Actinic Lights
- Thread starter bpro32
- Start date
rebelprettyboy
Active Member
They need a daylight bulb... what size tank is these going on?
rebelprettyboy
Active Member
Its not only for the corals, but your fish doesnt want to swim in blue water... They'll think its always night time
mr_x
Active Member
Originally Posted by bpro32
http:///forum/post/2647840
So bad for the fish bad for the corals?
i don't think fish care what color the light is, as long as they can see to find food, they will do fine.
corals need a certain spectrum, and intensity, that straight actinics can't produce.
http:///forum/post/2647840
So bad for the fish bad for the corals?
i don't think fish care what color the light is, as long as they can see to find food, they will do fine.
corals need a certain spectrum, and intensity, that straight actinics can't produce.
bpro32
Member
Originally Posted by Mr_X
http:///forum/post/2647852
i don't think fish care what color the light is, as long as they can see to find food, they will do fine.
corals need a certain spectrum, and intensity, that straight actinics can't produce.
I didn't think the fish would mind but I wasn't sure. I did get my answer though. Corals wont be able to live under actinic lights alone. Thanks guys
http:///forum/post/2647852
i don't think fish care what color the light is, as long as they can see to find food, they will do fine.
corals need a certain spectrum, and intensity, that straight actinics can't produce.
I didn't think the fish would mind but I wasn't sure. I did get my answer though. Corals wont be able to live under actinic lights alone. Thanks guys
bang guy
Moderator
Originally Posted by bpro32
http:///forum/post/2647830
Can corals live under actinic light only or do they need that 10,000k white light?
Yes, corals can thrive with only actinic lighting, they do not need 10,000K light.
2 X 54 watt isn't enough light for a 4' tank though.
http:///forum/post/2647830
Can corals live under actinic light only or do they need that 10,000k white light?
Yes, corals can thrive with only actinic lighting, they do not need 10,000K light.
2 X 54 watt isn't enough light for a 4' tank though.
bang guy
Moderator
Originally Posted by Mr_X
http:///forum/post/2648120
any corals? deep water specimens are at home under a higher color temp, but the same goes for everything?
naturally, enough lumens can sustain corals, but how many actinic lamps would that take?
I can't say "any" coral, I can say "many". I ran a reef with only vho Actinic for about 2 years. I also wouldn't try Daylight one day and then actinic the next. I will take time for the zooxanthellae to adapt to actinic light.
I was using 420nm light, I don't see how 460nm would make a significant difference. I had Elegance, Montipora, frogspawn, hammer, and Ricordea yuma (among others I can't remember) under 4 X 110 watt VHO superactinic in a standard 55 gallon tank.
If a coral won't thrive under 100 watts of daylight I wouldn't expect it to thrive under 100 watts of actinic either.
http:///forum/post/2648120
any corals? deep water specimens are at home under a higher color temp, but the same goes for everything?
naturally, enough lumens can sustain corals, but how many actinic lamps would that take?
I can't say "any" coral, I can say "many". I ran a reef with only vho Actinic for about 2 years. I also wouldn't try Daylight one day and then actinic the next. I will take time for the zooxanthellae to adapt to actinic light.
I was using 420nm light, I don't see how 460nm would make a significant difference. I had Elegance, Montipora, frogspawn, hammer, and Ricordea yuma (among others I can't remember) under 4 X 110 watt VHO superactinic in a standard 55 gallon tank.
If a coral won't thrive under 100 watts of daylight I wouldn't expect it to thrive under 100 watts of actinic either.
bang guy
Moderator
Originally Posted by bpro32
http:///forum/post/2648447
ok so those messages were a little confusing so let me sum it up to see if I got the jist of it...
actinic would be fine if I had enough wattage, but 108 isn't enough for a 60 gallon tank?
the whole any/many coral thing confused me.
Correct, 108 watts just isn't enough light in my opinion.
On the any/many thing - Mr. X was correct in calling me out with my vague answer earlier. He's stating that there may well be shallow corals that cannot adapt to Actinic lighting. I have to agree because I haven't kept all type of corals under Actinic lighting long term. i can only speak for the specific corals I've tried. I did this back in the 80's so I really can't remember all of the different corals I had.
The bottom line though is that if a coral can't make it under 108 watts of daylight then it's probably not going to make it under 108 watts of actinic either.
Actinic lighting is slightly more energetic than the typical daylight spectrum. However, so far, all actinic bulbs are less efficient than daylight bulbs so there's slightly less light being produced by an actinic bulb.
In my experience Actinic bulbs don't last nearly as long as daylight bulbs either.
http:///forum/post/2648447
ok so those messages were a little confusing so let me sum it up to see if I got the jist of it...
actinic would be fine if I had enough wattage, but 108 isn't enough for a 60 gallon tank?
the whole any/many coral thing confused me.
Correct, 108 watts just isn't enough light in my opinion.
On the any/many thing - Mr. X was correct in calling me out with my vague answer earlier. He's stating that there may well be shallow corals that cannot adapt to Actinic lighting. I have to agree because I haven't kept all type of corals under Actinic lighting long term. i can only speak for the specific corals I've tried. I did this back in the 80's so I really can't remember all of the different corals I had.
The bottom line though is that if a coral can't make it under 108 watts of daylight then it's probably not going to make it under 108 watts of actinic either.
Actinic lighting is slightly more energetic than the typical daylight spectrum. However, so far, all actinic bulbs are less efficient than daylight bulbs so there's slightly less light being produced by an actinic bulb.
In my experience Actinic bulbs don't last nearly as long as daylight bulbs either.
kellenr
Member
Question is: Do you really want to look at your tank under only Actinic Lights? Its fun to do for a few hours sometimes but I don't think I'd always want to look at a dark blue tank. I think it would be ok (as long as corals aren't missing out on nutrients absorbed from the other part of the spectrum). I've had my Actinic only lights on for like 8hrs sometimes, and all the corals stayed fully open etc., seemed as if they were fine. I think for visual purposes however I'd maybe go with 2 50/50 bulbs.
BangGuy is right, 2x54watts is not nearly enough for your tank. You'll need more than double that. Good luck.
BangGuy is right, 2x54watts is not nearly enough for your tank. You'll need more than double that. Good luck.