Wich light should I Buy

Hey guys!
I'm new to the forum and this is my first post. I have been doing a bunch of research on saltwater aquariums and Have recently purchase my stand and tank. I am in the process of trying to find a good light for the 37 gallon tank that I just bought. The measurements are 30l x 12w x 23h. I am looking into building a reef tank that will include all sorts of corals and maybe a few inverts. I have been looking into led units but not sure if that the road I want to go down. I have been in and out of my lfs asking questions and he suggested that I get the reef ready marineland 24-36 in unit. Would this be enough for a deeper tank like the on i bought? He said if it wasn't that I could always buy another unit but I would prefer to just buy one unit that would be enough. One other Unit I was looking at was a t5 with moonlights. I like this unit because it has separate power cords which which i could then just throw a timer on. Im not sure which to buy and thought id join these forums for a little help. Thanks for reading!

 

Welcome.

IMO here, but the Marineland fixtures are junk. That's about the only fixture I would absolutely stay away from, minus any PC fixture for a reef tank (and I'm an LED guy all the way).

If your budget won't allow you to spend more, T5 is a better option than that if you're wanting a reef tank.

 

Agree out of the two options the T-5 is much better. The LEDs will not punch down through 23" of water, unless you go with a much better LED system. If you know how to solder and like diy stuff, you can make an outstanding led system, from a kit, probably for less than the marineland. Otherwise you'll want to spend quite a bit more $ or go with t-5s.


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What diy led lighting kit would u recommend and about how much do you think it will run me? I would definitely be up to job

 

Go browse around Rapid LED

 

Thanks for your quick replies evolved. I have checked out the site and I think i want the 24 ddim kit. Im not entirely sure which kind of heatsink i want with my tank. Do i want 2 seperate ones and if so what size would be good? Also not really sure which kind of lenses I want and if I should have different sizes. I also read in aother forum about these lights and heard that the will change the ratio of blue/white leds if requested. would this be something I should look into or do you think the stock 12/12 would suffice? Sorry for my newb questions

 

Yeah Rapid 24 or 36 bulb DIY kit would be good. 36 is most likely overkill, but if you go with the dimable option, you can just dim it. The 24 is fine for most applications with your sized tank. If you think you will ever want to keep an SPS dominated tank (with basically all SPS corals and clams) then the 36 dimable may be a better route. However, likely the 24 is probably fine. Probably 60 degree optics(lenses) would be okay (included in the kit). Keep in mind, you'll need a heatsink and fans and a dimming kit if you go dimable (recommended). So, figure anywhere from $200-$400ish depending on how carried away you get.

 

You can search around and find some builds people have done to give you ideas. Here is one detailed one I found with a quick search.

note: some get more complex with different colors and such. 2 colors is usually fine though, again just depends how carried away you want to get.
http://www.3reef.com/forums/i-made/my-rapidled-build-fts-color-blended-pg6-121438.html


edit: and another.
http://www.3reef.com/forums/i-made/tattooedsoul87s-dimmable-rapid-led-diy-kit-110198.html

 

OOh very nice thanks for the link. Ok so before I completely make up my mind on getting the rapid leds. I Was wondering if someone could take a look at these leds I found on amazon. I was thinkin maybe 2 of these would be enough. Amazon.com: Hot!/Aquarium Coral Reef Tank White Blue LED Lamb Grow Light 120W-provide light that have the same effect as natural sunlight and hence offers plants a very good growing habitat: Patio, Lawn & Garden

I dont see a brand name or anything so i havent been able to research them. They may turn out to be garbage, and in that case then i will definitely be going withthe rapid lighting. Money is not really an issue as long as my corals are happy

Once again I would like to thank those who have replied. Your information has been very helpful and I really appreciate it!

 

No idea, looks more for freshwater, but don't know. The next cheapest option is probably PAR30 or PAR38 bulbs. These just fit in normal light sockets, but a LEDs. They are fixed current though. Probably 3-4 PAR 38s from Rapid or 4-5 PAR 30s from boost led would be good. They are easy to add though so you can add as needed, but they are not dimable. There are also other options such as the AI Sol blue, ecoxotix cannons etc.. These are all great, just a step up in price level. Figure 2 of either so about $1000. Also Kessil makes some new spotlights that are around $ 260 ea. I think 2 would be okay, but I haven't seen tests yet. Also there are a lot of new LEDs coming out in the last month such as he maxspect led system, but also, I have not seen tests of these yet and they would also be in the $1000 range for your tank.


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