lighting for 65Gal

[saltaddict]

Hello people.

I have a 65 Gallon tall perfecto tank w/ glass lid.

I am keeping FOWLR for now. For lighting I am running a coralife 96W 50/50 PC and 2 reg. flourescents (1 30W Actinic and 1 30W Lifeglow).

Is this enough lighting for Soft corals .... mushrooms ...colts...zoos?

I only plan on having beginner corals, and I dont plan on getting MH's because of cost.

Am I doing ok or do I need to get more PC's. or change the Lifeglow to actinic?

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Build up your LR structure if you don't want to get more light. This is the 3' by 2' deep by 18" wide 65g I'm assuming. I have 2 & even with 96w & 2 65w, I find it underlit. Then again, the softies you listed are not very high light requiring & those are the species I keep in my darker sections.

[TheReefGeek]

Look into the long-term costs of lighting, you will find bulb replacement cost will usually make MH the cheapest. Plus everyone starts out wanting just softies, then it grows pretty quick, and you wish you went MH off the bat.

Plus if you can do some DIY work, it is even cheaper.

Buy magnetic ballasts ($70 for example for a 250w) and mogul sockets (not sure, $15 maybe) from lighting stores, then buy 20K XM bulbs for $80 from JL Aquatics. Add some wire and some DIY ballast boxes, a reflector and DIY hood with 4" fan for a 2x250w setup your costs are around $475, and your yearly bulb replacement cost is $160.

Then under these lights you can keep softies, LPS, SPS, clams, and anemones.

But to actually answer your questions, yes 2x96w PC will be enough (barely) to keep softies and shrooms, I started off with exactly that over a 3ft 50g.

[impreza]

I have 1-250W HQI pendant and it is perfect!

[sergeantpilot]

I have a Reefstar 250w HQI with a 14K Hamilton DE bulb for my 65 gal.....works perfect and just the right amount of light IMO for most corals

[TheReefGeek]

Is your 65g a 3 foot or 4 foot tank?

If it is a 3 footer, then 1 250w will do, because it covers 2ftx2ft, just leave 6 inches on each side, a good practice for keeping glass clean anyways.