Kind of a dumb lighting question.

[sheaD]

I am in the process of buying my equipment for my new 48" long tank and have a pretty noobish question.
I will be supplementing my Metal Halides with either 4 T5 actinics or 2 VHO actinics. My question is is a 48" retrofit kit actually 48" after you had endcaps for these? The reason that I ask is that the inside of my canopy measures 48.25". So if a 48" bulb plus endcaps is more than 48.25" then I will have to go with a 36" fixture. It appears that a complete T-5 fixture, NovaExtreme for example is 48" exactly which would leave me to believe that it would fit. Thanks for the help.

[liquidlunch]

You can buy the endcaps/standoffs and run them with an IceCap 440 or 660. Here are (2) T5's ran by a 660

http://reefcentral.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=29&pictureid=8629

[jflick345]

No worries. That retro will fit in your canopy just fine. I run a 36" retro on my tank and it fits in the homemade canopy with plenty of room.

[redmarble]

I used 46.5" VHO bulbs inside my 48" canopy. They fit perfect.

Here's what I used:
46.5" VHO Fluorescent Bulbs Link (http://www.marinedepot.com/UVL_46.5_Inch_110W_Actinic_White_VHO_T12_Fluorescent_Bulb_VHO_Fluorescent_Light_Bulbs-UV_Lighting_Company_(UVL)-UF3243-FILTBUFLVB-UF3463-vi.html)