Most Intense Lighting Possible

[Jayhawk]

Hi there. I'm new to the hobby, and plan to set up my 55 gallon (48L X 12W X 21H) tank very soon. It has an oak canopy that is 14 inches wide and 7 inches tall (there is about 5 inches of space between the top of the canopy and the top of the aquarium). I don't know what I'll eventually put in this tank, but I would like to have the most intense lighting possible so that my options won't be limited. However, I don't want to have to use a chiller (too expensive, and I don't know where I would put it), so I'm assuming metal halides are out. So I guess it comes down to either T5s or PCs. Which do you think is the better option? Any particular brands or setups that you recommend?

Thanks in advance for the help!

[Chuck S]

Alot of people prefer VHO over PC

I personally run 4 110watt VHO over a 55 with a good mixture of corals including SPS.

I have seen the t5 setups. They can be nice. Quite expensive still though.

A 4 foot t5 lamp is about 54watts while a VHO is 110watts.

Now they are more efficient I am not going to argue that. However they are still way too pricey. You will get about 6 t5 bulbs over a 55 versus 4 VHO.

The average t5 bulb is about the same cost as one VHO and half the wattage. While they are a bit more efficient I doubt personally from what I have read that the efficiency is double that of a VHO and as you can see. It will cost your probally twice as much to buy a T5 and your energy saving would be some.

[Jayhawk]

Thanks for the reply Omegatron. My understanding was that a 54 watt t5 bulb is brighter than a 110 VHO, and lasts longer. Also, I've read that you can "overdrive" the bulbs with certain ballasts to make them even brighter (although then they don't last as long). But perhaps this is just a lot of hype.

Does anyone here have experience with both types of lighting?