Need lighting advice

[KrisFrmRedONdo]

Hello I’m new to this site and hobby overall was not sure how or where to ask a specific question. But I’m stuck at the moment contemplating wether I should acquire a specific type of lighting for my new reef tank. I’m 9+months in and just added some coral. I know there are tons of different factors but is light as important as water? ✌

 

[Bpb]

You’ll get a variety of responses. My experience has been that they’re of roughly equal importance. One will not make up for deficiencies in the other. Improving lighting will not make the corals happier if the water is trashed. Improving water quality with inadequate or incorrectly applied lighting may help some but the difference will not be dramatic.

Having excellent water chemistry is really what the hobby is about honestly. You’ll be more successful with your livestock if you adopt the mindset of being a water keeper, rather than a reef critter keeper, and stretch your lighting budget as far as you can. The good news is quality lighting costs money, and quality water really just takes time and effort

 

[jda]

Everything is important, but once you get to a competent level, some things matter more than others. You cannot suck at any of them, but sometimes there is little to gain by going much higher in some circumstances where each tank is different.

For example, the foray from competent water quality to top-tier will not be as pronounced as a trip from competent lighting to top tier.

The good news is that none of these are mutually exclusive, so you can do them all.

I would rate them like this going from competent to top-tier:
Lighting
Stability
Inorganic Parameters (big 3 and so on)
Organic Parameters (N, P, etc).

 

[BayouReefer]

I agree with others. I consider all aspects important. Lighting, water chemistry, flow, proper feeding of livestock. All should be kept stable and changes in any should be gradual.