# 75g lighting



## moros (Dec 22, 2007)

the more reading and research I do (and I'm sure you know this) the more conflicting information I find about lighting. so in my first post here, I'd like you to join me in flogging this poor dead horse one more time!

having only kept large cichilids (oscars, jack dempseys etc) before I'm quite excited to start my first planted tank! I thank you in advance for any advice and suggestions. 

First I'll give you as much pertinent info as I can think of, if I leave something out lemme know and I'll edit or whatever.

as stated in the topic's title I have a 75g of typical dimensions (48 in. long 18 in. wide and 20 in. deep)
I do plan on having a pressurized c02 system.
I do plan on using the EI dosing method for ferts.
I do plan on a 2-3 in. bed of eco complete for substrate.
I do plan on having a relatively small bio-load of fish and algae clean up crew.
I do plan on having moderately demanding plants as far as lighting is concerned. 
I would love to use a retro kit/DIY kinda thing...but I'm not handy lol

I can afford whatever equipment that would be appropriate. I only say that because I will NOT go ahead with this project until I have hoarded all the proper equipment. I've been in the hobby long enough to know that waiting a month and buying what you want/need is better than going the cheap route and regretting it. so I don't truly have an unlimited budget....it'll just take some more penny counting, and lots of begging my better half. 

Now for my questions.

What do you consider a moderate amount of lighting for this tank? I've read that 4x55 and 4x65 are popular choices, but some seem to have just as much success with 2x versions of both.
What type of lighting do you prefer and why?
I guess I'm really asking t5 vs pc as these both seem to fall within a reasonable/attainable price range.
Do you recommend a particular brand/store? 

sorry for the long read! I'll continue reading older posts and hopefully find some more info until this one gets some replies. thanks again for any input


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## Jason Baliban (Feb 21, 2005)

A PC 4x55(or 65, they are the same) or a t5 4x54 kit will be perfect for that tank. I have been running 4x55pc on a 75 for 2 years now. I have used EI, PPS, and other nutrient routines and have been able to grow anything i wanted with that much light. You can click on the link to "Jason's Aquascapes" in my signature if you are interested in seeing them as examples.

If i were to choose between pc or t5, i would choose t5. It is a newer technology and it is more efficient. The bulb selection is now wide enough that you will be able to create any look you like.

Hope this helps.

jB


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## NoSvOrAx (Nov 11, 2006)

If you want to use a retro then pc will be much cheaper.
Hellolights.com has ballasts, reflectors. plugs, and bulb clips pretty cheap.
You can get bulbs off of ebay for cheap as well.

The wiring is really easy to do safely.


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

If you want some very cheap lighting, Home Depot has T-8 shoplights for about $8. You can also get a package of two 6700k Phillips T-8 bulbs for about $8 also. Add in a can of black spray paint and you get 64w of light for about $20. I have purchased several of these for my non-show tanks and they work very well. You can also mount the fixtures in a Canopy or do what I do and tear the shoplights apart and use the ballasts, and endcaps for a nice DIY setup mounted inside of a canopy. I like T-8 bulbs because they are cheap, easy to find, and can be overdriven quite easily. Overdriving will get you about 96 w of light from $16 worth of bulbs and fixture. A 4x32w electronic ballast runs about $30 so the price is hard to beat.

If money is no object I would go with a nice T-5 setup. There are plenty of sources out there so do a search for more info. I have not used T-5's personally but several SWOAPE members are suing them with great success. You'll get plenty of light with one of these systems and won't have the "ghetto" look of having shoplights on your tank


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## moros (Dec 22, 2007)

thank you all for your replies!


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## Pen3 (Jul 9, 2006)

M E T A L H A L I D E H Q I
2x 150w ebalast = $100
2x 150w HQI pendants $200
2x 150w ADA Green HQI bulbs = $180
ive had everything from t8 vho to t5 and nothing beats MH


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## goalcreas (Nov 20, 2006)

Tek T5

Or cheaper but made by the same company, get this
http://www.aquacave.com/detail.aspx?ID=698

There are some limitations to using that fixture over the sleeker TEK (both made by sunlight supply), but if you can live with those (power cord and on / off switches are different, the sun blaze won't accept a splash shield and you have to hang, there are no legs to get for it), then you can save a bit of money, the Tek goes for more then $100 more on that site. There are some places including e-bay where you can get the tek shipped with lights for about the same as just the fixture cost at Aqua Cave, but you have to do some hunting.

For the record, I use Tek 4ft x 4lamp on my 75 gallon and wouldn't change it for anything.
And I prefer to hang (legs are pricey and not as nice looking as a fixture that is hung properly) and don't use the splash shield, I can hang it high enough over it that splashing is not an issue.

However when I get a 4 foot reef tank going, then I will be getting the 4ft 8 lamp Sun Blaze from Aqua Cave for cost savings over the WAY more expensive Tek (4 x 8 tek, over $400 w/o bulbs). Only thing is that I will add a 2nd power cord to the Sun Blaze so that I can automatically control the separate light banks with timers.
Like I said, that is one of the limitations of the Sun Blaze 4 lamp fix over the Tek, the Tek comes with 2 power cords and two on/off switches. If you leave both switches on and put each cord on a different timer, then you can have them come on and go off at different times. I run two lamps for all day (8 hours) and have the other two come on for a 3 hour period to represent HIGH NOON and this works for me. With that strong a light, you will have to play with lighting schedules to get the optimal plant growth with the minimal algae growth, and having the two cords and switches allows you to do this with more options and control then just being able to turn off all the lights earlier or later. With the Sun Blaze (un modified with a 2nd power cord) you can only adjust the light for all lights instead of staggering them which many like to do.

Hope this helps some.


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## moros (Dec 22, 2007)

thank you for your opinions!

I'm leaning toward the tek t5. MH lights would prolly look great (the shimmer is very attractive) but with the heat, and cost of bulbs, I think t5 would be a better fit for me. I just need to start digging around now and see what kind of deals I can dig up :heh:


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## gotcheaprice (Sep 4, 2007)

http://www.ahsupply.com/36-55w.htm
Retro yourself a 4x 55 kit!
I'm not handy and I did a 2x 55 kit.


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## Jason Baliban (Feb 21, 2005)

I love these guys....

http://www.reefgeek.com/lighting/T5_Fluorescent/

...and you can pick your bulbs.

jB


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## Pen3 (Jul 9, 2006)

i am using a few of these Lumen Max 3 for $124 and they are great. They also have the cheaper version  LUMENMAX REFLECTOR for about $75. You can look around for better prices, some people gotten theirs cheaper on forums.


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## moros (Dec 22, 2007)

gotcheaprice said:


> http://www.ahsupply.com/36-55w.htm
> Retro yourself a 4x 55 kit!
> I'm not handy and I did a 2x 55 kit.


I've visited this site several times, and almost convinced myself that I can do eeeeeet!  but, I have no experiance in this kind of thing, and practically no tools to try. I think I would be much more comfortable if I could scrounge up some type of instructions, to see if it would be within my very limited DIY skills. those reflectors look like they really kick some butt too. any chance that anyone has a copy of the instructions? that is if they came with some.

also how did you mount the lights themselves? I actually have two 48'' lights laying about that I could retrofit....matter of fact I'm going to go tinker with them and see how that would work.

thanks again for all the input, it's nice to get some opinions from people vs. trying to go it alone.

edit: my existing fixtures are prolly not going to be wide enough. I wanted to send ahsupply an email and ask a few questions...but it keeps coming back to me. anyone have an updated email address?


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## moros (Dec 22, 2007)

well I finally got my email through and ahsupply was kind enough to send me a copy of the instructions. I'm not entirely convinced I wont make a blunder of it, but I do think I will give it a try. 

thanks again for the suggestions, and happy holidays to you and yours.


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