Kessil a360w's on a 40B

TomTheWicked

New member
I have a pair of Kessil a360w's mounted about 6" off the water on an 11.5hr photoperiod at 50% intensity (Recently switched to 35%).

I'm beginning to believe this may be too much light? Either intensity or duration. The tank is about 9 months old and I've fought hair algae almost from the beginning (still a work in progress), but I've also had mixed success with corals.

My acans were placed about mid-tank and they've slowly gotten worse, there colors have slowly gotten less vibrant, and they're beginning to recede. One of the plugs fell below some rock (and I left it there) and it seems to be doing much better (in the shade?)
Hammer and Frogspawn seem to be good about half way up the tank but haven't really seemed gown that much since I've owned them.
Caulastrea were placed about 3/4 from the bottom and are doing great (from 2 to ~11 heads in 9 months).
Duncans are about 2/5ths from the bottom and were doing great at 50% intensity, but now (at 25%) don't open fully.
Green ricordia about 3" from the bottom hadn't done much of anything until some algea grew over it (again, shade?) and it's finally opening and swaying in the current.
Had a nice colony of Zoas on the bottom that looked to have melted away.

In the tank, I have two O. Clowns and a Purple Stripe Dottyback.

SG 1.024
dKH 10
pH 8.1
PO4 - 0 ppm (probably because of the algae growth)
NO3 - 0 ppm
NO2 - <5 ppm

So, I guess my question is; I know others have these lights on 40B's and likely don't have these same issues. What are your settings for your lights?

Thoughts and or suggestions appreciated :wavehand:
 
The hair algae is from a phosphate source. You'll have to locate it. The three most likely sources are overfeeding, water used for the tank, or an internal source such as leaching from live rock. I have 2 160's on a 55 gallon with a ramp up/down schedule through the spectral controller. It reaches a maximum intensity of 60% for only 2 hours in the middle of the day then ramps down to 5%. I'd figure out the source of your phosphate then consider setting the lights on a schedule.
 
Back
Top