New to Hobby Light Question

[chasingmytail]

I just need advice on lights.

I have a 125g Tank, 72 X 18 X 24. I currently run 2 36" standard output with 1 10K and 1 50/50 in each fixture.

I want to have soft corals and fish.

I checked out T5's, a 36" one can only put out 42watts (21 per Bulb) so thats not enough.

Is there a HO T5 or should I do Compact Flourescents. I realy want to stay away from VHO due to the transformers. No where to hide / put them.

I Plan on either hanging the lights from the ceiling about 8" from the top of the tank or puting on top of the glass direclty. My current hood cannot support any kinda lights mounted to it. It's going in the trash and I am going to make a new one some day. but for now I need lights so I can put in some basic shoorns and leathers.

I would direct this direclty to Grim Reefer, but I am sure he gets too many newbie questions.

Thanks for your advice in advance

[garygb]

There are lots of HO t5 fixtures out there. HO T5's are more intense than pc's or vho's. You will want to get a fixture with individual reflectors as this makes a significant difference in terms of brightness. You will not have any trouble keeping soft corals with a t5 HO fixture. You can check the sponsors, such as ReefGeek to see what is available for the length fixture that you want.