Actinic Opinions Please

kjord97

kjord97

Member
I have been into reef keeping for 5 years now and have had 4 tanks for the last almost 3 years. My most recent is a 46 gal bowfront reef with both SPS and LPS and some softies. My question is this, i have been told that Actinics are not required, and even listen to Mr. Sanja at a conference say that he does not use them. I just purchased a new lighting setup from Coralife for my 46 gal bow. It is the 36'' dual 96 watt pc fixture. So there is a total of 192 watts of light, but is there? If only 96 of those watts are 10k , then the other 96watts are not doing any good, if actinic is only used for viewing purposes. ( that is what i have been told ) I have seen many succesfull reefs using only 10k bulbs and on my 125 reef i only use 20k Metal Halide bulbs. Today i am taking out the 96 watt actinic bulb and placing a 10k bulb in its place. SO then I will truly get the entire 192 watts of growing power.
What do others think about the whole actinics issue?
Do you use actinics?
Do you think actinics benifit the tank
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by kjord97
What do others think about the whole actinics issue?
Do you use actinics?
Do you think actinics benifit the tank
My opinions:
Actinics are not required. Neither is 10,000K light. Visible light is required. If it's in the visible spectrun then it's useful. I've run successful reefs without actinics and I've run a successful reef with only Actinics.
Actinics produce light that's as useful as any other light. It doesn't look bright because human eyes do not perceive 420nm lighting very well. A PAR meter will show that the amount of PAR from an actinic bulb is noticebly less than a 10,000K bulb (depending on brand). A PUR meter will show that an actinic bulb is only slightly less energy than a 10,000K bulb.
Actinic phosphors are not as efficient at converting UV light as the phosphors that produce 10,000K light. However, 420nm light is more energetic than light from the middle of the visible spectrum.
I use Actinics. They make corals & fish look great.
The PC 7100K blue bulbs are NOT actinic. They emit very little light and should not be purchased.
My favorite Actinic bulb is the URI VHO SuperActinic.
 
partsman

partsman

Member
BANG,,,,,,,,,,
question about actinics also,
i have on top of my 120 reef two (2) coralife 48 inch lunar aqualight systems rated with (2) 65 watt 10,000 k bulbs and (2) 65 watt 420 nn actinic bulbs - claim is ...a total of 260 watts each ........x 2 .........fixtures ...thus ( maybe ) a total of 520 combined watts ... my tank is 30 inches deep and all is doing very well now .
my question is =
are (4) 65 watt actinic bulbs actually necessary on my set up and could i substitute maybe (2) of these and add another 10000 k bulbs to increase total wattage.
in case your wondering why i'm using 2 light fixtures instead of one with all enclosed ....
it was a $$ issue at the time and i had to add the second fixture after converting from a fish only tank - evently i want to upgrade to halide or maybe something newer . i'm hearing about some new styles comming out involving the use of L.E.D'S instead ..
hhmmmmmm - the posibilities ???
thanks ..........Michael
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
Originally Posted by partsman
my question is =
are (4) 65 watt actinic bulbs actually necessary on my set up and could i substitute maybe (2) of these and add another 10000 k bulbs to increase total wattage.
I suggest using the combination of Actinic & Daylight that looks best to you. Substituting a Daylight for an Actinic doesn't add wattage. Let me know if that's clear.
 
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