MH's do I need actinic lights too

[pokdbz]

I am going to be getting a MH retro fit system for my canopy. The tank is going to be a FO to start out and then 6-8 months down the road I would like to add corals and anemonies. I was wondering if it would be fine if I just had the MH's and no actinic lights.
But if you think that I need them where can I get one to fit onto my canopy relatively cheap?

 

[thomas712]

With corals and anemones I would say yes you could do with the Actinic blues, Soft corals will love them, hard corals don't need them as much. Look at hellolights.com for a retro kit.
Thomas

 

[demosthenes]

It depends on the spectrum of the MH bulb that you are using as to whether actinic supplementation is neccessary. However, I would say that you do need a few lower-watt bulbs for your tank regardless of your tank type, in order to properly mimic the natural habitat of our tank's inhabitants, they need to experience the gradual lightening of night into the day, similar to the sun's rising. Choice of spectrum, ranging from Super Daylight to Actinic, for the lower-watt bulbs, will depend on the spectrum of the MH bulb to be implemented in your tank. So regardless of your tank type, I would say you need them. I would set the lower-watt lights to turn on a few hours before, and turn off a few hours after the MH light. This will properly mimic the dawn and dusk hours.

 

[slick]

I think it just depends on what look your trying to get.