lighting a 5.5

[Joetaff]

hey I have a 5.5 gallon AGA standard tank, I want to turn it into a low cost low tech nano reef. Before that I was going to do another planted tank but I want to do something different. If you are not familiar with the 5.5 gallon tank, you prob should know it is a B**ch to light it is 16 inches long and there are no light fixtures that fit it. and to top it all off, its rimless. anyways I have a miraculous little fixture that fits perfectly but its only 18 watts would that be enough to grow lower light corrals if not, any suggestions? I also have very strict budget, I'm in med school so I can't even have a job hehe.

[Scissorhand]

Joe, I had a nano starting out and nano-reef.com is a great resource.

I'd recommend something like this?

http://www.innovativelights.com/esu-54078.html

or perhaps even a 70w set-up..

see if you could find a used sunpod HQI for sale.

add some fans and you're good.

[ACBlinky]

I used a 2x40W Current USA Satellite PC fixture on my 5.5g nano. The fixture itself is 20" long, designed for a 10g or 15g tank, but the legs are set into little grooves that run the length of the housing, so they can slide in to easily sit on top of a 16" tank. Additionally, they're shaped in a way that fits a rimless setup. The bottoms of some legs need a plastic rim to fit around (they're shaped sort of like this:

,---, tank, facing you ,---,

but Current's look like this on the bottom:

,-- tank, facing you --,

so they're flat on the bottom, with just a little lip on each outside edge, and fit just about any tank.

Is the fixture you've got a PC light, or is it a T8 fluorescent strip? if it's PC, it might do for some lower light corals, but if it's a T8 strip I wouldn't count on it for more than the least demanding (shrooms) or non-photosynthetics like sun corals.

[Joetaff]

its a pc w/ a 50/50 bulb and a great reflector

[cherubfish pair]

Check out the 'nano reef' forum here on r/c. They will help you a lot there.

[Colin]

Check out www.ahsupply.com . If you're a DIY'er, it's easy to make a simple canopy and cram 13W PC's in there. I have 4 in mine, with SLR reflectors.

--Colin