what k temp lights on prop tank
- Thread starter cook
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nemofish2217
New member
if you want growth go with 6500k. then you could always move them somewhere with 14-20ks to color them up....but you are going to get the best growth from 6500k.
i just ordered the xm's. gonna try them on 2 tanks and see how they do. if im not happy after the first 2 months im gonna go back to 10k. 6500k is hand down the best for growth,but the corals dont look as nice under them. when u sell and grow out of the same tanks u need something a bit more appeasing to the eyes. if they are supplimented its ok, but when u r working in tanks all day its much easier to only have a single halide pendant. big reflectors and wiring always seem to get in the way. 2 of my tanks have pc's rightnow and i cant stand the big reflector and horrible glare. u can see the difference in this pic.
nemofish2217
New member
holy frag tanks batman! that setup is quite impressive to say the least..... what sps frags do you have for sale right now? (im looking for blues, teals, purples, and other "very colorful" frags...) let me know!!!
Stoney Mahony
New member
Hey ALTI, How many watts are those fixtures? Also, if you were to move them out of the 6500k light and under a 20k bulb to color them up before you sell them, how long do you think it would take them to color up to a noticeable level? I have thought about doing the same thing but I was not sure how long it would take and if it would even be worth it. I would like to see a breakdown or graph somewhere that shows color temp vs. growth rate and then take that and calculate it into how much more you would have to charge per frag for a frag grown under 6500k compared to 20k lighting to make the same amount per month off of a given colony. I was thinking another route would be to have two setups, one with 6500k and one with 20k lighting. Tell the customers your growth rate under each bulb and let them pick. Of course the 20k would be more expensive(and better color) but people who don't have as much money could buy the ones grown under 6500k and they could see a picture of what there frag will turn into under a more blue spectrum. Sounds good to me!
its really impossible to say how long it will take them to color up. every coral is different. if u r just going to chop up will colonies or just sell small frags its probably better to use a 20k bulb, but when u r trying to grow a small colony from 1/2"frags u have to use the lower k bulbs.
color goes a long way when trying to sell corals,but u cant really raise the price much. especially when all these sites on the web are chopping up wild colonies, taking pics of them under 20k with actinics and on top of that photoshopping the pics. id much rather have the customer buy a coral with decent color and have it color up nicely in their tanks than have them buy a coral that looks fantastic in the pics but is dull in their tanks. it may make the initial sale harder, but the customers will come back when they realize the difference.
i should have some good info on the difference in growth rates in a few months. ill try to post the results if i get the chance.
sorry if i hijacked your post cook. if i were u i would think about using 250 watters instead of 175's. there is a huge difference in intensity. u can get away with using 1 250 watter to light a 4x3 area if the tanks are shallow. i use 175's on 2 tanks and i had to turn them into lps tanks since the lighting was not intense enough to cover the whole tank .
color goes a long way when trying to sell corals,but u cant really raise the price much. especially when all these sites on the web are chopping up wild colonies, taking pics of them under 20k with actinics and on top of that photoshopping the pics. id much rather have the customer buy a coral with decent color and have it color up nicely in their tanks than have them buy a coral that looks fantastic in the pics but is dull in their tanks. it may make the initial sale harder, but the customers will come back when they realize the difference.
i should have some good info on the difference in growth rates in a few months. ill try to post the results if i get the chance.
sorry if i hijacked your post cook. if i were u i would think about using 250 watters instead of 175's. there is a huge difference in intensity. u can get away with using 1 250 watter to light a 4x3 area if the tanks are shallow. i use 175's on 2 tanks and i had to turn them into lps tanks since the lighting was not intense enough to cover the whole tank .
Stoney Mahony
New member
I realize that every coral grows and colors at a different rate but what I was saying is that when you frag the colony, it would be easy to take a couple measurements to tell the growth rate. Then each species of coral would have a growth rate posted by the frag. Now, most sites are pretty general. Alot of them say slow, slow-medium ect. Even if you did not sell the corals grown under the 20k, you could post the picture and growth rate under 20k to help sell the coral. I don't mind buying browned out corals if I know they are going to turn into gems!
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