quick Q about adjusting light levels

michaeltx

Moderator
I am about to add MH to my tank and I need to know what is the easiest way to get the corals usto the new lights without burning them. the other lights that are going with them are PC,s and the hieght theya re going to be at makes me worry that they wont get enough light to survive.
thanks any recomendations
Mike
 

cboyfan2020

Active Member
how high are the lights? MH have a very strong intensity and shouldnt have a problem reaching the corals. Most people keep them @ 8"or so and PC's @2-3" or so.
To adapt your corals start with 1 hour a day with all lights on and do this for a week. Each week increase the time by one-two hours until full light cycle is reached.
 

michaeltx

Moderator
its not that halides that I ma worried about if I do your suggestion gradually increase the amount of light. the other lights that are going with the halides are pc's with the halides of I am worried that the light from the pc's wouldnt be suffecient for the corals is there a way to make sure this doesnt happen.
the canopy hight right now is at 24 inches a friend built it for me needless to say there are some major changes to it that I have to do.
when he bult it he was thinking and added a feeding door on the top of the canopy. which would be alright if it was almost 6 feet tall to get to the top of it. LOL
also there isnt a door on the front so the only way to actually get into the tank is to reach from the top 5 feet down to reach the bottom of the tank ( yeah a really long reach LOL)
so I have to put a door on it stain it and cut about 1/2 the height off of it to use it .
but all in all it looks pretty good for a freebie.
thanks
Mike
btw the tank is 60Lx20Hx19D 100 gallon tank
 

cboyfan2020

Active Member
how many PC and watts of PCs. Also what type of corals?
I would ask him to cut that canopy down in half if possible.
 

michaeltx

Moderator
thats what I am going to be doing the next couple of days LOL he misuderstood when we was talking about it and a couple of dys later he pulled up with it in the back of the truck.
there are going to be 220 watts pc 10000k along with the haldies.
inhabitanta are
BTA
frog
xenia
zoanthid polyps yellow polyps
4 or 5 different leathers
colt coral
hairy shrooms
acropora

[hr]
montipora

[hr]
both fags
alvepora
GSP and PSP
pavona catus
glaxiea
another white looking leather thingy dont have a clue.
ther are a few others that arent photo dependant
chilli and sun polyps
the main things I am worried about are the BTA and acropora and montipora the rest I think would alright for a little while.
thanks
Mike
 

fellow

Member
Are you asking if you should put the pc' in a different location in the hood?
if not...
if you have enough MH light you shouldn't have to worry about the pc's, but if you are counting on the light from the pc's You should definitely find a new place to put the pc's, or adjust the overall height of the hood.
I have tried different levels of light in a hood, but it is very difficult to do it safely and effectively.
-fellow-
 

fellow

Member
Nost of those corals will adjust to most light levels and mediums. I would be concerned about the SPS corals in the tank. you may consider moving them to the most lit area of the tank. Don't just go for light, remember flow because it can be equally important.
-fellow-
 

michaeltx

Moderator
I am not really counting on the pc's for light per say the MH bulbs temporarly will be 6500k so the pc are to offset the yellow color.
mainly what I am worried about is frying the corals with the sudden addition of the halides. if I start the halides slowly and add time every week or so my concern is since the added depth of the new tank would everything be alright during the transition because they will be in lower light enviroment for a while when I acclimate them to the Metal halides.
the SPS are in a high flow area in the 50 gallon now right at the top of the water line and I have a spot that I am going to place them with indirect strong current from a PH in the new tank.
I dont want to loose anything because the couldnt adjust to the MH fast enough and get burned.
the canopy will be about 8-10 inches when I am done with a front door for access into the tank.
I think I got everybody confused LOL. rereading I think I got myself confused. I know what I am trying to say it just isnt relaying very well .
thanks
Mike
Mike
 

michaeltx

Moderator
o yeah the metal halides are going to be 2-250 watt. and with the added PC's will bring it up antoher 220watts and the Pc's after I get the new bulbs will be for actinic but for now with the 6500k they will be for yellow offset.
Mike
 

spsfreak100

Active Member
I used a slightly different method for ajusting the corals to the new shock of metal halides.
I started out with the lighting being on 2hrs daily. I increased the lighting 30 minutes every 2-3 days. I felt this gave more time for the corals to gradually increase to the new lighting levels. Adding 2-3 hours at a sudden time could shock the corals.
Remember to monitor the corals frequintly while the lighting is on.
Graham
 

fellow

Member
Actually that's the right way to do it. You need to start out with the lights being on for 2-4 hours a day. You can gradually increase this until your corals are fully adjusted to 8-10 hrs. of light. You can reduce the stress and shock of changing light by the addition of iodide. DO NOT OVERDOSE IODIDE, it can be detremental.
-fellow-
 
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