lighting requirements for my canopy

[ahmed24]

hello,

i am in the process of building a canopy for my 4 foot tank. i currently have an overtank light. however i am thinking of fitting standard household flurocent lighting tubes (at least 2) inside my canopy. i dont know if this is ok in terms of electrically safe and in terms of ok for the reef. if it is ok to put standard flurocent tubes, what particular watts should i be looking at?

thanks

[Geoff]

for a reef standard flourescents tubes will not be powerfull enough. for a Fish only tank they will be fine. trying to get 4+watts a gallon is a good way to price fixtures. it is a bit more complicated than just 4+ watts a gallon for reef setups, but it will get you in the ballpark. some corals like a lot more than that. it also matters on your substrate, but that is another discussion.

G~