anyone with experience with LIGHTING, your opinionS please!

[liongirl]

I have heard so much about lighting recently ... and I am still drawing a complete blank. I understand that it really all depends on what you plan on keeping in your tank ... but maybe a little bit more clarification on the following would be helpful:
I have heard people mention all of these types of lighting in recent posts:
NO
PC
VHO
m/h
SPS
acropra hydnapora
flourescent
actinic blue
Is it really just personal preference?
I know a lot of it probably still has to do with what you plan on keeping in the tank.
My other question is that i've heard posts saying that the watts doesnt really matter its whatever the lights putting out (i forget what thats called).
Any clarification would be SO helpful, because i feel like i am completely in the dark.
Thanks,
Kristen

 

[jacksonpt]

ok, I'm only going to offer a little bit on this one, 'cause I don't want to give any false info.
I think there is more too the lighting issue than personal preference. I think that there are 2 major issues when it comes to lighting: output (watts) and color/temperature. The general rule of thumb is 3-5watt per gallon, but you could 8-10watts per gallon, and if you are not in the correct color/temperature range for your stock, you will still have problems.
Now, with all that being said, I have a couple of relatively easy corals/anemones, and a couple of more difficult ones. The difficult ones are my hammer coral and my flowerpot coral. Now, I have 3 40w bulbs on my 75g tank... that amounts to 120w for 75g, or something in the vicinity of 1.7w per gallon. I've had the hammer for about 3 months now, and no problems as yet... in fact quite the opposite. Lots of growth, seems very happy. The flowerpot I have had for about 8 months (it was the first hard coral I bought). It is doing ok... but it doesn't extend as far or as often as it used to. I don't think this has anything to do with water/lighting conditions though. I think it is more related the the fact that my soft coral (either colt or sinularia) is growing like a weed and infringing on the flowerpot's territory. The flowerpot is very sensitive of nearby corals.
On a bit of a side note... I have never had anything more sophisticated then my 3 NO bulbs, but I do find that I have to replace them about every 6-8 months to make sure they are running at 100%. I don't know if this is the case for some of the more advanced/expensive lighting systems.
Good luck with everything... but be forwarned - you are looking for advice/clarification on a topic that (at this point) has no clear/absolute solution.

 

[broomer5]

LionGirl,
Lighting is by far one of the most important things to consider if you're planning to keep corals.
Trying to describe how they make a tank look in writing is almost impossible.
The best advise I can give you at this point is to get to a GOOD lfs that specializes in corals and reef tanks and look at their various display tanks. Normally each lfs takes great pride in their tanks and have a couple tanks with their favorites specimens ( not for sale )
Some will have MH metal halides, some will have VHO very high output, and again some will have pc power compacts.
Many will have MH w/VHO or other combinations.
Visit several stores if you can ... ask some qustions and I swear it will start making more sense.
You really gotta see it to appreciate the differences in lighting.
Planning what you want is first step.
Understanding the corals needs is next.
Then you can go from there
Wish you luck !
Brian

 

[twoods71]

Flourescent = NO(Normal Output. usually 20, 30, or 40 watts depending on the size), PC(Power Compact. various wattage depending on type and size), and VHO(Very High Output. various wattage depending on type and size).
MH = Metal Halide. Various wattage depending on type and size.
Actinic usually refers to the color temperature of a bulb toward the blue spectrum.
SPS = small polyped stoney coral or small polyped scleractinian corals the later refering to there scientific classification order name.