Lighting LED help

[jordanb90]

hi all, im new to the site but not to the hobby but this is the first time im actually willing to go all out on a marine tank.... i have kept large tanks with cichlids for several years and after moving and not being able to take my tank with me i have decided to buy a tank.

this tank is an aqua one ar 650t with the filter in the lid, i have also managed to get a marisys 240 which i have been told is more than enough to keep the tank healthy.

it comes with 2 bulbs in the lid, not sure which ones but they are like 2 little tubes joined together. i am looking to keep corals eventually and was wondering about LED lighting and wether anyone else has used an ar650 as a marine tank, im not too bad at diy with tanks as ive always built my own stands and lids with lights in ect but never had to have certain lighting to be sufficient to grow corals

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated, i could do with knowing which lighting i could use to properly grow coral and i dont mind modifying the lid to fit different lights but i dont know what to fit. the tanks is deeper than it is wider so i imagine ill need quite bright lights to get the light to the bottom lof the tank

also the tank isnt set up yet so i can change whatever i need to before i do. preferably would like it to be as cheap as possible but if i have to spend money i will....

plesaseeeeeeee help :)

[Reefer94]

Sounds like Power Compacts. Although they *can* grow coral they are pretty wattage-dependent, and will even then probably only get you soft corals. It should say somewhere on the bulb what the wattage is, you'd also need the right bulbs, Actinic/Actinic White is probably all you can get on those (white and blue).

No idea the specs of a 650T. I typed it in the Aqua One website and got nothing. I've heard of a 620T, they are like, oh 40 gallonish? 620T (out of the box) definitely wouldn't support corals. Marisys 240... again never heard of it. Looks kind of like a little all-in-one skimmer/carbon filter or something? Or is it just the straight filter version? Either way... wouldn't run it until you've researched it.

Really we need the true specs of the tank, height, width, depth, and the wattage and type of bulbs you are running. I'd venture to say it's not ideal for a reef, can't really know without specs. You are kinda screwed with the all-in-ones sometimes. Don't know how you'd fit any other lights in there, although some LEDs are pretty slim. For bigger punch in the LEDs (for them to reach deeper) you'd want something like an AI SOL with narrow optics, but without knowing the tank size, can't really say.

Honestly, doesn't sound like you are going to be coral equipped. Can't know without full specs or links to the equipment, if you can provide those you'll get a lot more replies.. Should have just gotten a good old fashioned open-top fish tank ;)

What I would do?

Ditch whatever filter that is... it looks like a filter-pad HOB powerfilter with a little skimmer on it. Marine tanks generally don't use powerfilters (ie mechanical), they use skimmers, due to nitrates and a whole other host of reasons. Get a reputable Protein Skimmer, like a HOB AquaC Remora Pro or Reef Octopus. That's all the filter you'll need. $150-$250

Ditch the hood. Go open top, and hang either an LED fixture or a Metal Halide pendant, or fashion a canopy and do the same. You're gonna need several inches between the light and water, even if it's LED. $250-$500

Get some good circulation. Like a Vortech MP10 or a Hydor (Korellia) wavemaker. $175-$250

Post tank specs!! (HxWxD)

Salt water is not nearly as forgiving initially as fresh. You've gotta do this right.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.