Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I have a 29 gallon tall that I plan on turning into a frag tank. I am in the market for some lighting and was wondering if either of these would be appropriate (24 inch 2x65 watt Current USA PC or MR-192 ARO Electronic Power Compact Ballast) for the tank. I plan on mostly keeping ricordea and zoas, but I would like a little flexibility in the future if I decide to do a bigger tank or add something that has more light requirements. For the MR-192 I was planning on just using 1x96 watt bulb. Would this be a sufficient amount of light? Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 If you want things to grow fast, you are going to need something other than PCs. I would seriously consider T5 or MH for a frag tank. The whole point is to grow things out quick, and the lighting will play a huge part in that. Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 If you want things to grow fast, you are going to need something other than PCs. I would seriously consider T5 or MH for a frag tank. The whole point is to grow things out quick, and the lighting will play a huge part in that. So between T5 and MH, which would be more cost effective? I am already paying $400/month on my electric bill so I want something that is also enery efficient. I was looking at a 150w MH pendant, would that be sufficient? I was thinking of maybe one of these 150w & 250w MH Pendants. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 If you want energy efficient, T5 is the way to go. You use less wattage for the same/similar amount of light from a MH setup. It's not a ton, and not really enough for you to see a dent in a $400/mo. electric bill. Those PFO pendants are good, but keep in mind that it doesn't include a ballast or bulb. That gets you north of $250, so it's not very cost effective for a small tank like yours. There are other much more affordable units that will get the job done. Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 If you want energy efficient, T5 is the way to go. You use less wattage for the same/similar amount of light from a MH setup. It's not a ton, and not really enough for you to see a dent in a $400/mo. electric bill. Those PFO pendants are good, but keep in mind that it doesn't include a ballast or bulb. That gets you north of $250, so it's not very cost effective for a small tank like yours. There are other much more affordable units that will get the job done. What do you recommend in terms of a T5 light? I've been searching around, but I'm not sure what would best suit my needs. Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Most any 4 bulb unit will work, but the difference in cost starts coming down to quality of the housing, quality of the reflector (more light into the tank), and the quality of the bulbs. On the low end you have the Fish Need It fixtures. Good for the money, but there are better. On the high end of the spectrum you have fixtures like Tek, ATI, and Aquatinics. The new Nova Extremes seem to be a good compromise on performance, but the bulbs aren't that great. There is a ton of info in the T5HO Information thread stickied at the top of the forum. Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 Hmmmm Thanks Nosey. I'll consider that. Link to comment
UncleLuke Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 Look at my tank thread in my sig to see what I did, a custom VHO 150w hood for around 100 bucks. Link to comment
debbeach13 Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I had a reef in a 29 and I used a sun pod 150wMH with 6 blue and 6 white LEDs. I do not remember the price but I keep a carpet nem and plenty of softies. Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 Look at my tank thread in my sig to see what I did, a custom VHO 150w hood for around 100 bucks. Nice. That light upgrade made a big difference. I think I'll do something similar. I had a reef in a 29 and I used a sun pod 150wMH with 6 blue and 6 white LEDs. I do not remember the price but I keep a carpet nem and plenty of softies. Was there a lot of heat output from your lights? That's another concern of mine. I'd like to get an anemone for my 2 clowns, but I don't know if I'd be able to care for one. Link to comment
Bamboozle Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 You might also consider the Sundial/Nova Extreme/Nova Extreme Pro T5 fixtures from Current-usa. The output that you'll get will be much better than with PCs. If I remember correctly, 29g is only 30" long. They make a Sundial in a 30" length. It's 4x24w http://www.petmountain.com/product/light-f...ndial-t5ho.html Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 You might also consider the Sundial/Nova Extreme/Nova Extreme Pro T5 fixtures from Current-usa. The output that you'll get will be much better than with PCs. If I remember correctly, 29g is only 30" long. They make a Sundial in a 30" length. It's 4x24w http://www.petmountain.com/product/light-f...ndial-t5ho.html Thanks Bamboozle. I like that Sundial. It is a little out of my budget, but I might just go for it. Tr0gd0r is selling a Nova Extreme 24" 4x24 watt for $75 plus shipping. The only problem I have with that is I heard the fan noise is somewhat loud, but that price is more to my liking. There is also the fishneedit lights, but I'm not sure about the quality. Any opinions on these options? Link to comment
Bamboozle Posted February 5, 2009 Share Posted February 5, 2009 I've got a 36" Nove Extreme Pro and the fan noise really isn't too bad. You can hear it for sure, but it's not annoying by any means. I'm sure if you were handy with electronics, it wouldn't be too difficult to swap out for quieter fans. As for the fishneedit fixtures go, a lot of people on the board seem to like them and think they're a great "bang for your buck" light fixture. If money was an issue and I needed a light, I wouldn't hesitate ordering from them just from the feedback that I've heard. It also seems like they've been trying to improve their designs so that's a definite plus in my book. Here's a couple threads regarding them: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=172355 with pics: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...184656&st=0 Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 5, 2009 Author Share Posted February 5, 2009 I've got a 36" Nove Extreme Pro and the fan noise really isn't too bad. You can hear it for sure, but it's not annoying by any means. I'm sure if you were handy with electronics, it wouldn't be too difficult to swap out for quieter fans. As for the fishneedit fixtures go, a lot of people on the board seem to like them and think they're a great "bang for your buck" light fixture. If money was an issue and I needed a light, I wouldn't hesitate ordering from them just from the feedback that I've heard. It also seems like they've been trying to improve their designs so that's a definite plus in my book. Here's a couple threads regarding them: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=172355 with pics: http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...184656&st=0 I think I'm going to go with the fishneedit fixture. The tank is 30" long but they don't have a fixture that size. Can I use the 24" fixture? Also, what bulb combination would be best? I am mostly going to keep zoas and rics so I want to get whatever will be the best for them. Link to comment
ajmckay Posted February 6, 2009 Share Posted February 6, 2009 Hey, I also have a 29 gallon tank. I was soooo close to buying a fishneedit fixture (the 4x39 watt 36"). I know it will stick out 3" on each side, but that doesn't bother me. Well... Then I saw some great deals on Current USA Nova extreme's on eBay and so I decided to get a 2x39 watt 36" fixture as I already have a Coralife T5 2x18 fixture. In the future I will just add on another 2x39 fixture. I decided to go with Current USA because their stock bulbs are better than the fishneedit ones. I suppose I just didn't want to have to buy new bulbs right away to get the most out of the fixture. Good luck with whatever you decide to go with. Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 Hey, I also have a 29 gallon tank. I was soooo close to buying a fishneedit fixture (the 4x39 watt 36"). I know it will stick out 3" on each side, but that doesn't bother me. Well... Then I saw some great deals on Current USA Nova extreme's on eBay and so I decided to get a 2x39 watt 36" fixture as I already have a Coralife T5 2x18 fixture. In the future I will just add on another 2x39 fixture. I decided to go with Current USA because their stock bulbs are better than the fishneedit ones. I suppose I just didn't want to have to buy new bulbs right away to get the most out of the fixture. Good luck with whatever you decide to go with. A couple of questions for you. 1) What kind of corals are you keeping in your tank? 2) How did you mount your light on your tank? I'm assuming your tank is 30" long like mine. Link to comment
Drizzt Posted February 6, 2009 Author Share Posted February 6, 2009 I went ahead and bought a Nova Extreme 4x24W T5. $85 shipped. Such a hard decision to make. I still almost went with a MH, but I think this will be okay. I'll let you guys know how everything turns out. Thanks for all the advice from everybody that responded. Link to comment
Symbiotic Posted February 14, 2009 Share Posted February 14, 2009 Hate to dredge up an old topic, but I too am looking at lights for my 29 gallon (wife says as soon as I paint and carpet I can switch the tank over from fresh). Anyway, I just saw that Marine Depot as the 30" Sunpod for $199! What's up with the price so much cheaper than the 20 and 24 inch? Any bad experiences on this model? Shouls I jump on this (was looking at Sundial) even if I won't be ready for a couple to 3 months to switch? Thanks, Symbiotic Link to comment
cuboy Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 i need to retro a light into my 29g canopy. do you think a 250w mh would provide enough coverage? i'm thinking there will be a lot of heat issues since it's under a canopy. would a t5 setup be better? or the vho? retro Link to comment
evilc66 Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 Most reflectors are set up to light about a 24"x24" area. It will light areas beyond that, but they will be darker. The wattage isn't going to change this. Link to comment
SnakPak Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 Wow, why are they selling the 30" fixture for $199? That's a pretty good deal though. Link to comment
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