[mustangdonley]

Well I have a 55gallon tank right now and it has been up and running for about 5-6 months.. All is going great now after my first ICH breakout about 2-3 months ago. I got smart and set up a QT and everything and think I got things back in order.. Im wanting to get some corals soon and I was looking at these lights.

Current USA Nova Extreme T5HO 24-Hour Lighting System Light Fixtures

that is going to put me at 7.85 watts/gallon. I know I need to be between 3-5watts/gallon. So is it possible to have too much light.. I have been reading and I hear different things. The reason I am going with these is becaue the 4x54 lights are only getting me 3.9 watts/gallon. I would like to stick with T-5 as I dont want to mess with a heat issue. If anyone knows a good t-5 lighting system for a 55 gallon please let me know.. Also I dont have a canopy right now so the retrofit kits are not going to work.. Please any advice would be awesome. Thanks

[jimw369]

Originally Posted by mustangdonley

Well I have a 55gallon tank right now and it has been up and running for about 5-6 months.. All is going great now after my first ICH breakout about 2-3 months ago. I got smart and set up a QT and everything and think I got things back in order.. Im wanting to get some corals soon and I was looking at these lights.

Current USA Nova Extreme T5HO 24-Hour Lighting System Light Fixtures

that is going to put me at 7.85 watts/gallon. I know I need to be between 3-5watts/gallon. So is it possible to have too much light.. I have been reading and I hear different things. The reason I am going with these is becaue the 4x54 lights are only getting me 3.9 watts/gallon. I would like to stick with T-5 as I dont want to mess with a heat issue. If anyone knows a good t-5 lighting system for a 55 gallon please let me know.. Also I dont have a canopy right now so the retrofit kits are not going to work.. Please any advice would be awesome. Thanks

Not too much light if you choose your bulb selection wisely!

[jimw369]

Originally Posted by mustangdonley

Well I have a 55gallon tank right now and it has been up and running for about 5-6 months.. All is going great now after my first ICH breakout about 2-3 months ago. I got smart and set up a QT and everything and think I got things back in order.. Im wanting to get some corals soon and I was looking at these lights.

Current USA Nova Extreme T5HO 24-Hour Lighting System Light Fixtures

that is going to put me at 7.85 watts/gallon. I know I need to be between 3-5watts/gallon. So is it possible to have too much light.. I have been reading and I hear different things. The reason I am going with these is becaue the 4x54 lights are only getting me 3.9 watts/gallon. I would like to stick with T-5 as I dont want to mess with a heat issue. If anyone knows a good t-5 lighting system for a 55 gallon please let me know.. Also I dont have a canopy right now so the retrofit kits are not going to work.. Please any advice would be awesome. Thanks

That fixture doesnt have the individual reflectors which loses quite a bit of light also. You could go with a fixture with less bulbs and individual reflectors and come out ahead in terms of amount of light in the tank.

[plecosword]

Is that the same as this fixture?T-5 Aquarium Lighting: Nova Extreme T-5 Fixtures w/Lunar Lights
Can you keep anything under the 216 watts 48" fixture? or will i need the 48" - 432 watts to keep even a clam?
I dont want a metal hailide right now.

[FINDING_NEMO]

the watts per gallon does not matter when it comes to lighting a tank.... what matter is how tall the tank is

[plecosword]

Originally Posted by FINDING_NEMO

the watts per gallon does not matter when it comes to lighting a tank.... what matter is how tall the tank is

thats why, my tang is not that deep. Im just wondering if i can keep a clam under this fixture.

[FINDING_NEMO]

i have a clam under 6x39 t-5. ur best bet would be a derasa clam

[plecosword]

I dont want a clam! at least not planing on it. So how many watts would that be?

[FINDING_NEMO]

234 watts, i also got a neon green carpet in my tank and is doing good