. They have enlarged the reflectors as much as possible for a better spread than before (and loads better than those smaller ones used by Giesemann/Tunze/Aqualine fixtures. There will be a fan system to keep things cool, and the price should be no more than the current Maristars.

So i should definitely wait for them, I spoke to Greg @ RG and he told me the Tek 2 would be out by last week, but like you said, that's how it goes, anyway i would be mad if i drop 900.00 on the 3 foot Maristar and then a month later the new unit comes out. do you know where i might be able to see some pictures of it? maybe a prototype?
thanks

[hahnmeister]

Only those CAD images have been released... releasing other images before release would be problematic for patenting.

[benjamin.sam]

Beware that the Tek fixtures have serious heat problems and you'll need to cool it in order to not lose a lot of the PAR.


__________________

I'm looking at the tek lighting systme too. Are there heat issues with these fixtures?

[tls]

i just recently got a 55 and want to diy a canopy. where do you guys have the ballasts mounted? also when lined up side by side, how much room do 4 t5's need in the canopy? i got just about 12" to work with...

[Zoos]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9405710#post9405710 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hahnmeister
Only those CAD images have been released... releasing other images before release would be problematic for patenting.

Good point

[hahnmeister]

tls, the Icecap reflectors are 2.5" wide each... so 4 would be 10". However... about 3/8" of this is a lip for structure that you can overlap so the reflectors are only really 2.25" wide.