refugium lighting ideas.....

[mister crabs]

So as most of you know i have a Biocube 29g. I have turned the middle chamber into a mini fuge until i decide whether or not i need a skimmer. (scratch) Well I have LR rubble and some chaeto in there and so far have been using a clip on desk lamp with a CF bulb in it. works ok but kind of ruins the clean look of a cube and i dont want the dust and other airborne particles landing back there and getting into my water. also have a bag of chemipure in there sandwiched between the Lr rubble and the chaeto.

So I have two options that I can see:

1. peel off some of the black coating on the back of the tank over that section and mount a little coralife 18w fixture back there or,

2. Use LED's. Either submersable ones i have found at nanotuners.com ( i believe) or regular LEDs mounted under the flip up lid over the back chambers.

My question is will 2-3 white LEDs put out enough usable lumens for chaeto to grow effectively? I have heard that chaeto actually grow better under blue or even red light....anyone heard of this?

trying to make what little space i have as effective as possible. thanks for your input in advance!!
(rock2)(rock2)

[dsoz]

This topic is talked about a lot at nano-reef.com. There are a lot of good idea threads on how to modify an all-in-one.

Most people take your option #1.

dsoz :)

[Newreefer02]

Well my fuge just has full spectrum bulbs on it and it is doing awsome. The cheato has over doubled in size eash week that goes by.

Derek

[Kevinmc]

I would like to join in on this question as a newbie. With my 45 GAL glass aquarium with my refugium in the center. I am looking for lighting that will be better for growing plant life. I currently have a 10,000K compact, which is laying along the top of the tank. I am concerned about cost, and with the refugium being 15 wide X 12deep X 15 tall, I am not sure what light is enough. I tend to think, more is better, manybe I'm wrong.

Thanks

Kevin