Solana tank owner thread.
- Thread starter JohnL
- Start date
poolkeeper1
New member
Got to disagree there, Live rock If It became a nitrate factory would we depend on It to keep our tanks alive? Deep inside the rock Is a process of denitrification going on and this Is the reason are tanks are a success with L/R doing the heavy lifting keeping things In check. Without It we would be back to square one! JMHO.
When I had my Solana that was the first thing I did was to fill that middle chamber with L/R. It worked fine for me. During any water change you can take that rock out and swoosh It In the bucket that you just drained out to do your water change and remove any built up detritus that may have accumulated. Just my 2 cents and nothing Is written In stone LOL
Bill
When I had my Solana that was the first thing I did was to fill that middle chamber with L/R. It worked fine for me. During any water change you can take that rock out and swoosh It In the bucket that you just drained out to do your water change and remove any built up detritus that may have accumulated. Just my 2 cents and nothing Is written In stone LOL
Bill
MVlk
New member
Bill, we'll have to agree to disagree. Yes LR is the best natural filtration. Problem with it in the rear chamber is a lot of junk builds up back there. It is not the LR, but the way it catches a lot of gunk. Having the LR back there makes it too hard to clean out. Most of us are too lazy to clean out the back as it is. You are more diligent in maintenance than the average reefer. (You clean your filter socks every few days for Pete's sake! 
) The LR, bio balls or similar stuff makes doing so more critical. IMO of course.
) The LR, bio balls or similar stuff makes doing so more critical. IMO of course.
MVlk
New member
I like my refugium light to always be opposite of my main lights. Helps keep the pH up a bit at night. Probably only keeps it up .01 or .02 but it helps me sleep at night.
poolkeeper1
New member
Bill, we'll have to agree to disagree. Yes LR is the best natural filtration. Problem with it in the rear chamber is a lot of junk builds up back there. It is not the LR, but the way it catches a lot of gunk. Having the LR back there makes it too hard to clean out. Most of us are too lazy to clean out the back as it is. You are more diligent in maintenance than the average reefer. (You clean your filter socks every few days for Pete's sake!
:sad1:
river3847
Premium Member
ushio 150w 14k bullb on solana pendant
ushio 150w 14k bullb on solana pendant
after learning the MH bulbs have a life and I have to replace after 16 months went to get a new one. the store run out of phoenix 14k so I bought the ushio 150w 14k to give it a try.. too yellow for me.. some websites says you have to wait ~100 hours to break and get some blue/white what I hope.
here the results on pics:
current-usa 150w 14k 16 months
ushio 150w 14k 2 days
ushio 150w 14k bullb on solana pendant
after learning the MH bulbs have a life and I have to replace after 16 months went to get a new one. the store run out of phoenix 14k so I bought the ushio 150w 14k to give it a try.. too yellow for me.. some websites says you have to wait ~100 hours to break and get some blue/white what I hope.
here the results on pics:
current-usa 150w 14k 16 months
ushio 150w 14k 2 days
TriggerHappyDude
New member
Well, I have to admit and apologize to all of you MH owners out there.
I've been really PRO T5, and love my ATI T5 fixture, however today I went over to a local reefers house to get some free cheato for my Solana, and he had a nice 150+ gallon tank setup with MH, and that shimmer has convinced me that the extra heat they put out might be worth the trouble, it was amazing how that shimmer looked in his tank.
I'm dumbfounded by how I just wrote MH off. I mean I knew and read about the shimmer and even saw it, but his tank today shed a new light on them. I'm not sure if its the bulb or the fixture or what it is that gives it the shimmer, is there something that you can get with the MH that makes one MORE or LESS shimmer?
I'm guessing its the ballasts or reflectors or something?
Anyone here got great shimmer on their Solana, care to share a pic or two?
He said he went with MH after his SPS weren't growing or responding well to T5s, and thats kind of what I'm experiencing, which is disappointing due to the fact I thought I had bought a really good ATI T5 fixture...my bulbs might be over their age mark, what is a typical age for T5s? I bought the fixture and turned on the bulbs one year ago this March. But then I had 8 bulbs so only 4 were on for a while, then recently I swapped out 4 for the other 4, so I should be good on bulbs...I'm thinking about trading or selling the ATI T5 and finding a MH light, to get some shimmer and maybe help with SPS and LPS growth...although my LPS is doing ok.
I've been really PRO T5, and love my ATI T5 fixture, however today I went over to a local reefers house to get some free cheato for my Solana, and he had a nice 150+ gallon tank setup with MH, and that shimmer has convinced me that the extra heat they put out might be worth the trouble, it was amazing how that shimmer looked in his tank.
I'm dumbfounded by how I just wrote MH off. I mean I knew and read about the shimmer and even saw it, but his tank today shed a new light on them. I'm not sure if its the bulb or the fixture or what it is that gives it the shimmer, is there something that you can get with the MH that makes one MORE or LESS shimmer?
I'm guessing its the ballasts or reflectors or something?
Anyone here got great shimmer on their Solana, care to share a pic or two?
He said he went with MH after his SPS weren't growing or responding well to T5s, and thats kind of what I'm experiencing, which is disappointing due to the fact I thought I had bought a really good ATI T5 fixture...my bulbs might be over their age mark, what is a typical age for T5s? I bought the fixture and turned on the bulbs one year ago this March. But then I had 8 bulbs so only 4 were on for a while, then recently I swapped out 4 for the other 4, so I should be good on bulbs...I'm thinking about trading or selling the ATI T5 and finding a MH light, to get some shimmer and maybe help with SPS and LPS growth...although my LPS is doing ok.
TriggerHappyDude
New member
I do not know much about MH lights so I do not know if it will blue up a bit. It does look pretty yellow though.Hopefully someone with experience with your new bulb can share.
The ones I saw today, that I mentioned above, were a bit blue when he lifted up the hood and showed me them, down in the water, it was a little less blue and just a nicer shimmering white/blue. I think I'm an MH fan now...
river3847
Premium Member
MVlk
New member
TriggerHappyDude - 9-12 months is good for T5. Pretty much every MH light I have seen has a really nice shimmer to it. It may be worth trying new bulbs out before you ditch the T5's. If there is room on the fixture you could also try adding a LED light strip to add shimmer. An ecoxotic Panorama LED Module might give the look you want and add some par to boot. Hate to see a fellow T5'er go the way of MH. I am tempted by MH occasionally and need all the support I can get.
TriggerHappyDude
New member
TriggerHappyDude - 9-12 months is good for T5. Pretty much every MH light I have seen has a really nice shimmer to it. It may be worth trying new bulbs out before you ditch the T5's. If there is room on the fixture you could also try adding a LED light strip to add shimmer. An ecoxotic Panorama LED Module might give the look you want and add some par to boot. Hate to see a fellow T5'er go the way of MH. I am tempted by MH occasionally and need all the support I can get.
Yeah I don't really want to go through the hassle of switching them out. I know they are nice, guess I can try some new bulbs and see what happens.
I checked out that LED light you mentioned...it would give me that shimmer, but I don't know where I'd mount it in my current setup?
http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+10704+21600&pcatid=21600
I've just got that wide open Euro look and not sure where I could mount LEDs for shimmer?
These are old pictures before my tank cycle, over a year ago, but you can see where I don't have a spot to really mount the LEDs.
TriggerHappyDude
New member
I guess I could sell the ATI fixture and replace it with this...Giesemann Infinity.
It has both T5 and MH right? I could get MH benefits and shimmer along with T5 benefits? Best of Both Worlds?
It could fit right where the old fixture is and that would do the trick!
http://www.giesemann.co.uk/infinity.htm
It has both T5 and MH right? I could get MH benefits and shimmer along with T5 benefits? Best of Both Worlds?
It could fit right where the old fixture is and that would do the trick!
http://www.giesemann.co.uk/infinity.htm
dyer_maker
New member
Phoenix 14k has a nice blue out of the gate. Very noticeable to me when I switched from stock. I think you need the Ushio 20K to get close and the blue you're after. I actually may try a 10k for growth as I just received some LED actinics that add a lot of blue and florescence.
dyer_maker
New member
That ATI is bad@##. Is shimmer really that important? Keep in mind this is coming from a guy that's never owned anything but MH lighting.
TriggerHappyDude
New member
I agree, my ATI is bad a$$, looks cool, great light, so it seems, PAR is supposed to be awesome.
Well, for some reason I'm not doing so well with SPS corals. Can't quite put a finger on it yet.
I've killed a few, while others are doing OK, not great, still have color just aren't really growing. Talked to a local guy who had T5s and didn't have great luck with SPS either, switched to the MH and you should see his tank now. Its awesome, of course its a 165 gallon tank, but man the MH shimmer on that thing and how his SPS and LPS are grown...amazing. All after he added MH, he's got a combo in his hood, T5s for dawn/dusk, and MH for day.
So its not only the shimmer that sold me, but when he said he wasn't doing so well wit SPS and when he switched to MH and what I saw in his tank today...that convinced me maybe I do need some different light. Maybe.
I think my water quality is pretty normal. So I can't think of what else to try or look towards, maybe the bulbs are too old, so I can try that, and then if not move to MH + T5?
dyer_maker
New member
I see now. Unfortunately I've lost quite a few SPS frags in my Solana running 150w MH and one of my friends is running overdriven T5s on his 300g with great success. Some things you just can't explain I suppose. On the bright side you can get a 20" Sunpod fairly inexpensive used. Hopefully you won't have to ditch the ATI to fund that experiment. I picked up a couple of evilc's LED actinics and that's what I'm running with mine. Ironically I originally was going ATI route with a Cadlights 39g but found the Solana for a steal.
Hooked4life
New member
If you want shimmer, but are worried about heat, think about LEDs. I just put LEDs over my AquaPod 24 and the shimmer is insane!!!
Hooked4life
New member
That is really yellow. I've been running the Phoenix too, but thinking about trying the Radium. It's supposed to be about the same color, but higher PAR than the Phoenix.
TriggerHappyDude
New member
The LEDs were suggested just a few posts above Hooked4Life, but I just don't know where I would mount them with my ATI fixture? Anyone seen any pictures of someone doing this with ATIs? I'll head over to the ATI thread and see if someone has done this.
Similar threads
