Someone light up my life

Saltydrummer · Apr 16, 2020

Hello everyone. New to the salt water life and would like some advice on what light I should use. The guy at the aquariums store tried to sell me a 1500 dollar light for. 50 gallon tank. Felt like he was ripping me off so didnt get it. What would you all recommended for a 50 gal reef tank with some coral frags

Crabs McJones · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome to R2R! What are your coral goals? Soft, lps, sps?

Big G · Apr 16, 2020

Check out SB Reef Lights "Ultra" line. Lots of control and plenty of power. Best features: built tough and no fans to make noise.

sfin52 · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome I agree with @Crabs McJones determine the direction of the tank and go from there

mich2599 · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome to R2R!:) & agree with the above

Cherub · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome! 2-3 hydra 32 would be good

Gernader · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome to R2R!! You can check out the black boxes such as Mars Aqua or ViparSpectra, they are cheap and can grow anything!

fishguy242 · Apr 16, 2020

hi welcome to the reef going to love it here!!
lots of fun/info/fun/help/fun....
pics!!!..we all love pics.. :)

albano · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome... agree with Mars Aqua, have them on my tanks!

Cstar_BC · Apr 16, 2020

Hello and welcome !

I think knowing what your goals are for the tank will lead to more appropriate recommendations.

also - second hand lights are a good way to get started especially when people are upgrading most lights only have 1-2 years of use on them .

Are you interested in T5 , MH , LED or Hybrid lighting ?
Do you want fancy features like ramping up and down and timers or just simple on and off ?

Seahorse man · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome!
And I personally love my LED's because they are so easy and adjustable, but I only keep softies and LPS so I digress. Sticks just don't do it for me so I'm not sure if LED's would work for SPS

Edit: Grammer

fuelman · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome to R2R!!!

Chrisfish · Apr 16, 2020

Welcome to R2R :)

Crustaceon · Apr 16, 2020

There are a ton of options out there that’ll get the job done and at different budgets. The real difference between them is the light spread/blending, connectivity/adjustability and honestly, power consumption to a lesser extent unless we’re comparing led’s to metal halides. I’ve seen plenty of cheap leds grow just as well as high-end lights and last just as long. The question to ask yourself should be, is that enough or do you want more than just coral growth? The more features you want, the more dollars you’ll likely spend on lighting.