tazcowboy Posted March 5, 2011 Report Share Posted March 5, 2011 I just ordered a custom tank 48x21x27 and I'm planning on stocking with African Cichlids (and hopefully some plants). Should I go for the LED lighting? They look to be a bit more money but my thinking was that I shouldn't have to change the bulbs where with the T5s the bulbs only last 6 months or are supposed to be changed that often. I'm not even sure they sell 4' LED's or if they are bright enough. Couldn't find any topics on this but I am a little forum chalanged. Thanks in advance for any advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HL649 Posted March 5, 2011 Report Share Posted March 5, 2011 LED lights for aquariums are quite a bit more than T5's or MH's. I just picked up an AquaIllumination LED light for my 48" tank that cost me $1900. The light output of these LEDs are compareable to 400W MH lights. Definitely enough light for anything that you will be growing. I just ordered a custom tank 48x21x27 and I'm planning on stocking with African Cichlids (and hopefully some plants). Should I go for the LED lighting? They look to be a bit more money but my thinking was that I shouldn't have to change the bulbs where with the T5s the bulbs only last 6 months or are supposed to be changed that often. I'm not even sure they sell 4' LED's or if they are bright enough. Couldn't find any topics on this but I am a little forum chalanged. Thanks in advance for any advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaykit Posted March 5, 2011 Report Share Posted March 5, 2011 Unless you are going to be growing high light live plants in the tank, LEDs or t5s are not required. Any high light plant that would require LEDs or T5s would typically be ripped out or eaten by your african cichlids. The live plants that are usually grown with african cichlids are usually low light plants like java fern or anubis and such. For lighting you would be able to go down to home depot or any other hardware store and grab a t8 or t12 bulb shop light fixture and mount it over your tank. They usually come in 2 or 4 bulb set-ups so if you want that extra light grab the 4 bulb system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted March 5, 2011 Report Share Posted March 5, 2011 T5s only require frequent changing if you're planning on keeping corals. For plants, they're great for years; and, for just fish, they're fine until they burn out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazcowboy Posted March 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2011 Thanks for the info, I've been looking for a reason to go to the new Lowes and maybe a shop light is just the thing. I do like the look of the T5 light fixtures and if I can run those bulbs until they die then they would be good. I didn't realize that the LED's were that much. Looks like my options are wide open and the cost is reasonable. :thumbs: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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