I'm posting in this forum hoping I will get some individualized help here. I have a 65 gallon AGA( tall), I want to have mostly softies like zoos and rics, but if possible i do like a couple of the SPs, I have t12 lighting now 2 blues and a white. I was wondering what would be a better lighting system to go to. I don't like the lighting I have now because it looks to purple (blue), I really like the natural lighting look. I would appreciate any help you can give me.
lighting question
- Thread starter tee1172
- Start date
coralnut99
New member
You could go to a 4 bulb T5 arrangement. If you're handy, you can buy retrofit kits from Hellolights.com at a reasonable price. Whatever source you choose make sure you have individual parabolic reflectors. The difference is very clear. If you want to get away from the the blue spectrum just use two aquablues and two 10K's. that should balance the spectrum pretty well. T5's will let you keep sps in the upper tier of your tank, and most anything else below that. Halides will surely achieve what your'e looking for as well, but heat was an issue for me, and I replaced almost all my mh lighting in the fishroom. hth
I have this same tank, & use a 250 watt MH pendant over it.
This is a DE (double ended) bulb that is rated 14k.
I really like the color, & it has enough power to get to the bottom of the deep tank.
The pendant allows me to adjust the distance between the lamp & tank to help with the heat. and I like an open top tank.
Good luck
Bill
This is a DE (double ended) bulb that is rated 14k.
I really like the color, & it has enough power to get to the bottom of the deep tank.
The pendant allows me to adjust the distance between the lamp & tank to help with the heat. and I like an open top tank.
Good luck
Bill
rigleautomotive
Premium Member
with that tall of a tank i would use two halides.250 watt mogul based reeflux 12k or geisman coral would be my choise.they really make no more heat than t5 of equal intensity.gives you the glitter effect and the natural sunlight type shadows that florescents lack.
rigleautomotive
Premium Member
here is some eagle eye zoos i keep under intense lighting that started out kinda drab.they colored up after a couple months to this level.i keep them on the bottom third of the tank and slowly acclimate them to the light by keeping them under a ledge slightly shaded for a while and then moving them out into more light.another thing i believe with zoos is strong random flow.as far as ricordia goes.a speech i attended with anthony calfo described rics as a light loving soft coral and he suggests keeping them under medium to strong light.i keep mine under halides and they seem to grow pretty fast but do not expand as large as the ones kept under less light.tissue expansion really is not a indicator of health IMO and if the coral is expanding very large or the stock is elongated it can use some more light.it all depends what your goal is.if you want to get great colors and growth than halides will work even on soft corals as long as you acclimate them slowly to the change.i will pm you a few places i deal with for lighting
coralnut99
New member
I agree with Dan about the appearance of zoos. If they develop a "neck" they are obviously reaching for more light. Color fading usually goes hand-in-hand with the long neck. Simple observations like that, when properly interpreted, can tell you a lot about your system, both the good and the bad stuff.
well I don't really have alot of corals right now and we are trying to get my tank back into shape. We are coming to the swap and I would like to some corals but I want to make sure that I do have the better lighting and then the next thing I think I need to get is a better sump and skimmer.
Python73
New member
Curious... you said you have T12 lighting. Is it VHO? How many watts are the bulbs? If your color balance is off, try two whites and one blue. And so you know, many SPS grow and color just fine under VHOs. In that deeper tank you'll need to make some allowances, but don't believe that you MUST have halides, because it just isn't so.
Admittedly, that is a good tank to try a halide over if you are inclined to deal with the BS of halide lighting.
Good luck.
S !
Admittedly, that is a good tank to try a halide over if you are inclined to deal with the BS of halide lighting.
Good luck.
S !
rigleautomotive
Premium Member
halides on for 7 hours and vho actinics on for 11 hours.on my frag tanks i run just halides and there on 10 hours.
rigleautomotive
Premium Member
if you want to keep your light for now,maybe some new bulbs will help.when i ran just vho bulbs i liked a mix of URI brand bulbs only! one actinic white to one super actinic.they are the best vho bulbs IMO and many other experienced reef keepers.i think uri is now called UV lighting company but they make the better bulbs.if you can run 4 of them you will be alright for most stuff,but to realize true growth patterns on sps corals halides do the trick.vho bulbs will give you spindily thin branches and when the colony gets big recession on the base.been there done that too many times to tell.
rigleautomotive
Premium Member
yea 10 mto 12 hours is usually good for your type of lighting.are the bulbs old cause they should give you nice color if not.probably dim if you are comparing to halide systems but the colors should be decent.two actinics to one white is not the hot set up though.maybe try two whites and one blue,but if you are like me you wont be happy til you get halides on there
rickyfins
New member
I agree Dan, In my earlier days as a reef hobbyist I also experienced the stretched out corals, the drab colors, and the faillures. I did keep many things alive and if it was SPS it stayed pretty brown and boring. Orange Caps were kinda orange or brown.
Once I upgraded to MH with VHO supplimentation in Actinics I really started rocking.
Unless you have a really shallow tank or a small tank that prevents MH, VHO shouldn't be the sole lighting source for a tank IMO and IME.
Just ask Sanjay, he is the lighting specialist. He ONLY uses Metal Halides!
Don't get me wrong, VHO lighting has its benefits, its also has its limitations.
Most lighting schemes do best with multiple lighting types. Also my opinion.
Once I upgraded to MH with VHO supplimentation in Actinics I really started rocking.
Unless you have a really shallow tank or a small tank that prevents MH, VHO shouldn't be the sole lighting source for a tank IMO and IME.
Just ask Sanjay, he is the lighting specialist. He ONLY uses Metal Halides!
Don't get me wrong, VHO lighting has its benefits, its also has its limitations.
Most lighting schemes do best with multiple lighting types. Also my opinion.
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