Will acros do okay under PC's ??
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Umm I believe it was Danm that posted in the commandments of reefing:
Thou shalt not keep SPS under any other lighting than MH, Or thou will end up with Shameful Prickly Skeletons.
Truthfully, I dont know. I've heard an seen the reports from CSL that they have succesfully done it, however, I'm sure that the depth they are placed in the tank, # and wattage and deg K of lights must be taken into account as well.
Thou shalt not keep SPS under any other lighting than MH, Or thou will end up with Shameful Prickly Skeletons.
Truthfully, I dont know. I've heard an seen the reports from CSL that they have succesfully done it, however, I'm sure that the depth they are placed in the tank, # and wattage and deg K of lights must be taken into account as well.
i have try acros, sps and clam in PC.. clam doesn't do well... sps is posible by 4watts/gal. and placing them not deeper then 15inch... if it's the Fox sps then it's much more easier. acros depend on what type. and must be place as high as posible.
this is what base on my experience~ I hope it would help.
this is what base on my experience~ I hope it would help.
I have found that the growth rates of all acroporas suffer without MH's although I know it has been done. I have kept 6 different acros at once and found that the thinner branched species are easier to grow with lower light intensities, water quality and stable ph, temp etc are paramount to success though with acros though.
I have kept both SPS and maxima clams under 4x96 PC lighting (2 blues, 2 whites). Everything grew perfectly fine for the year that I had the PC's up. In fact many of my maximas were kept on the sandbed (60 gallon tank) with no problems whatsoever. In fact when I placed my black maxima close to the surface of the water he started bleaching because the light may have been too bright (granted, black maximas may have lower light requirements). The only SPS color I couldn't maintain under my PC lighting was blue. Blue-tipped acros eventually lost their "blueness", but with every other color (purple, pink, green) the colors were both vibrant and growth rate was impressive. However, as with all things, your mileage may vary. 
Good luck!
Good luck!Yeah, but you're talking about 4 x 96w or almost 400 watts of lighting NKT. That's the same as if you were running a 400w metal halide, right?
65 watts of PC is inadequate for maintaining SPS corals, IMO. That is less than 100 microeinsteins of light. Daylight at the surface of the ocean in the tropics is 2,000 microeinsteins.
HTH
James
65 watts of PC is inadequate for maintaining SPS corals, IMO. That is less than 100 microeinsteins of light. Daylight at the surface of the ocean in the tropics is 2,000 microeinsteins.
HTH
James
I believe he has 130 watts of light (one 65W daylight, one actinic). Still, it's below the threshold of what I'd use to keep most sps corals. Some species/specimens, however, well fare decently. But in general, it's not advisable.
I also believe NKT's point was that MH is not required for SPS or clams. MH is the more effective instrument to achieve lots of light over a limited area, but the blanket statement "Clams/SPS require metal halides" should not be made.
I also believe NKT's point was that MH is not required for SPS or clams. MH is the more effective instrument to achieve lots of light over a limited area, but the blanket statement "Clams/SPS require metal halides" should not be made.
Yeah, I'm in the MH camp too. There is no better way of getting light intensity over a limited area as well as MH ... at least not until high K sulfur lamps are readily available. But I disagree with the assertion that clams and SPS absolutely require MH.
FWIW, I got a PPFD reading of 67 @12" from a 65watt LOA fixture (with parabolic reflector).
FWIW, I got a PPFD reading of 67 @12" from a 65watt LOA fixture (with parabolic reflector).
well, the quastion is will acros do 'okie' in a PC. So the answer is yes~.
But sure that PC are unmatchable to MH in quality but PC beat MH in price. That's for sure. Money bring quality. So if you can afford it, go for MH if not, PC will do 'okie'.
At some place that have high temperature, MH cost even more. Like me, I can't have a MH without a chiller.
But sure that PC are unmatchable to MH in quality but PC beat MH in price. That's for sure. Money bring quality. So if you can afford it, go for MH if not, PC will do 'okie'.
At some place that have high temperature, MH cost even more. Like me, I can't have a MH without a chiller.
In theory I think 400W of light is 400W of light, but it brings up the question of how much light intesity do you get out of a flourescent bulb? I mean when you buy some of these boys at the store, they say "bright as 100W bulb, uses only 33W!" so which of these wattages are you comparing to MH 400W??
Also, I must agree that for a reef "look" I absolutely LOVE the "shimmer" created by the waving water surface as my MH 400W light comes through... (point source of light, like the sun) gives it a nice quality, as opposed to whatever flourescent lighting you use which is being emitted uniformly from the entire tube, just doesn't shimmer like that because it is such a diffuse source of light -- kind of looks un-natural in my opinion...
Also, I must agree that for a reef "look" I absolutely LOVE the "shimmer" created by the waving water surface as my MH 400W light comes through... (point source of light, like the sun) gives it a nice quality, as opposed to whatever flourescent lighting you use which is being emitted uniformly from the entire tube, just doesn't shimmer like that because it is such a diffuse source of light -- kind of looks un-natural in my opinion...
Just to buck the trend a little...
I have 5 96watt PCs over a 75. This is about 6.4 watts per gallon. I have a green slimer ( Acropora yongei) frag and just added a Montipora digitata frag that both are showing growth, good polyp extension and good color. Previously had only softies. I do have the SPS up high in the tank so they're only about 8" from the lights. I've heard that the green slimer and monti are not the most demanding also. If you have 2 65watt PCs now, you could add a third one and improve you situation at a minimal cost.
I have 5 96watt PCs over a 75. This is about 6.4 watts per gallon. I have a green slimer ( Acropora yongei) frag and just added a Montipora digitata frag that both are showing growth, good polyp extension and good color. Previously had only softies. I do have the SPS up high in the tank so they're only about 8" from the lights. I've heard that the green slimer and monti are not the most demanding also. If you have 2 65watt PCs now, you could add a third one and improve you situation at a minimal cost.
Watts per gallon is a terrible measure of lighting. What is important is the intensity that reaches the coral. For example, I have 3x400W 6500k iwasakis and 4x96W PC True actinics over my 180G reef. That is 1584W over 180G or 8.8 Watts per gallon. Does that mean that if you took a coral out of my tank and you put it in a 29G with 5 55W pc bulbs the coral would receive the same light? Absolutely not! Lets take another example. Suppose you have 2x55w PC over a tank that is 24"Lx12"Wx12"H (15 Gal). Is that the same as 2x55W over a tank that is 24"L x 6"W x 24" H (also 15 gal)? No, it is not. Corals at the bottom of the first tank will receive close to 4 times the light as those at the bottom of the second tank. (The intensity of light drops exponentially the farther you are from the source.)
As for keeping SPS in a 29g with 65w PC's: absolutely not. They will die. I had a 55G tank w/ 2x65W PC and the lighting was not enough for even the heartiest SPS kept near the top of the tank.
As for type of light, wassage is not directly correlated to intensity in all cases. If it were so, I would simply light my tank with 17 100W incansescent bulbs. Watt for watt, PC bulbs are brighter than VHO (Yes, its true) and less than MH bulbs of the same color temp. Keep in mind though that actinic bulbs are much less intense, watt for watt than daylight bulbs. I would not count them when considering intensity.
Some people have kept clams and SPS with PC bulbs, but usually they are kept higher in the tank (I have a 24" deep tank and would never consider keeping anything on the bottom of the tank with only PC bulbs no matter how many bulbs I were to use) and they usually have many bulbs. I am not saying that you must have MH to do clams or SPS, just that you would need many PC bulbs to do it.
Also remember that the intensity of PC (and VHO) is spread out over the length of the bulb. I would definitely take into consideration the length of the tank when considering intensity. Higher wattage PC bulbs are generally longer than lower wattage bulbs. In fact, it is almost an even 2.5 watts per inch of length of bulb. It varies a little by wattage, but the point is that if you get a longer bulb you aren't getting that much more light. An example is that a coral in a 12" long tank with one 32W bulb is getting roughly the same amount of light as a coral in a 24" long tank with a 65W bulb (provided that the corals are at the same depth in both tanks and the bulbs are the same color temp.)
Sorry for rambling. Bottom line is that, no 65W pc with half being actinic is not enough in my opinion for SPS.
Ernie
I agree with esmithee!
I have dual 400W 6500 kelvin Iwasaki's and my SPS near the top of the tank LOVE it, i.e. they are getting the bright light they want,
And the softies and new corals I get I place LOW on the sand to keep farther away and therefore not get BURNED by so much light.
And actually the intensity is inversely related to the square of the distance, (imagine a hollow sphere-shell of which all the light must add up to the wattage of your bulb!)
Energy [or Intensity] =proportional-to= distance^2
Some interesting thoughts on "Wattage" not being EQUAL, I KNOW THIS IS TRUE!
And also there is the issue of "penetrance" which is how much the light will penetrate through the saltwater in your tank -- MH are best in this respect!
I have dual 400W 6500 kelvin Iwasaki's and my SPS near the top of the tank LOVE it, i.e. they are getting the bright light they want,
And the softies and new corals I get I place LOW on the sand to keep farther away and therefore not get BURNED by so much light.
And actually the intensity is inversely related to the square of the distance, (imagine a hollow sphere-shell of which all the light must add up to the wattage of your bulb!)
Energy [or Intensity] =proportional-to= distance^2
Some interesting thoughts on "Wattage" not being EQUAL, I KNOW THIS IS TRUE!
And also there is the issue of "penetrance" which is how much the light will penetrate through the saltwater in your tank -- MH are best in this respect!
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