Coral Lighting

[kennygater]

hi just a quick question. what wattage do soft corals need and what watage do hard corals need. thanks

 

[SkiFletch]

Soft corals can do fine in tanks with a mere 2 T8 tubes spanning the lenfth of the tank. Obviously the wattage depends upon the length of the tank, which is why wattage isnt really whats used in marine systems. We're more focused on "punch" through the water. T8 tubes have enough. T5/PC lights are more than enough (in fact a little bit of a waste IMO). If you go with 2 T8 tubes, make sure they are marine spectrum tubes (10000k - 20000k (actinic))

A quick edit: You'd probably get better growth (if you're concerned with that) with 4 T8s, or 2 T5s...

 

[PaulasPets]

I'm using a metal hallide lamp on my coral tank, I think they make the tank look sooo much better than with tubes.

Paula