Light?
- Thread starter mr.125
- Start date
murph145
Active Member
MH penetrates the water better than other lights PC and such just all depends on the bulbs the K rating the PAR value and the depth of your tank but id give a guesstamite and say with a 24" deep tank if u had a general coverage of 4wpg of MH u should be fine thats just my thoughts i know some that have MH over larger tanks and have less than 3 wpg but use good reflectors and keep all there acros and clams healthy.... i have 500W of DE MH over my 100g along with another 180W PC
mr.125
Member
So...i guess my question was more focused on the actual limit, but it seems ficticious.
NM Reef: So you said you dont have any problems....any advantages or increased growth?
Murph: thats is what im learning, that the reflector is realy what its about. If you have good reflectors the spectrum isnt broken up.
Industry standard, ive noticed, has been around 3-4 watts but i wanted to know how high i could go and it souunds like i could go as high as 10 wpg from what NM Reef is tellin me.
NM Reef: So you said you dont have any problems....any advantages or increased growth?
Murph: thats is what im learning, that the reflector is realy what its about. If you have good reflectors the spectrum isnt broken up.
Industry standard, ive noticed, has been around 3-4 watts but i wanted to know how high i could go and it souunds like i could go as high as 10 wpg from what NM Reef is tellin me.
diane4
Member
I have read on other posts on this question, that you can't just go with a watts per gallon rule. There are other factors to consider, such as the type of lighting AND how deep the tank is and where your animals are placed, and how high above the tank surface the lighting is placed. And, lastly what type of animals you are keeping.
I have also heard of some people burning their animals with too much light, it generates heat and it is overkill. Years ago there were no MH lights and people kepts many reef animals just fine. Yes, I agree for some animals like clams etc, you need stronger powered lights and higher wattage.
If you base wattage as a general rule, I personally stay within 5-6 wpg and it seems fine. I have many animals in my reef and all do well. I don't understand the push for such intense lighting. Strong even lighting on a timer in the appx 5-6 watts per gallon for most yes, but 8-12 wpg seems extreem to me. I don't think there is only 1 right way or 1 proper wpg rule, it all depend for each situation.
I have always been for providing a lower side of lighting (PC in 5 - 6 wpg range) and smaller more frequent feedings than most. It just seems more natural to me.
I have also heard of some people burning their animals with too much light, it generates heat and it is overkill. Years ago there were no MH lights and people kepts many reef animals just fine. Yes, I agree for some animals like clams etc, you need stronger powered lights and higher wattage.
If you base wattage as a general rule, I personally stay within 5-6 wpg and it seems fine. I have many animals in my reef and all do well. I don't understand the push for such intense lighting. Strong even lighting on a timer in the appx 5-6 watts per gallon for most yes, but 8-12 wpg seems extreem to me. I don't think there is only 1 right way or 1 proper wpg rule, it all depend for each situation.
I have always been for providing a lower side of lighting (PC in 5 - 6 wpg range) and smaller more frequent feedings than most. It just seems more natural to me.
mr.125
Member
Dburr: U Sure? I thought it was the radiating color continuum that was produced by the bulb...but im no electrical eng.!!! if thats the case then it would, essentialy, be broken by a less than straight angle of a hood right? Or crappy relfector properties? What about mylar and things like that? Can they be drapped over say a retrofit kit?
Diane: Thanks for your opinion!
I think the underlined issue here is that as long as you stay above 3 wpg of quality light y
youll be ok with most species. Am i right? maybe an eng. will chime in
Diane: Thanks for your opinion!
I think the underlined issue here is that as long as you stay above 3 wpg of quality light y
youll be ok with most species. Am i right? maybe an eng. will chime in
dburr
Active Member
Diane is right on the money.
Any coral will do great 4" under the water. So what does it matter what size tank it's in? Does the coral care?
Nope.
The light bulb puts out spikes at certain color temps.(spectrums) It shoots out all around the bulb. Some go straight down in the tank, some go up. If you reflect straight back down, it hits the bulb rendering it usless. A good reflector reflects the light around the bulb and back to the water. It seems like their is MORE light from your single bulb because it is being reflected multiple times in the hood and directed back down. But the "spikes" don't change.
Make sense?
Any coral will do great 4" under the water. So what does it matter what size tank it's in? Does the coral care?
The light bulb puts out spikes at certain color temps.(spectrums) It shoots out all around the bulb. Some go straight down in the tank, some go up. If you reflect straight back down, it hits the bulb rendering it usless. A good reflector reflects the light around the bulb and back to the water. It seems like their is MORE light from your single bulb because it is being reflected multiple times in the hood and directed back down. But the "spikes" don't change.
Make sense?
diane4
Member
dburr - I agree with you and yes, it makes a lot of sense.
I recently converted my 50 gallon reef tank to a 75 gallon. It is shallower than the typical 4 foot long tank (like the 90 gallon tanks), which allows me to get lighting closer to animals. I do need to upgrade my lighting to compensate for the additional width and space, I am just waiting to be able to afford what I want and need.
I am FAR from being an expert at SW / Reef fish keeping, but I share my opinions based on what I am doing and what seems to work for me.
As others have said on this forum, there is no such thing as only ONE right way to have a reef tank. Therefore, no one can claim to be expert, but can offer their years of experience as a guide for others. Reef tanks are as unique as people, there are no two the same. Impossible. Thats why there is such great value of this forum. As reef hobbyists, we can read what other people have in their tanks, what they do and draw from that information and do our own thing.
This forum and the people that post here have been the greatest. It is where I learned in the first month that I had a saltwater tank all about Hyposalinity and how to do a Hypo treatment. It saved my DF puffers life. That meant so much to me.
There was NO book that talked about Hypo treatments. This forum is a life saver and I hope to be able to help others like folks on this forum have helped me.
I recently converted my 50 gallon reef tank to a 75 gallon. It is shallower than the typical 4 foot long tank (like the 90 gallon tanks), which allows me to get lighting closer to animals. I do need to upgrade my lighting to compensate for the additional width and space, I am just waiting to be able to afford what I want and need.
I am FAR from being an expert at SW / Reef fish keeping, but I share my opinions based on what I am doing and what seems to work for me.
As others have said on this forum, there is no such thing as only ONE right way to have a reef tank. Therefore, no one can claim to be expert, but can offer their years of experience as a guide for others. Reef tanks are as unique as people, there are no two the same. Impossible. Thats why there is such great value of this forum. As reef hobbyists, we can read what other people have in their tanks, what they do and draw from that information and do our own thing.
This forum and the people that post here have been the greatest. It is where I learned in the first month that I had a saltwater tank all about Hyposalinity and how to do a Hypo treatment. It saved my DF puffers life. That meant so much to me.
There was NO book that talked about Hypo treatments. This forum is a life saver and I hope to be able to help others like folks on this forum have helped me.