Do I have enough light for a clam?

[Duddly01]

I recently installed a tek t-5 retrofit kit and my daughter was asking if this now means we have enough light to have a clam. I have my doubts, but I thought I would ask.

tank (50 gal.):
36x15x20

lighting (208W total, 130 PC, 78 T5) :
2x65W coralife PC retrofit
- 1 10,000K
- 1 actinic
2x39W tek T-5 retrofit
- individual icecap slr reflectors
- 1 ATI aquablue
- 1 ATI blue plus

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

You would be better off with 4 T5HO bulbs, but I think that you can easily do something midway up or a lowlight at the bottom with little problem.

 

[papagimp]

You may be able to. I know there are some lower light requirment clams. Well not low light, but lower than say a Crocea. I forget which exactly, I wanna say squamosa or deresa require a bit lower light than maxima's and crocea's. Somebody who knows please chime in.

I have a crocea myself, under 6 x 54watts of T5's, and located towards the top of my tank directly under the lighting. He's doing great right there. But some clams prefer a sandbed and not a hard substrate. The ones that want a sandbed to do best will get much lower lighting being mostly PC's on that tank. And I honestly am not sure weather a hard substrate loving clam will still thrive under mostly PC lighting.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

That's right, Adam. T. deresa, T. squamosa, and even T. gigas prefer the lower regions, and T. maxima and T. crocea prefer to be in the higher light.

 

[papagimp]

what about placement Travis? Do you recall cause I really don't. I only have the crocea so that's what I research right now. I know they prefer up in the rockwork, crevices and such, with high lighting. And he's doing so much better since I stuck him up higher in the tank too. Crocea's being just naturally smaller can also take a little more current than some larger clams do. Mine is actually next to several SPS corals getting plenty of SPS type flow and the clam still loves it. But I think his little "nich" in the rockwork is sheilding him from alot of that flow.

 

[Duddly01]

papagimp,
I wouldn't call it mostly a PC lighting system. There is more wattage of PC, but the output from the T-5s blows the PCs away, almost to the point of not being able to tell the PCs are on when the T5s are. An exhageration, only sort of.

From what I am experiencing I would have to agree with Travis. Changing out the remaining PCs for another T-5 kit would improve my PAR rating immensely.

 

[papagimp]

Understood Duddly, but 2 x 39watts is what was making me wonder weather or not the clam would do well at all. I know PC's wouldn't do crap for him, unless he was right towards teh top of the tank. The T5's allow for more light deeper into the tank, but weather or not it was sufficient intensity for a clam, I was unsure about. I agree with Travis's statement, I would upgrade another 2 bulbs on there if possible. Or get all t5's and get rid of the PC's altogether.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

All you, as an aquarist, would ever want to know about clams.

Identifying the Tridacnid Clam
"Okay, Clamrades, the Meeting Will Come to Order..."
A Brief Guide to the Selection and Placement of Tridacnid Clams

 

[Duddly01]

Awesome info, thanks.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9492651#post9492651 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Duddly01
Awesome info, thanks.

Don't forget Reef Central's Tridacnid Clam Forum