White LED Question
- Thread starter ajoe
- Start date
Ron Reefman
Active member
I set up a new system with some LR and corals from a bigger tank that sprang a big leak. I had a fairly strong diatom bloom and the tank already had a lot of corals from my old tank, so I considered the diatoms an issue I needed to address. BTW, I run Reef Breeders Photon V2 lighting.
I didn't want to go lights out for 3 days as the corals were already stressed from a month of being in small tanks and tub and buckets with small power heads, marginal lighting and water changes for filtration. So I tried going all blue, no white, red or green. I ran the blues at 100% and the PAR was a bit on the low side, I don't remember specifically. I ran the tank this way for a week and the corals had good polyp extension and looked quite happy. The diatoms were gone. A couple of weeks later the diatoms were back and the bloom was big enough that I decided to do the all blue again. This time for 10 days. Again, the corals looked just like they do all the time at the end of a normal day when I do a very blue sunset. Good polyp extension and great fluorescence. This time the diatoms were gone and the new bloom was quite manageable without going lights out.
I hope that helps?
I didn't want to go lights out for 3 days as the corals were already stressed from a month of being in small tanks and tub and buckets with small power heads, marginal lighting and water changes for filtration. So I tried going all blue, no white, red or green. I ran the blues at 100% and the PAR was a bit on the low side, I don't remember specifically. I ran the tank this way for a week and the corals had good polyp extension and looked quite happy. The diatoms were gone. A couple of weeks later the diatoms were back and the bloom was big enough that I decided to do the all blue again. This time for 10 days. Again, the corals looked just like they do all the time at the end of a normal day when I do a very blue sunset. Good polyp extension and great fluorescence. This time the diatoms were gone and the new bloom was quite manageable without going lights out.
I hope that helps?
reefteaser
Convince'em or confuse'em
Hi Ron, you and I have the same light. I'm getting ready to do a blackout, which I've had success with before, but I'd like to try your method. Did you use both blue and the purple channels, or just the blue?
Ron Reefman
Active member
I ran all 3, but the violets really don't add too much. I think either way will work.
reefteaser
Convince'em or confuse'em
Thanks, I'll give it a try. I'm away from home until Wednesday. I'm home a week, and on the road a week and don't like the idea of not enjoying my reef on my precious time off.
I've had a bloom or two before, but it was always a brown color. This time it's bright green, and has been slowly growing over several weeks. I'll post my results.
I've had a bloom or two before, but it was always a brown color. This time it's bright green, and has been slowly growing over several weeks. I'll post my results.
Thanks Ron, ...i don't have any diatom or algae issues but was just curious if anyone had a thriving tank using lighting that did not include any white light beyond ambiant room/window light. Sounds like this is viable and I might give this a shot. Not a huge fan of the white spectrum and the tank gets enough ambiant light as is. I simply like the look of this and am considering it. I might pull the trigger and increase the blues/violets 2% a day until I hit those targets and decrease the whites 2% a day and see how everything progresses.
Ron Reefman
Active member
I run my frag tank at 10% white and 90% blue. It's a very cool white and IMHO the frags grow just as well as they did under 40% white and 90% blue.
Ron Reefman
Active member
You are very welcome.
The frag tank looks OK. My real pride and joy is my main sps/lps mixed reef. With an led fixture that does sunrise/sunset control I get into the sunset after it gets dark outside and the tank still has a lot of blue light and the house inside lights are set a little lower. I've been getting more and more corals that fluoresce colors under the blue light. So it's starting to look like a old brightly colored hippi poster under a black light. I can just stand there and look at it in amazement. I just wish I could take a photo of it when it's fluorescing color like that. But the photos just come out blue.
The frag tank looks OK. My real pride and joy is my main sps/lps mixed reef. With an led fixture that does sunrise/sunset control I get into the sunset after it gets dark outside and the tank still has a lot of blue light and the house inside lights are set a little lower. I've been getting more and more corals that fluoresce colors under the blue light. So it's starting to look like a old brightly colored hippi poster under a black light. I can just stand there and look at it in amazement. I just wish I could take a photo of it when it's fluorescing color like that. But the photos just come out blue.
Ron Reefman
Active member
And your point is what?
Sunrise/sunset isn't a feature to help with coral health. It's a feature for the user's enjoyment. All the less expensive black box fixtures just turn on and off, no sunrise/sunset.
ajoe was asking if all blue would work. You like your white look, that's fine. How does that add to the discussion?
