29gal Tank Lighting Recommendations

For a buget lighting system you can Overdrive NO bulbs and make them put out as many lumens as VHO's.

 

I wouldnt even know where to start

I am looking at spending around 150 or so for the light fixture.

if I do a search for 30" t5 on ebay, i dont get many options

 

For 150 you could make you self a 150-175watt mh and NO antic setup.

 

is that a good setup? Better than T5?

Is there a how too? sorry for all the questions.. i am a noob

 

Metal Halide is very strong, and you can keep practically any coral you whant, as long as its in the right place. The good part of mh, they are strong lighting, make corals grow fast, and are cheap if you make yourself. Some bad things, they really heat up!! So you have to place them high above the tank, like 15 inches if i remember correctly. The bulb lasts i believe like a year or so. But its the best lighting considering you can make for cheap, and really give suficcient lighting.

Now t5 are really good, my personal favorite, because they run cold, give very good lighting, take up less space, and bulbs last good for about two years if im not mistaken.
The more questions you ask, the more we can help, so keep them coming!!

 

thanks turbo.

I guesss Metal Halide is out of the question for me at the moment, 1 due to space ( I dont have a canopy) and 2 due to heat (heat means you have to cool, to cool means fans, fans = noise) my tank is in my living room/dining room (apt) so I dont have the means to put it up that high. I will most likely end up with a T5 due to these issues. Now just to find the best one for my money :-/

 

Mario, before jumping str8 into whanting to buy the t5, tell us what type of tank do you whan, if a reef tank, what type of corals do you whant to keep. Afetr knowing this info, than we can pinpoint exactly what lights will suit you. This was something 4g1v3n asked previousely that will help u determine what lighting you need.

 

I would like a reef tank with bubble coral, polyps, braincoral, mushrooms coral and maybe a clam and a few fish.

 

Well you really only need good lighting for corals. with fish you can have any old lights. the good thing is that all the coral you like are softies or sps. The only problem would be the clam. now i know i might get argued on this one but i have seen allot of LFS with PC lights and clams. now the placement and watts per gallon were correct, however i dont recommend clams for the begginer. All clams will thrive under MH as apposed to PC or t5. They will be allot happier under MH. I do agree with everyone else that the t5 is a better light but it would have to have more wattage that the power compact light in your case. basicly i would find the highest wattage light for your money. if the watts are the same go with the t5.

Good luck!
-Jordan

PS. thanks turbo for the props!!

 

Been searching, but no luck.
maybe I'll just stick with fish :-/

The clam is not the most impt thing on my list, so doing without if its a matter of lighting wouldnt not hurt my feelings.