help for lighting noob

hi, i am thinking about starting a 5.5, 10 or 20 gallon nano reef. i have only kept fowlr's in the past though. First, i was wondering if it would be possible to get a refugium light for any of these smaller tank sizes. Also, can some one explain to me what power compact and t-5 lighting is? On my 55 gallon FOWLR, i have a 4 foot fixture with a single bulb in it, the bulb is just from a light over a workbench, the ballast on it says it can run a 30-40 watt bulb on it. Is that a T-5 fixture?

 

That is a standard T12 bulb. A T5 bulb is much thinner and runs much higher wattage.

PC lighting is Power Compaq lighting. It is a bulb that in a U shape. They are older and outdated, but all that is available in certain cases, usually small pico tanks.

 

just a suggestion, go 20-30g.

anything under 20g is a PITA.. 20g is a PITA, nano reefs are a lot of maintenance and can be a constant headache once you get into it...

unless you are VERY conservative with how much fish you got in there.

i think for a nano, something like a 24g cube or a 29g is perfect, some might not say that's nano, but to me it's nano.

if you go that route get a lil 70w or 150w mh, you can get one for 150-200 bucks the jbj viper, i'm using the 70w right now upgrading to the 150 for my 20g. brilliant light.