what lights do i need for my 20 gallon tank?

H

hart.thomas

Reefing newb
i want to upgrade from the florescent lights i have now and dont know what to get.
i have a 20 gallon tall what should i buy? i heard led is the best and so im going to go with that.

i have a clown fish that hasnt grown in 4 month and doesnt look very good lately :(
coral beauty
yellow tang
coral banded shrimp
a bunch of blue hermits
and a red thorny starfish

i want to start getting coral i have probably somewhere around 10-20 pounds of live rocks.
i dont really need a debate on what light type is best i just want an affordable led light system. please and thank you for the help
 
One of aquatic illumination SOL units would work well over a tank that size. If you want something cheaper you can contact this place: http://fin-sanity.com/ - I have one of their fixtures and it does a really good job for the price.

Do you have any details on your clownfish? Is he eating well, is he being bullied?

And you'll probably want more rocks. About 30-40 pounds total.


Oh and just so you know, your tank is about 5 times too small for the tang. :?
 
Last edited:
He was being bullied by a zebra stripped damsel we got rid of the damsel and thats when we got the tang. The LFS guy said it would be fine till it gets bigger then we could trade it in. He seems fine for no she swims around alittle but likes to hid in this cave I made of the rocks. And will the item u suggest be able to switch from day to night?
 
I just looked up that light system and what I found was $600 that is way to expensive. Is there something j can get for between $100-$200?
 
I think a pair of Par38 bulbs would do the trick nicely

But you really, really need to re-home that tang. That tank is far two small for it. It also sounds like its time to find a new fish store- no decent fish store would ever say a 20 gallon is okay for a tang, that's just silly
 
I had a fish stofre say a tang would be okay in a 36" 50 until he got about 3". Then he adfed that it would be quicker than you realized and he just wouldnt try it. :)

That coral beauty might start eating corals, too.
 
+1 Everyone on the tang.

And i also think a 20 gal is too small for the coral beauty, they need to be in a 30 gal tank.

I suspect your clown not doing so well is tied to the fact there are too many aggressive fish in a tank too small for them and the stress of the situation isnt healthy for them at all.

Also coral banded shrimp are well known for catching and eating fish, i would find him a new home as well.
 
The Par bulb will let you keep all sorts of different corals, but you will need to rehome the starfish then, they arent reefsafe
 
little_fish said:
+1 Everyone on the tang.

And i also think a 20 gal is too small for the coral beauty, they need to be in a 30 gal tank.

I suspect your clown not doing so well is tied to the fact there are too many aggressive fish in a tank too small for them and the stress of the situation isnt healthy for them at all.

Also coral banded shrimp are well known f or catching and eating fish, i would find him a new home as well.
Click to expand...
I'm going to return the tang today then (i better get my money back) I appreciate all the help kinda sucks that I'm being told that just about everything in my tank shouldn't be there. Is there a list somewhere I can find of all the fish that would be ok in our tank. Oh and we have had the coral beauty for atleast 3 months and he seems happy and fine. As of now he and the tang like to swim together and hid in this cave together.
 
LFS exist to sell you stuff, which is why you really should never trust their advice 100%. Also just because they work there doesnt mean they know squat about how to keep a tank. However, we have nothing to gain off of you buying something, we only want you and the tank to succeed.
 
little_fish said:
The Par bulb will let you keep all sorts of different corals, but you will need to rehome the starfish then, they arent reefsafe
Click to expand...

Man this whole tank seems out if wack. So is there not affordable led hood system? And that sucks about the starfish my gf just got it and she really likes it. Is there any starfish that is reefsafe?
 
You could check out the marineland LEDs or the PAR bulb, those are the only ones I can think of.


And yes there are, but they are very hard to keep because they are so delicate. They are super prone to bacterial infections and anything less than perfect water conditions will make them melt away. You could hold onto the starfish and try him, but i think any soft corals you get will end up being lunch.
 
Are there specific things I need to look for in the led good? Likes watts or anything? Cause I saw one that was like 80 bucks but Idk if it will with for coral.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Sashimi
75 gallon LPS 2.0 suggestions
Replies
0
Views
2K
Sashimi
Sashimi
M
Novice needing advice!!
Replies
0
Views
1K
montgrl99
M
O
Hello I am new to saltwater and will need alot of help
Replies
3
Views
2K
SantaMonica
SantaMonica
P
Hi im new here. I have a 45 gallon sump tank, 75 gal. Sump protien skimmer tank, 5 gal.
Replies
2
Views
4K
Becky
Becky
K
55 gal reef tank filtering equipment
Replies
1
Views
2K
Aquarian
Aquarian
Back
Top