LED light Too much, Tool Little or bad spectrum Reefbreeders LED

[Pokerman11]

90gal reef (48w x18d x 24H) about two years ago I switched out my MH for a reef breeders 48" Photon LED that hangs 6" above the tank and has 90 deg optics on the LEDS.



This photon has two channels - blue (which also has a few red LEDs) and white. I'm running a daylight cycle that starts at 9:00 am and then peaks out for a bit at 70% blue 50% white. I've gone up to 100% at times, and then down to as low as 30%.



Looking at my LSP, frog spawn, hammers - they look to me as if they are getting too much light and have been shrinking. Thus I've moved them down as well as reducing the light.

My Hollywood stunner has started to develop a bit of a white line around the outside. The main part color and pollups extension is great, just this white rim where usually is new growth. Is this too much or too little light? Is there a way to tell.

I don't have a Par meter. but Presently I'm all confused if I now am running too much, tool little or have bad spectrum. Not sure I like these LEDS that much anyway. Thinking of ditching them and going with a pair of Kessels (as then I can control via Apex)

Looking for help.

tks


I run a pretty stable reef, with fuge, large skimmer, apex. dose BRS 2 part. Cal 410-420, Alk 150-160ppm, mag 1200-1400, PH 8.0 -8.2m, 102.6, 78deg, phos .03

 

[Ron Reefman]

Pokerman, find an LFS or a local reefer with a PAR meter. I have a 180g reef with 2 of the EverGrow IT2080 fixtures (basically the same as a Photon 32). Over 3 years ago I switched from 1000 watts of MH (4 250 watt bulbs) and 160 watts of t5 (4 40 watt bulbs) to these leds. After a 2 or 3 month acclimation period, I saw almost no difference in growth rates between the MH/t5 combo or the leds.

I have hammers & frogspawn that are doing great. And I have to frag my Hollywood Stunner so often I'm considering pulling it from the tank because it grows too fast... but it does fluoresce well under blue leds! And it's so healthy it almost looks all green because the polyps are so close together. BTW, the stunner colony that is high in the water column has mouths really close together and another colony down low in the water column has mouths spread further apart and the lavender background shows through between them. And both colonies have the white edge that is the new growth. I seriously doubt your problem is with the fixture.

I do a 5 hour sunrise (the first 2 hours are just blues ramping up), a 4 hour midday at 90% blue and 40% white, and a 6 hour sunset (the last 3 hours are just blue ramping down).

You can add red leds if you want them. My question is, why would you want them? IMHO they just make red edge shadows and encourage algae growth.

 

[steallife904]

i have been messing with the % on my reefbreeders for awhile. It has seemed to me my corals do not like the white light. At peak right now I have mine at like 50% blue and 15% white. I am thinking about dropping the white down to 5%. I also have T5s that I run for 3 hrs mid day so that could be the reason mine do not like the white light???