Lighting For A 2 Foot Tank?

[aly_starh]

hi everyone,

just weighing up my options really, i have a 2 foot jewel record 60. its 16 gallons and came with 1 T8 bulb. Now i know thats defos not enough for most corals so i thought this light looked fab! LINK Would that be enough for some basic corals, soft corals?!!

Hope to hear from you guys soon!

ps, also is it possible to 'seed' from a previous filter in a marine tank? and will corals sit well on fake rocks. (sorry if the terminology is way off) lol

Thank you

 

[RossC]

I've looked at this unit myself a number of times and they do look pretty decent from the images.

 

[aly_starh]

a wee cheeky bump!

 

[FishAreFriendsNotFood10]

Im no pro on lighting but i see no reason why this unit couldnt keep soft corals, especially over a small nano tank. Would you go for the higher wattage?

 

[SB96]

Hello,
new here, i thought i had to join to this forum once i saw this tread, i just bought this light unit from ebay, it hasn't arrived yet but i will let you know when it has, i ordered the 14w because i have a 2ftx1ftx1ft tank
also, i found it for just a few pounds cheaper LINK

S

 

[aly_starh]

Thanks for the input guys!

@FishAreFriends- There is a specific 'formula' regarding lighting isn't there? but i can't remember what it is?! is it 1w per litre? Clueless over which wattage i should go for.

@SB96- Fabulous! defos look forward to your review of it! We have the same tank! Are you going marine? You could start a journal, i would happily love to read your progress! Thanks for the link too

 

[lljdma06]

Tyler's light is a better deal and will grow most corals...

A 2foot light that'll grow most corals except the extremely light hungry sps species.

http/www.ebay.com/itm/96W-24-T5-HO-Aquarium-Light-Hood-Marine-Coral-Cichlid-4x24-Lamps-LED-Saltwater-/230764753399?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35baa6b1f7

Sorry, but for only $30 more compared to the 21W model, you get a pretty awesome light.

L

 

[aly_starh]

Hey L, thanks for the feedback. That light looks awesome but the seller doesn't ship to the uk Will try an track down a uk equivalent! Would anyone be able to calculate how many watts i need in my 2 foot 65 litre tank for most soft easy corals? That would be great, If my formula was right, it would be at least 65W?

 

[FishAreFriendsNotFood10]

I've seen quite a few higher wattage units but there all like £150ish... Surely summit like http/www.seapets.co.uk/products/aquarium-supplies/fish-tank-equipment/aquarium-lighting/led-aquarium-lighting-strips/aquabeam-600-ultra-led-strip-marine-white.html would be better llj? I shud learn about lighting tbh

 

[SB96]

It arrived today, which was pretty quick arrival, but only one of the light tubes were in tact, the others were smashed to tiny pieces and as the bulbs were readily placed into the unit, it took me ages to get all the tiny pieces out the brand is BOYU but the unit is a lot thinner then i first thought it would be. anyhow, im going bulb hunting today im not sure how much a t5 bulb costs but i am checking pets at home first as i get to use my brothers colleague discount just thought i would let you know

 

[SB96]

Just got off the phone to my LFS to have a quote on the bulb replacement, so it is £23.99 per bulb and when i told him the brand of the unit, he told me that the unit itself is good,but the bulbs will do nothing for the marine tank as the blue is wrong and the whites are too, so its up to you really but i now have to go spend around £72 on some new bulbs for the unit

EDIT, and the bulbs are 24W not 14, even though it says that they are 14W the size of the bulb shows that they are 24W

 

[aly_starh]

Hey! Oh no, thats a shame. Argh really? Thats not really worth it then? Hope it works out for you!

So are you replacing the bulbs fir marine suitable ones? So would you just look for the T5 2 foot long bulbs and get any wattage? I hope that made sense...

 

[SB96]

Hey
yeah i think i made sense of that, well the unit says 14W so im not sure that the bulbs are their own specification and that the 24W bulbs will overload the unit if that makes sense. i may have to do a little more research into the unit, but other then that, the unit is good, i put the surviving bulb into the middle socket which has its own switch and put it onto the tank, and the brightness is okay, but its easy to stare at the bulb without it being too bright so i don't think it is bright enough. i found some for around £15-£16 which are the same brand that my lfs quoted me for so im a little happier that i dont have to pay out so much and i want to see if the sellers to the unit can re-imberse me some of the money
cheers,
stan

 

[aly_starh]

Hello! Ive been google searching the light unit like crazy and a few other forums came up for threads about it. As far as I've read the light is pretty decent for the price. Think i may just go for it, then see.
Yes, that totally makes sense, i should have really thought of that, it might just end up exploding because the wattage is too high?!! lol. Oh thats brilliant then! hehe i was just about to say that you could give the seller a quick email for a partial refund. Well earn refund may i add!

Have you brought live rock or anything yet?

 

[SB96]

no but ive been searching everywhere for someone who is closing down their tank and selling the live rock at a cheaper price as im on a slight budget also, my lfs ran out of salt so at the moment whilst im waiting for my salt i have half dialuted salt water (the salt part is where i was planning on getting dwarf seahorses and then waited 9 months to get them, then lost the ambition ) i also have a small bottle of copepods sitting by which i extracted from my dwarf sh tank i may take it into my lfs to ask them to have a look, but my closest marine one is findon, and im in littlehampton so i cant drive due to being only 16 and all that too