that total sounds about right... I bought and ro/di and a skimmer too, so the taxes were added to the final total. But yeah, it was 549.99 all together for the lights.

I am leaning towards getting the T5s instead of MH. My apartment is all glass, windows from floor to ceiling so heat in the summer can be a problem. I am going to keep looking for a used full T5 light fixture and if I can't find anything used then I guess I'll have to buy it brand new:sad: .

that sounds like a cool apartment!
out of curiosity (I'm new at this), will changing the lighting in your tank have an adverse effect on the livestock in it? Aren't they sensitive to light changes, just like they're sensitive to changes in temp., salinity, ph, etc?

It is a cool apartment, I love it! :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: . Great view of the mountains and ocean:razz: .

I am not an expert but I think that when you go from PC to MH you have to adapt your corals slowly because they are sensitive to sudden changes.

how do you do that I wonder?:question:

wow..... T5s are almost as epxensive as MH .........

Ok, does anybody have a link to the official info on how often do i need to change t5's? cant find it on my own...
I heard 6-9 month is this correct?

hmmm Mark at Hidden Reef told me 12 months, I'll have to look into that too

T5 can be more expensive than mh now if you go witha 400w then you will need a chiller just think about it this way tek t5 with 6 bulbs how much wattage are they combined as oppose to a 175w mh think the heat issues are the same the only difference is the money you save in the end changing 6 bulbs vs changing 1 also if you live in an all glass apartment then you should be investing in a chiller or going with a reverse cycle on the lights for the summer I had a 175w mh all winter long on my 65g it was fine now I have a 400w mh sitting 4in from the water and when it's 30 outside with the lights off, tank sits about 27c at 5pm when the lights go on 27.2 at 6pm 28 so I got a chiller, my 30g anmone tank no chiller on a reverse cycle 26.7 all night strong the light sits right on the tank so you don't really need a chiller if you run your lights at night for 175w mh but 400 is debateble hope this was helpfull.

Also we should keep in mind that T5 bulbs at 36" long are not 54Watts they a re what 39W?
Not sure if this makes less ,heat but less light for sure compare to 48" long bulbs