mrkubanftw
New member
Hey guys, I have a Coralife 30" T5 HO fixture that has two 34 watt actinic bulbs and two 34 watt 10,000K bulbs. Its a 36 gallon tank with a 10 gallon sump that flows around 500gph. Sump is a 3" mineralmud bed with about an extra inch of crushed coral substrate. Also run a Coralife 60gal protein skimmer in my main tank with 2 450gph powerheads. I would put my total water flow around ~2000gph.
My question is, iv done everything possible to reduce splash and surface bubbles to reduce my top water splash to near nothing, would it be wise to remove my splash guard from my light fixture to achieve maximum light output since I no longer have splash? Iv read extensively on the topic and the only possible issue I can come across is it may affect the cooling of the fluorescents? There is one ventilation fan on the top of the fixture, and I know if the bulbs get too cool from excessive air ventilation it can decrease performance on the bulbs? Iv also read likewise, overheating bulbs (reduced ventilation) can also cause the same result. Basically I'm looking for feedback on what personal or experienced opinions are. I run all types of corals (sps, lps, soft). I'm particularly concerned with my Xenia coral. Iv read they (lighter colored corals in general) do best under intense lighting. I acclimated mine about a month or two ago and they are just now starting to pulse more frequently. FYI my T5 bulbs were replaced with new bulbs roughly 2.5 months ago.
My question is, iv done everything possible to reduce splash and surface bubbles to reduce my top water splash to near nothing, would it be wise to remove my splash guard from my light fixture to achieve maximum light output since I no longer have splash? Iv read extensively on the topic and the only possible issue I can come across is it may affect the cooling of the fluorescents? There is one ventilation fan on the top of the fixture, and I know if the bulbs get too cool from excessive air ventilation it can decrease performance on the bulbs? Iv also read likewise, overheating bulbs (reduced ventilation) can also cause the same result. Basically I'm looking for feedback on what personal or experienced opinions are. I run all types of corals (sps, lps, soft). I'm particularly concerned with my Xenia coral. Iv read they (lighter colored corals in general) do best under intense lighting. I acclimated mine about a month or two ago and they are just now starting to pulse more frequently. FYI my T5 bulbs were replaced with new bulbs roughly 2.5 months ago.
