I need help

[darkstar2141]

hi i am just starting my first saltwater tank and i dont know if my light is good enough for soft corals.

my tank is 30 gallons and 36Lx12Hx18W and my light is T5HO 39Wx2 one is a 10,000k and the other bulb is a Actinic-03(i am typing what the box says) i know about the the rule of thumb 5watt/1gallon please tell me thats bull


is this good or am i going to have to buy a different one?

[SushiGirl]

Most soft corals don't require intense lighting.

[darkstar2141]

so they are good?

[mike_cmu04]

You will be able to keep softies with those lights. The watts per gallon rule dosen't apply it matters on the kind of lighting.

[darkstar2141]

someone said i can get a light bulb with a higher PAR rating

what is that?

[bertoni]

PAR is photosynthetically available radiation. If you want a bit more light, the 10,000 K bulbs often are more efficient than the actinic bulbs in producing light, but I wouldn't bother with that until the bulbs need replacing. If the setup has good reflectors, the light should be okay for many soft corals, although the growth rate might be low.