Advice with lighting temp

C

ceriff

Wanted to get some opinions on my lighting. I have a Hamilton light fixture with 2 96watt actinic compact fluorescent lamps and 3 250watt 15000k metal halides. The 15000k lamps are closer to the actinic spectrum than your normal daylight lamps. Dewayne and I were talking about it and we think that photosynthesis happens with the 10000k temperature and the actinics bring out the luminescence. If this is true then would I be stunting the growth of corals by running such a high or blue spectrum? As a test I installed two 10000k lamps on the right and left side and kept the 15000k in the middle for the blue color. Do you think this is better than the all blue?
 
You can't base too much on the 10k / 15k labeling of the bulb.... Not all 10k or 15k bulbs produce the same spectrum. What type of corals do you have?
 
first off the 10000k are hamilton and the 15000 are reef grow. Don't know if that tells anything. Also, I have lps, sps, softies, leathers, zoas, a little of everything really.
 
I'm not familiar with the reef grow bulb, but you should be okay with either set up. I personally prefer the 10k's for the growth, but if you are having good coloration and growth with the 15k's why change?
 
The biggest thing is that I have a toadstool leather that seems to hate being up high, but a finger leather that started polyping only after moving to the top. I have a frogspawn that doesn't want to open and a hammer that is doing great up top. I changed the bulbs out last night and fired them for about 20 minutes just to see what they looked like. I say last night but it was not lights out for the tank yet. I really liked the look so I hope the corals do too. We will see I guess.
 
I use Phoenix 14k bulbs I get great coloration and great growth out of these bulbs.
I use to use 10k reeflux bulbs and VHO suppliments URI super act.
and I get just as much from my Phoenix's as I did using the 10k's and suppliments.
 
I agree with Charlie on the 12k vs 15k labeling It depends on the bulb itself. I'm now running 14K Aquaconnects for the last two months and I have comparable growth in my same corals to the last 6 months with 12k reeflux.
 
It's only been a few days but I am seeing some improvements on everything in the tank. Either the tank just started establishing in the last week or so or I needed the 10k's. I wonder if the brand of the 15k's might have been a problem, I just know that I like what I am seeing. Will keep updating as I see changes, good or bad.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top