20g tank lighting - noob

[chubbs23]

i have a 20g tank that i would like to turn into a nano

what kind of lighting should i use..the tank i have now was an old freshwater tank that we had in the basement and the hood only has room for one lightbulb..should i bye a new hood or what ??

 

[bleedingthought]

What do you plan to keep? If you only want fish then that hood should be fine. There's more to it than just that, though. Tell us a little more about what you have in mind.

And, :welcome:

 

[chubbs23]

i plan on keeping soft corals like mushrooms and what not and a few fish

i was thinkin on clown fish

 

[bleedingthought]

The lights more than likely will not be enough for any corals. I would start with the fish and then look at your options for lighting when you are confident with your setup.

Have you ever had a marine setup before? You know the whole spew about cycling, filtration options, maintenance, and all that?

I have a few good beginner books to recommend, if you haven't read any yet.

Good luck!

 

[chubbs23]

yes iv had a 30 g setup

and i no the cycling and that good stuff

but it was mostly just fish

the only book i have read was

Successful Saltwater Aquariums

by john h tullock

but iv done alot of reading on the web

 

[papagimp]

If it's a 20long then some powercompacts would be more than sufficient. If it's a 20Tall, PC's would work, but I'd personally look into t5's. But I like more LPS in my tank than shrooms.

 

[wetworx101]

Yeah, Id suggest a set of 4x25wattT5s over the Power Compact any day. Perfect for a 20H.

 

[wade1]

And the t5s, from what I have seen, are strong enough to allow for you to keep any of the LPS and probably some of the montipora species as well.

We have a nice beginners guide that answers some questions about lighting as well as other topics, at this link.