HQI halide acclimation..??

[Jester]

I jsut added a 150watt HQI to my existing 2x55watt PC lighting... I did have to loose the reflectors for my PC bulbs to fit the HQI setup in there, but it still a lot brighter with the MH.... I know I had read somewhere that you have to acclimate the tank to a new light... what would people recommend..?? start out at 4 hours a day and work it up an hour a week or so..?? I dont want to kill the corals I already have... Thanks in advance...

Jester

 

[zoomfish1]

Couple of ways to do it. #1. Start out with about 3 hrs of MH a day for a week, then up it about an hours a day for a few weeks. That puts you up to 6 hrs/day. You can decide how many hrs/day you want to run lights and just go full time from there.

I have the same pc set up with my halides and I use it to start the tank in the morning and put it to bed at night. Works good.

2nd method is to put 4 or 5 layers of window screen material over your tank and remove a layer each week until it is all removed. I have not tried this method, but lots here have. I think either way will be fine.

 

[Jester]

great idea about the screen... I have a few rolls of it laying around here... I wil lstart that tonight.. for now I jsut have the PCs running till I get home from work... then I turn on the MH for last 3hr of the light cycle I have programmed...

 

[Ti]

yeh screen it