Can I overload my corals with two much light?

[slowhand383]

Im having a hard time deciding whats best for my tank. I will soon be getting a halide lamp for my 12gal and can't choose between 70w or 150w HQI. Im sure that the halides will boil the water so I plan on using a chiller. I've been needing a chiller even with 48w so the heating issue wont be a problem. I'm just curious if you can overload the corals with two much light. Is that possible. The corals in the tank are mainly zoas and LPS. Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[slowhand383]

anybody?

 

[foob]

I know if you switch from low to high light, it may bleach the corals. I've done that before with SPS.

Zoas and LPS can shrink if there's too much light too, from my experience.

If you think there's too much light, can just raise it further if your canopy allows for it. 150w isn't a lot though, so I say go with it unless you wanna save some electricity bill. Another thing is algae growth, more light will probably cause more algae to grow.

 

[slowhand383]

There are some zoas about 2" below the surface they probaly wouldnt appreciate the 150 watts beating down on them. Perhaps I should go with the 70watt just to be safe. Honestly the most important thing to me is colour, but of course I dont want to sacrifice growth trying to get it. Thats why I decided to go with the 20k bulb. A 70watt 20k lamp would not look as well as apposed to a 150w 20k from what I hear. Then again I have absolutly no expierance choosing lights and I dont know what either one will look like. Thats why its so darn frustrating to me. I can choose from either a 20k or 14k with both the 70w and 150w fixtures. All I want is for my corals to look glow and look good which should I choose.

 

[daytonians]

Some corals don't like too much light, other can't get enough. What corals do you have?

 

[XeniaMania]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7077665#post7077665 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by slowhand383
All I want is for my corals to look glow and look good which should I choose.

That's having your cake and eating it too, or getting the best of both worlds..:lol: 14000K.

 

[slowhand383]

At the very top of the tank there are zoas and xenia. Midlevel are more zoas, frogspawn, green star polyps, mushrooms, and an acan lord. And at the bottom on the sand is a red lobophylia. I am afraid to get the 14k bulb because I think it will be to white and I'm more fond of the blue look. It can be too blue though. The tank now has the stock JBJ lights, 48w 10k PC. Too me the light is too white and the corals dont "glow" at all. But thats 10k and I dont even know what 14k looks like.

 

[foob]

14k is quite blue depending on bulb. I have a phoenix hqi 14k and it's blue.

 

[VaderWS6]

Get the new Iwasaki SE 175 watt 14k! People have said it looks brighter than a 250watt SE bulb! premiumaquatics.com has them.