light to gal ratio
- Thread starter aloredo
- Start date
murph145
Active Member
well like lots of people say its not really a watts per gallon thing anymore its more of a PAR reading....
right now u have 260W of PC over your 72g tank so thats about 3.6WPG from my experience u can keep mainly softies with that lighting right now.... maybe some LPS up higher in the rocks like frogspawn or a bubble coral and some others too
if u wanted to get a 175WMH over the center i would go for at least a 10K bulb if not a 14K it will be way to yellow and ugly looking with a 5500K bulb
if u added that u could keep some clams and sps under that bulb but i dont think it would cover your tank entirely it would be bright in the center and shadowed around the perimter....
be careful of the heat too MH's can cause temps to rise quickly if not cooled by a fan or a chiller
right now u have 260W of PC over your 72g tank so thats about 3.6WPG from my experience u can keep mainly softies with that lighting right now.... maybe some LPS up higher in the rocks like frogspawn or a bubble coral and some others too
if u wanted to get a 175WMH over the center i would go for at least a 10K bulb if not a 14K it will be way to yellow and ugly looking with a 5500K bulb
if u added that u could keep some clams and sps under that bulb but i dont think it would cover your tank entirely it would be bright in the center and shadowed around the perimter....
be careful of the heat too MH's can cause temps to rise quickly if not cooled by a fan or a chiller
murph145
Active Member
what are u lookin to keep in your tank....??
i kept LPS and softies very happy in my 100G tank with about 4-5 wpg of PC lighting and i even kept some anemones too such as a rose bubble tip and long tentacles
if u want sps or clams best bet is guna be metal halides....
u could do 2 175W 14K pendants over your tank and get rid of all the
PC lighting and be fine with that but then heats guna be an issue ur guna need some fans at least
i kept LPS and softies very happy in my 100G tank with about 4-5 wpg of PC lighting and i even kept some anemones too such as a rose bubble tip and long tentacles
if u want sps or clams best bet is guna be metal halides....
u could do 2 175W 14K pendants over your tank and get rid of all the
PC lighting and be fine with that but then heats guna be an issue ur guna need some fans at least
bang guy
Moderator
Originally Posted by murph145
well like lots of people say its not really a watts per gallon thing anymore its more of a PAR reading....
I'm seeing this more and more often - I completely understand where you're coming from but I really dislike this answer for a new hobbiest. Here's why:
New hobbiest: I have 1 X 175 MH + 4 X 65 watt PC. Is this enough WPG for a 72?
Advanced hobbiest: WPG doesn't really matter that much, PAR is the important measurement.
New hobbiest: How much PAR does my setup have?
Advanced hobbiest: I have no idea.
New hobbiest: How do I find out?
Advanced hobbiest: I have no idea.
New hobbiest: :notsure:
My only point is that PAR isn't useful for a new hobbiest because values either change depending on the specific bulb & ballast (MH) or are completely unavailable (Flourescent).
well like lots of people say its not really a watts per gallon thing anymore its more of a PAR reading....
I'm seeing this more and more often - I completely understand where you're coming from but I really dislike this answer for a new hobbiest. Here's why:
New hobbiest: I have 1 X 175 MH + 4 X 65 watt PC. Is this enough WPG for a 72?
Advanced hobbiest: WPG doesn't really matter that much, PAR is the important measurement.
New hobbiest: How much PAR does my setup have?
Advanced hobbiest: I have no idea.
New hobbiest: How do I find out?
Advanced hobbiest: I have no idea.
New hobbiest: :notsure:
My only point is that PAR isn't useful for a new hobbiest because values either change depending on the specific bulb & ballast (MH) or are completely unavailable (Flourescent).
murph145
Active Member
yeah i understand bang guy but its so hard to answer peoples questions about lighting ...
whenever i tell people yeah u need this many WPG as a general rule o fthumb then someone else will chimb in with that means nothing u need a PAR reading and your right whos got a LUX meter not me so i was trying to give a correct answer on both sides lol but i guess it wasnt good...
heres what i feel if u have 2-3 wpg u can keep softies ok
if u have 3-5 u can keep softies most lps and some anemones mainly Bubble tips and LTA's
if u have Metal Halide and have anywhere from 3-5 wpg u can keep pretty much anything from softies to clams to lps and sps
but thats just my opinion i think with his current lighting he can keep most all softies and a few choice lps up higher if he wants anything more light demanding add the MH
whenever i tell people yeah u need this many WPG as a general rule o fthumb then someone else will chimb in with that means nothing u need a PAR reading and your right whos got a LUX meter not me so i was trying to give a correct answer on both sides lol but i guess it wasnt good...
heres what i feel if u have 2-3 wpg u can keep softies ok
if u have 3-5 u can keep softies most lps and some anemones mainly Bubble tips and LTA's
if u have Metal Halide and have anywhere from 3-5 wpg u can keep pretty much anything from softies to clams to lps and sps
but thats just my opinion i think with his current lighting he can keep most all softies and a few choice lps up higher if he wants anything more light demanding add the MH
shnabbles
Member
Your lighting requirements is goign to come down to want you want to keep... Do you want Softies and some LPS? Then 3-5 watts per gallons is probally enough. If you want clams anenomies and tougher LPS your gonna want alot more.. I have almost 10 watts per gallon MH/PC combo..
Just remember the more light the better.... When i started out I wish I bought the better lighting first instead of spending a couple hundred on PC's then upgrading and spending several hundred more to get the MH/PC combo
Just remember the more light the better.... When i started out I wish I bought the better lighting first instead of spending a couple hundred on PC's then upgrading and spending several hundred more to get the MH/PC combo
mumbulog
Member
There was a memeber who doesn't visit this site very much anymore with the screen name little buck. He parted with alot of gorgeous corals on here.
On his 72 gallon bow front he had 2x 250 watts of mh and had an awesome set up w/ a very wide variety of corals.
I am running 250 watts of mh over my 30 gallon reef with a 15k bulb and my corals have doubled in a month and are looking awesome. So I reccomend from my expereince yuo go w/ the 2x 250 watts of mh.
I also know of a site that sells mh set ups very reasonable. I got a brand new ballast, bulb, the works plug n play for $170 shipped.
Gordon
On his 72 gallon bow front he had 2x 250 watts of mh and had an awesome set up w/ a very wide variety of corals.
I am running 250 watts of mh over my 30 gallon reef with a 15k bulb and my corals have doubled in a month and are looking awesome. So I reccomend from my expereince yuo go w/ the 2x 250 watts of mh.
I also know of a site that sells mh set ups very reasonable. I got a brand new ballast, bulb, the works plug n play for $170 shipped.
Gordon
sharkbait9
Active Member
Ok, here is your answer short and sweet and to the point. The standard for reef tanks 4-5 watts per gal. The “K” is a rating of Kelvin. Kelvin is color temperature of the light source is the color of light emitted by a "black body" when heated to a certain temperature measured in Kelvins (K). As the heat of the material increases it undergoes a color change from the warm colors to cooler colors. (see pic below)
10k = yellowish lighting 20k = bluish lights. NOW if you go 10k lights, some type of actinic 03 blue to even out the color spectrum. Depth rate, 150-175 watts for 18 to 30 inch’s deep. 250 watt for 24-36 inch’s deep and for 24-60 inches deep you will need 400-500 watts. Depth rate numbers run into each other for the three level placement, being top for the strongest light middle for medium lighting and bottom for lower light. For every two feet of tank length you will need one 1 metal halide. Now, all this is the “general rule of thumb, type of coral and invert you choose to keep will be the deciding factor. Keep and stick to the general rule and as you become more acquainted and familiar with the reef needs and wants and you do your home work and research the needs and wants of your inhabitants you will run into the “par” term and you will figure it out. So their you have it, a simple easy to follow uncomplicated way to understand lighting for a reef tank or any fish tank for that matter even plants.
10k = yellowish lighting 20k = bluish lights. NOW if you go 10k lights, some type of actinic 03 blue to even out the color spectrum. Depth rate, 150-175 watts for 18 to 30 inch’s deep. 250 watt for 24-36 inch’s deep and for 24-60 inches deep you will need 400-500 watts. Depth rate numbers run into each other for the three level placement, being top for the strongest light middle for medium lighting and bottom for lower light. For every two feet of tank length you will need one 1 metal halide. Now, all this is the “general rule of thumb, type of coral and invert you choose to keep will be the deciding factor. Keep and stick to the general rule and as you become more acquainted and familiar with the reef needs and wants and you do your home work and research the needs and wants of your inhabitants you will run into the “par” term and you will figure it out. So their you have it, a simple easy to follow uncomplicated way to understand lighting for a reef tank or any fish tank for that matter even plants.
sharkbait9
Active Member
Oh and before I read any “no that’s scales not right my 10K light don’t emit that color” The scale is the measurement, not the color our eyes perceive as color.
toyshika
Member
Originally Posted by aloredo
mumbulog what is the site u r talking about.....
Now you know he can't post that here. LOL
But, he can e-mail us! LOL
toyshika@aol.com
I need to find lights for my Bow Front, so I don't end up with the shadow...*sigh*
mumbulog what is the site u r talking about.....
Now you know he can't post that here. LOL
But, he can e-mail us! LOL
toyshika@aol.com
I need to find lights for my Bow Front, so I don't end up with the shadow...*sigh*
maxalmon
Active Member
don't forget me, always surfing for good products harrybarkers@aol.com
aloredo
Member
thats right aloredo@hotmail.com
sufunk
Member
me too mumbulog, sufunk@bellsouth.net
Thanks
Thanks
aloredo
Member
mumbulog....i gave you the wrong email its aloredo2@hotmail.com...the info would really be appretiated......