03 ACTINIC BLUE 420 NM vs BLUE 460 NM
- Thread starter anti
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2quills
Well-Known Member
420nm...More of a violet color and a little better for growth than 460nm.
460nm is more of a blue color.
6700k is closer to the color of sunlight...it's a bit yellowish but it's the best bulb for growth but it will cause everything to grow faster including algae. This is a good bulb for refugiums and or planted aquariums.
10,000k is a little bit whiter but still a bit yellow and most often the lowest on the kelvin scale used for reef tanks. It's better for growth than the 12,000 or 14,000k.
14,000k...as you go up in the kelvin scale the color emited is more blue. 20,000k bulbs are really blue kind of like actinic. These bulbs typically aren't for growth as much as they are for bringing out colors in corals and fish.
460nm is more of a blue color.
6700k is closer to the color of sunlight...it's a bit yellowish but it's the best bulb for growth but it will cause everything to grow faster including algae. This is a good bulb for refugiums and or planted aquariums.
10,000k is a little bit whiter but still a bit yellow and most often the lowest on the kelvin scale used for reef tanks. It's better for growth than the 12,000 or 14,000k.
14,000k...as you go up in the kelvin scale the color emited is more blue. 20,000k bulbs are really blue kind of like actinic. These bulbs typically aren't for growth as much as they are for bringing out colors in corals and fish.
geoj
Active Member
"K" is the Kelvin scale, it is the color of the light that we see with are eyes. It is a mix of light wavelengths of many colors. When you are given the Kelvin scale you don't know how much of a specific light wavelength there is in the mix of colors.
"nm" is a nanometer unit, it is one of the more often used units for very small lengths in metric. It is the most common unit to describe the wavelength of light, with visible light falling in the region of 400–700 nm. 460nm is one wavelength of light that is about 22-25K in color...
"nm" is a nanometer unit, it is one of the more often used units for very small lengths in metric. It is the most common unit to describe the wavelength of light, with visible light falling in the region of 400–700 nm. 460nm is one wavelength of light that is about 22-25K in color...
pauloesco
Member
The Kelvin colors have ZERO to do with how fast anything will grow. As another has said Kelvin is a color to human eyes based on a blackbody heated to that Kelvin temperature in space. And although has a meaning in that context is only approximate for lamps. So, to get an idea, look at some florescents -- warm red = 3000k, crisp white = 5oook, cool white = 6500k. 14oook is a blue-white.
Photosynthetically Available Radiation is the measure
of how much energy a lamp puts out that a "plant" can use. Some blurred bulbs have as much or nearly as much PAR as whiter bulbs. And intensity and duration of lighting has a lot to do with how much PAR you get.
And, under new testing by Sanjay yoshi and others it can be shown that 6x T5HO = 250w MH = 100w of LEDs. YMMV, based on actual lamp, ballast, and other conditions.
Also of interesting note, the ATI blue+ lamps had about 90% PAR as other much whiter lamps. (Thinking of it in another way, if you ran an OceanSun 65ook on a tank for 10 hours and the blue+ ffg 11 hours, you've delivered the same PAR to your animals.
I'm running 6x T5s of mixed heritage on one tank and a 175w 14kk MH plus leds and 2x t5s on a 36g corner -- both tanks are crisp bluewhite (and look about the
same at 14kk)
In short, stick to aquarium lamps and with the exception of true actinics (which are missing blue/green spectrums and thus deliver 50% par) all lamps are within 80% o each other in PAR. (There's lots of data out there, folks)
Photosynthetically Available Radiation is the measure
of how much energy a lamp puts out that a "plant" can use. Some blurred bulbs have as much or nearly as much PAR as whiter bulbs. And intensity and duration of lighting has a lot to do with how much PAR you get.
And, under new testing by Sanjay yoshi and others it can be shown that 6x T5HO = 250w MH = 100w of LEDs. YMMV, based on actual lamp, ballast, and other conditions.
Also of interesting note, the ATI blue+ lamps had about 90% PAR as other much whiter lamps. (Thinking of it in another way, if you ran an OceanSun 65ook on a tank for 10 hours and the blue+ ffg 11 hours, you've delivered the same PAR to your animals.
I'm running 6x T5s of mixed heritage on one tank and a 175w 14kk MH plus leds and 2x t5s on a 36g corner -- both tanks are crisp bluewhite (and look about the
same at 14kk)
In short, stick to aquarium lamps and with the exception of true actinics (which are missing blue/green spectrums and thus deliver 50% par) all lamps are within 80% o each other in PAR. (There's lots of data out there, folks)
2quills
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by anti http:///forum/thread/381587/03-actinic-blue-420-nm-vs-blue-460-nm#post_3324771
I am familiar with color temperature since I work in film and must white balance.
When you say "stick to aquarium lamps" what exactly do you mean?
Is 420nm and 14k a good choice?
I am using compact florescents 4 x 65W
If the choice were mine I would probably go with 420nm and 10,000k. Reason I'd go with the 10,000k is to help balance out the actinic pluss give you more usable radiation for coral growth. Running two 420nm and two 14,000k would be way too much blue for my taste. I like blue just as much as the next guy but I don't like to be overwhelmed by it.
Originally Posted by anti http:///forum/thread/381587/03-actinic-blue-420-nm-vs-blue-460-nm#post_3324771
I am familiar with color temperature since I work in film and must white balance.
When you say "stick to aquarium lamps" what exactly do you mean?
Is 420nm and 14k a good choice?
I am using compact florescents 4 x 65W
If the choice were mine I would probably go with 420nm and 10,000k. Reason I'd go with the 10,000k is to help balance out the actinic pluss give you more usable radiation for coral growth. Running two 420nm and two 14,000k would be way too much blue for my taste. I like blue just as much as the next guy but I don't like to be overwhelmed by it.
pauloesco
Member
Ok, so from film, you know that white balance and color rendition are aesthetics and personal preferance.
What maximizes coral growth is lumens over time -- and more specifically than lumens is the lumens or energy that can be used for photosynthesis -or PAR.
So nearly any bulb sold for an aquarium or reef tank in a specific wattage is going to give you some good PAR. -- with the exception that actinics or lamps centered around the 420nm or near UV range has maybe a third of the PAR of the other bulbs since the spectrum is so narrow. (These bulbs were designed to supplement more full spectrum lamps -- like MH -- and to pop the florescence from corals who flouresce.)
So if you want to maximize your growth put as many Watts/lumens/PAR as you can fit/afford over the tank in any color combo that pleases you. (But count actinics/420nm lamps as only a third of the light you could be putting with any other "for aquarium" lamp.)
What maximizes coral growth is lumens over time -- and more specifically than lumens is the lumens or energy that can be used for photosynthesis -or PAR.
So nearly any bulb sold for an aquarium or reef tank in a specific wattage is going to give you some good PAR. -- with the exception that actinics or lamps centered around the 420nm or near UV range has maybe a third of the PAR of the other bulbs since the spectrum is so narrow. (These bulbs were designed to supplement more full spectrum lamps -- like MH -- and to pop the florescence from corals who flouresce.)
So if you want to maximize your growth put as many Watts/lumens/PAR as you can fit/afford over the tank in any color combo that pleases you. (But count actinics/420nm lamps as only a third of the light you could be putting with any other "for aquarium" lamp.)
tlsohio
Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by PauloEsco http:///forum/thread/381587/03-actinic-blue-420-nm-vs-blue-460-nm#post_3324862
Ok, so from film, you know that white balance and color rendition are aesthetics and personal preferance.
What maximizes coral growth is lumens over time -- and more specifically than lumens is the lumens or energy that can be used for photosynthesis -or PAR.
So nearly any bulb sold for an aquarium or reef tank in a specific wattage is going to give you some good PAR. -- with the exception that actinics or lamps centered around the 420nm or near UV range has maybe a third of the PAR of the other bulbs since the spectrum is so narrow. (These bulbs were designed to supplement more full spectrum lamps -- like MH -- and to pop the florescence from corals who flouresce.)
So if you want to maximize your growth put as many Watts/lumens/PAR as you can fit/afford over the tank in any color combo that pleases you. (But count actinics/420nm lamps as only a third of the light you could be putting with any other "for aquarium" lamp.)
+1, I agree, very well put!
Originally Posted by PauloEsco http:///forum/thread/381587/03-actinic-blue-420-nm-vs-blue-460-nm#post_3324862
Ok, so from film, you know that white balance and color rendition are aesthetics and personal preferance.
What maximizes coral growth is lumens over time -- and more specifically than lumens is the lumens or energy that can be used for photosynthesis -or PAR.
So nearly any bulb sold for an aquarium or reef tank in a specific wattage is going to give you some good PAR. -- with the exception that actinics or lamps centered around the 420nm or near UV range has maybe a third of the PAR of the other bulbs since the spectrum is so narrow. (These bulbs were designed to supplement more full spectrum lamps -- like MH -- and to pop the florescence from corals who flouresce.)
So if you want to maximize your growth put as many Watts/lumens/PAR as you can fit/afford over the tank in any color combo that pleases you. (But count actinics/420nm lamps as only a third of the light you could be putting with any other "for aquarium" lamp.)
+1, I agree, very well put!
bang guy
Moderator
Quote:
Originally Posted by anti http:///forum/thread/381587/03-actinic-blue-420-nm-vs-blue-460-nm#post_3324996
is the Watts/lumens/PAR the same for 10k as 14k?
It depends on the manufacturer but typically 10,000K is slightly more PAR and a lot more Lumens.
Originally Posted by anti http:///forum/thread/381587/03-actinic-blue-420-nm-vs-blue-460-nm#post_3324996
is the Watts/lumens/PAR the same for 10k as 14k?
It depends on the manufacturer but typically 10,000K is slightly more PAR and a lot more Lumens.
bang guy
Moderator
Think of it like this:
Watts = How much damage to the wallet every month
Lumens = How bright the tank looks
PAR = How useful the light is for photosynthetic animals like corals and clams
Kelvin = How blue the tank is
In your specific case, the watts are moderately damaging on the wallet, 10K (it's actually 10,000K) is bright to you, useful for moderate needs corals, and not very blue. 14,000K is not as bright to you, almost as useful to corals as the 10,000K (a bit less), and moderately blue.
Actinic is a LOT less bright to you, slightly less useful to coral as the 14,000K, and much more blue (on the edge of purple).
Watts = How much damage to the wallet every month
Lumens = How bright the tank looks
PAR = How useful the light is for photosynthetic animals like corals and clams
Kelvin = How blue the tank is
In your specific case, the watts are moderately damaging on the wallet, 10K (it's actually 10,000K) is bright to you, useful for moderate needs corals, and not very blue. 14,000K is not as bright to you, almost as useful to corals as the 10,000K (a bit less), and moderately blue.
Actinic is a LOT less bright to you, slightly less useful to coral as the 14,000K, and much more blue (on the edge of purple).