gawf4fun
Member
I need to know what to expect from you experienced upgrade experts. A little background for you...
I've gotten tired of watching my fire shrimp, pajama cardinal and lawnmower blenny cruise around through a few leathers, shrooms and a few zoos over the past couple of years. I want color and growth! This tank sits on my desk at the office, so it needs something to capture my attention so I can pretend to work harder at my job....
My 11 gallon came stock with 2 x 18 watt compact flourescents and I've used a 10k and a 6700 bulb since I started it. The tank also has 10-12 pounds of live rock, 2-3" live sand, a CPR backpak refugium with chaeto, and a Millenium 2000 filter hanging on the back of the fuge.
I found a local reefer selling a Corallife 150 watt Aqualight on Craigslist, bought it, and hung it from my suspension ceiling. I don't want to fry my livestock, so I've suspended it about 18" above the tank top for starters and plan on phasing it in adding an hour or so every 3 days until I've hit my full 8 hour photo period. Then I'll gradually lower the height down an inch or so at a time until it's 10-12 inches above the water line.
Now the question...What am I going to see in terms of activity in the tank, both good and bad?
I expect to see some increased algae growth and plan on doing regular water changes every month or so. Up to now, I've done 2 water changes in 2 years. I plan to harvest the chaeto more regularly and clean the walls of the tank more frequently.
My plan is to add a few easy SPS, such as monti caps and hydnophora, as well as some LPS including hammer/torch coral and some blastomussa, and possibly an anenome and clown combo.
I am unsure what to expect with such a light increase, so any cautions, advice, anecdotal evidence, etc. would be gratefully accepted. It's a done deal now, but I'd love to be given a heads up so I can be more prepared. Thanks for any and all offered.
Mark
I've gotten tired of watching my fire shrimp, pajama cardinal and lawnmower blenny cruise around through a few leathers, shrooms and a few zoos over the past couple of years. I want color and growth! This tank sits on my desk at the office, so it needs something to capture my attention so I can pretend to work harder at my job....
My 11 gallon came stock with 2 x 18 watt compact flourescents and I've used a 10k and a 6700 bulb since I started it. The tank also has 10-12 pounds of live rock, 2-3" live sand, a CPR backpak refugium with chaeto, and a Millenium 2000 filter hanging on the back of the fuge.
I found a local reefer selling a Corallife 150 watt Aqualight on Craigslist, bought it, and hung it from my suspension ceiling. I don't want to fry my livestock, so I've suspended it about 18" above the tank top for starters and plan on phasing it in adding an hour or so every 3 days until I've hit my full 8 hour photo period. Then I'll gradually lower the height down an inch or so at a time until it's 10-12 inches above the water line.
Now the question...What am I going to see in terms of activity in the tank, both good and bad?
I expect to see some increased algae growth and plan on doing regular water changes every month or so. Up to now, I've done 2 water changes in 2 years. I plan to harvest the chaeto more regularly and clean the walls of the tank more frequently.
My plan is to add a few easy SPS, such as monti caps and hydnophora, as well as some LPS including hammer/torch coral and some blastomussa, and possibly an anenome and clown combo.
I am unsure what to expect with such a light increase, so any cautions, advice, anecdotal evidence, etc. would be gratefully accepted. It's a done deal now, but I'd love to be given a heads up so I can be more prepared. Thanks for any and all offered.
Mark
