# Lighting Options - 25g Cube!



## Jdinh04 (Oct 7, 2004)

Before I go all out and waste money when I don't have to, I would like to hear some advices and opinions on lighting choices. As you can see, I am going to be setting up a 25g cube, the dimensions are 18"x18"x18" which is a 50g breeder sliced in half! I am in no rush to set up this tank, so the setup will take a while until I get everything sorted out.

Here is the lighting option that I had in mind;

2x 36watt AH Supply Bright Kit - $62.99
1x 36watt 6,700k Bulb - $15.99
1x 36watt 10,000k Bulb - $16.99

This fixture will give me a total of 72 watts, thus 2.88 watts per gallon. 

I don't want to spend too much money on this setup, so any resources to good deals would be appreciated. Also please list any other lighting options that you might think would do well on this tank.

Thanks for looking!


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## dennis (Mar 1, 2004)

Personally I would go with a 20" Coralife or Current 2x36/40 watt fixture. The price will be the same in the end and you won't have to custom make a hood. AH Supply are very good and generally I would recommend them, but this time.... I don't know.

A 70 or 150watt HQI setup would be perfect also. There are some great threads in the DIY section for DIY a MH setup for about $100, IIRC. Also in your budget. If your really into DIY and really on a budget, a $15 shipped Advance Centium ballast with power up to 2x55watt PC or T5HO and a white painted hood would probably still be sufficient, or you could splurge and but the AH reflector and look for deals on the endcaps and wire...

Good luck.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

With an 18" cube tank I would be very inclined to get a pendant MH light. It is always a problem to work inside the tank without a light being on. If you have a canopy light you almost have to remove it to work inside the tank, leaving you working in relative dark. With a pendant, at worst you just have to raise it more for access, but leaving excellent lighting for working in the tank. A simple thing like cleaning the inside of the glass gets to be nearly impossible to do thoroughly without a light on, and planting is much easier with light. Another reason for using the pendant is the ease of reducing the light intensity by simply raising it.

I now use 72 watts of light for a 45 gallon tank vs. the 110 watts I used to use. I can't see any difference in the tank except that growth seems a bit slower. We really don't need as much light as most of us wanted when we started our tanks.


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## eklikewhoa (Jul 24, 2006)

70w MH Viper clamp on fixture......on sale at drsfostersmith.com


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## Jdinh04 (Oct 7, 2004)

I have thought about it, and I think that in the long run the 2x 36watt Bright Kit would be best for me. I am also thinking about having a stand and canopy made for this tank as well. 

Thank you guys for all the suggestions and hopefully I can get this tank set up as soon as possible.


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## Jdinh04 (Oct 7, 2004)

I'm back at this again! Decided that i'm not too sure about the AH Supply Bright kit. After reading through some of the posts, i'm leaving towards a pendant. 

Any specific brands out there that I may want to take a look at?


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