Lighting

[Crixus3Leo]

I have just bought a 4 foot 120 gallon aquarium and I need to purchase lights for the tank. This tank is going to be a fish only tank with artificial reef and coral.

My question is, what kind of lighting should I get for the tank? I really want something that will make the colors in the tank pop. Also any suggestions on an appropriate lighting schedule?

 

[CodyRVA]

First, Welcome to REEF2REEF!

If you're going FOWLR (Fish Only With Live Rock), with artificial coral/reef... I would personally not invest much in lighting, there's really no point. You can buy cheaper fixtures and adjust accordingly to get the color in your fish to pop. Cheap LED fixtures are likely your best bet, however you could go with a hybrid T5 with LEDs.

You can control the color on the LEDs to attain your desired coloration; T5s are more plug in play with more emphasis on bulb selection with limited coloration spectrum than a LED fixture.

Overall, i would go cheap with good coverage and customizability. Again, there's no point in buying expensive lighting unless you plan on adding live coral.

 

[AntarcticIkeelu]

I would agree with Cody. Just go to Home depot and get a cheap 4 foot led light. If you want to add some blue then you could go with a 4 bulb t5 fixture and stick a blue bulb in with the other 3 white bulbs. With a fish only system I would try to keep my light costs under $150.00