20g long lighting

[Canadian Reefer]

Hello all I am setting up a 30" long 20g reef. I am having troubles finding lighting, everything seems way overkill or not enough. I have found a metal halide t5 system for a good price but at 374w its seems like way overkill. I want it to house sps. I have never set up a nano with a high light requirement so any help would be great.

[drauka99]

I am in the same boat, I have been debating building a light using 24" t-5 and offseting them to either side so coverage isn't weak on the ends.

[dublo8]

you should be fine with a 24" 4 bulb T5 setup. i dont think you will be starved for light on the ends. i wouldn't place any sps all the way to the side but you should be ok. Also depending on what you want to spend you could also get a 150 watt MH.

[cameron91806]

you do 175 mh u will get 8 watts to a gallon also you could do MH only u dont need T'5 along side

[JasonBJones]

Current USA makes a 30" T5 fixture that fits perfectly on a 20l. It has all the timers built in and is an easy plug and play system.

[RickySan]

im using a 150w MH with t-5's.. Love it!

[Canadian Reefer]

im using a 150w MH with t-5's.. Love it!

Are you cooling your tank? I am worried about to much heat on such a little tank.

[2_zoa]

I can't say about the cooling ATM but, the 20L I just setup will be getting a 175W SE halide with 2 24" VHOs over it. The light is currently over my 29 bio cube and I have zero heat issues with it now. I do have air cond in my house though, for the summer months.

[Darkstar22]

I have a 250w MH Pendant 10 inches over my 20L and have no heating issues. No cooling, not even a fan. It does have a 20 gallon refugium which makes it close to a 40 gallon system.

[Canadian Reefer]

I just bought a 24" 6x24w t5 system for the tank. The wife is convinced we dont need MH for it lol. I will give it a shot if I dont like it I will relegate it to one of the kids bedroom aquariums they only have softies and real easy lps.

[2_zoa]

I just bought a 24" 6x24w t5 system for the tank. The wife is convinced we dont need MH for it lol. I will give it a shot if I dont like it I will relegate it to one of the kids bedroom aquariums they only have softies and real easy lps.


That's plenty of light. Not to worry.

I myself just like the look of halide. Also, watts are watts. It doesn't matter what bulb your using. You could do a 150 watt HQI and save money every time you need bulbs. 50 bucks vs about 90 bucks for 6 T-5s. Plus the halide will will give more watts then your 6X24 setup. Probably better par too. Just pointing out bang for the buck IMO.

[glennr1978]

I just bought a 24" 6x24w t5 system for the tank. The wife is convinced we dont need MH for it lol. I will give it a shot if I dont like it I will relegate it to one of the kids bedroom aquariums they only have softies and real easy lps.

Be careful, that's a TON of light over a 12" tall tank. Overkill IMO, but I tend to like overkill :)

[Canadian Reefer]

Be careful, that's a TON of light over a 12" tall tank. Overkill IMO, but I tend to like overkill :)

Its going to be a nano dedicated to sps. I think It will work out well, I hope so anyway

[Crackerballer]

It will work well, and you could just always run only 5 of the bulbs (just take one out) or use the 6th slot to tweak color. Just mount the light a little higher and you will have excellent coverage.

Oh and the watts per gallon rule someone mentioned above is a TERRIBLE measure.