Need some suggestions from yall

[littlefoxx]

I finally got my menace of a grouper out of my tank. Had to rip everything out and even take the canopy off!! Well of course my lights were on the canopy… well one took a swim and another fell off and broke. I have one RS reef 90. I do think I will be putting the canopy back on when I get the rocks scaped.

I need some suggestions for a cheaper light set up. My tank is still probably going to be a fowlr tank anyway so Im not worried about par for corals or anything. Just looking for a light that will light the tank up since it is a large tank and preferably more whites than blues.

Anyone have any suggestions?

 

[littlefoxx]

Ive been looking at a company called pop bloom on ebay that has saltwater lights. They seem decent since corals are not a thing in my big tank

 

[Red_Beard]

I have heard a couple folks using and like pop bloom. Really if you arent trying to grow anything with it, just want it for esthetics, corallife, current usa, fluval, or any of the cheaper options would work. Adam at battlecorals is selling a bunch of his reefbreeder photons if you dont mind going used, but that is way more light than you need for fowler.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/t...e-big-photon-led-sell-off-at-bc-2025.1123255/
You could also do like a strip light or 2 that would give you some good coverage for a decent price, like a quanta helix reef crest day(the white one). How high can you hang a light without it being obnoxious?

 

[littlefoxx]

I have heard a couple folks using and like pop bloom. Really if you arent trying to grow anything with it, just want it for esthetics, corallife, current usa, fluval, or any of the cheaper options would work. Adam at battlecorals is selling a bunch of his reefbreeder photons if you dont mind going used, but that is way more light than you need for fowler.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/t...e-big-photon-led-sell-off-at-bc-2025.1123255/
You could also do like a strip light or 2 that would give you some good coverage for a decent price, like a quanta helix reef crest day(the white one). How high can you hang a light without it being obnoxious?

I cant hang them, crappy drywall. Put I can set them on my canopy!

 

[Red_Beard]

This is for your 125 right? Standard canopy would get you like 8-10 inches above the water? That should be plenty for decent coverage with a strip or any of the other options. Really though anything that puts out the color and shimmer you want is going to work great. I would think that a low par situation would even be kinda good, would keep nuisance algae growth down too. Unless you decide you want some softies in there down the road...

 

[littlefoxx]

This is for your 125 right? Standard canopy would get you like 8-10 inches above the water? That should be plenty for decent coverage with a strip or any of the other options. Really though anything that puts out the color and shimmer you want is going to work great. I would think that a low par situation would even be kinda good, would keep nuisance algae growth down too. Unless you decide you want some softies in there down the road...

No no I havnt had the 125 for about a year and a half now. My tank is a 300 gallon, 8 feet long and around 3 feet deep

 

[Red_Beard]

Dang, i need to visit your tank thread more often!
That means you are 2 feet wide. Most everything will cover that. The only hang up is how far apart you. Could put the pendant style lights like the pop blooms. If you dont mind the spotlight look, 3 would be enough for viewing. 4 would cut the spot lighting down quite a bit though. Or a 6 foot strip, or 2 3 foot strips. i would go 2 three footers, then you can space them with 8 inch gaps on the end and in the middle for better end coverage.
What all do you want the light to do? Sunrise sunset or is on off good? Does it need to have an app? Do you like the spotlight look with a bit of shimmer but a little shadow too? Or do you want a really bright tank? I know you want to favor the whites vs blues, but what else?

 

[littlefoxx]

Dang, i need to visit your tank thread more often!
That means you are 2 feet wide. Most everything will cover that. The only hang up is how far apart you. Could put the pendant style lights like the pop blooms. If you dont mind the spotlight look, 3 would be enough for viewing. 4 would cut the spot lighting down quite a bit though. Or a 6 foot strip, or 2 3 foot strips. i would go 2 three footers, then you can space them with 8 inch gaps on the end and in the middle for better end coverage.
What all do you want the light to do? Sunrise sunset or is on off good? Does it need to have an app? Do you like the spotlight look with a bit of shimmer but a little shadow too? Or do you want a really bright tank? I know you want to favor the whites vs blues, but what else?

I do like shimmer/brighter in the water column and shadow down towards the bottom for my morays. They like their overhangs and to have shadowy areas they can sit in if they dont want to be in the light. I really just want lights that make my tangs and other fish look good colorwise and a good amount of shadow at the bottom to keep my eels happy and not too bright that they dont come out to swim like they like to do!

 

[littlefoxx]

My canopy has 4 cut outs for lights across the tank. So the spotlight isnt really an issue since the canopy covers the light from spilling out and being annoying to look at.

 

[littlefoxx]

But most important look for light is not being too bright for my amazing eels, they are the best part of my tank! And I want them to come out and be comfortable swimming in the open space because all 4 of them love to free swim!

 

[Red_Beard]

Could you post some pics of the canopy and cutouts?

 

[littlefoxx]

Could you post some pics of the canopy and cutouts?

There are 4 slots like this. They were cut for radions by the old owner (I think like gen 2 or 3 maybe).

 

[Red_Beard]

With the cutouts already there, i would be inclined to use 4 pendant style lights. I dont have much experience with non reef lighting, but if it were me, i would grab something with a sunrise sunset feature and whatever was cheap at the time. Popbloom, nicrew, smatfarm, just make sure they have enough white in them to pull the colors that look good to you. Most of the pendant style fixtures could fit those holes without much modification.

 

[littlefoxx]

With the cutouts already there, i would be inclined to use 4 pendant style lights. I dont have much experience with non reef lighting, but if it were me, i would grab something with a sunrise sunset feature and whatever was cheap at the time. Popbloom, nicrew, smatfarm, just make sure they have enough white in them to pull the colors that look good to you. Most of the pendant style fixtures could fit those holes without much modification.

Thats not a bad idea! I think I have two red sea lights that work, so I can get two other simple ones for the ends maybe and put the two red seas in the middle or alternate them. Might be able to even get just white lights and use the blues and whites on the red seas?

 

[Red_Beard]

Thats not a bad idea! I think I have two red sea lights that work, so I can get two other simple ones for the ends maybe and put the two red seas in the middle or alternate them. Might be able to even get just white lights and use the blues and whites on the red seas?

Yeah, probably. The colors should blend ok, as long as they arent dramatically different. That should work great!

 

[littlefoxx]

Yeah, probably. The colors should blend ok, as long as they arent dramatically different. That should work great!

I hope so! I just dont want the light to be too much for my little babies aka my eels. They are the best part of my tank!

 

[BryanM]

I cant hang them, crappy drywall. Put I can set them on my canopy!

Hang em from the ceiling perhaps?... Might at least give you other options.

 

[littlefoxx]

Hang em from the ceiling perhaps?... Might at least give you other options.

Yeah thats the crappy drywall issue… hung my red sea lights over my old 125 and they fell after a month and the drywall cracked. Im afraid the section will fall!!

 

[BryanM]

Yeah thats the crappy drywall issue… hung my red sea lights over my old 125 and they fell after a month and the drywall cracked. Im afraid the section will fall!!

Do you have access above? Either adding a 2x4 between joists/studs... Something to shore things up so its not just hanging on drywall.

I hate drywall :(

 

[Red_Beard]

I hope so! I just dont want the light to be too much for my little babies aka my eels. They are the best part of my tank!

Just get something adjustable you can turn down, your babies will love it too! :)