Cichlid Master to Reef Novice

[MegaWattPwr]

Hello everyone, I am new here.
I have a 55 gal. tank that I used to breed cichlids in but now I am changing it over to a saltwater. I am an idiot when it comes to saltwater, I was wondering what kind of lighting I can get away with for now. I realise that if I want to do lots of soft and hard corals im going to have to dump a ton of money into a light but just for now I would like to get some lights that would work instead of my Standard Fluorescent. I just set up my tank last weekend with the salt water and the sand bed and I will be adding cured live rock soon. Is there a post somewhere that might have a listing of what i can have in my tank with certain types of lighting?
Thanks, Noobie Meg

[charlie]

Hey Meg,


If you want an all around light system, I would go with a T5 setup. They seem to gaining a whole bunch of popularity. If you do some searching around on here, you will find a whole bunch of recent threads about T5 lighting. Read through these and I think it will help out with your decision. Welcome to the hobby!!!!

[SouthBayPhoto]

By the way, Meg...you're not an idiot. :slap:

All you are is currently "uninformed" about the hobby. Spending some time here, posting up your questions and doing a search on the board of some things you are curious about and believe me...you won't be uninformed any longer.

I knew pretty much nothing about saltwater until I got here in December 07 and read a ton on the board. Plus, these are some of the friendliest, knowledgeable and helpful people around for this hobby...believe me, it'll turn more into a passion than a hobby if you follow their advice.

I was also running standard lighting on my 46g, but just ordered a T5 setup for my 90g. I have seen much success here with the use of T5's, so it's a pretty good idea to look into them.

I hope that helps.

[MegaWattPwr]

Thanks for the advise
I will look into T5's
~Meg

[ret25yo]

with lighting youll soon see that the next step up from standard flourescent is the power compact lights ... then t-5 and some say Metal Halides.

you can see here that many of the Power Compact fixures run the same if not more then a t-5 setup... the bulbs alone (96w) are outrageously priced compared to a t-5 bulb(54w)

plus the output of a t-5ho is 10x better. while using less power

power compact:
48 inch 4x65 Watt Current USA PowerCompact Orbit Fixture (Saltwater Aquarium Supplies > Lighting > Fixtures > Power Compact > 48in Units )

T-5HO:
48 inch Current USA Nova Extreme 4x54W T5HO with 4 Lunar Lights (48in Units )