[oops]

Hi All

It's time to change my lamps and have been looking at these.

My tank is 24" deep and I plan to stock with mainly sps frags. I do have a few lps corals near the bottom of the tank which includes my stunning catalphyllia.

I realise as I am switching from 20k to 6500k I will have to slowly acclimatise my stock to this by raising the lights and reducing the lighting period.

Will it be too much on a 24" deep tank with LPS corals?

[Tony B]

oops, on May 27 2008, 04:46 PM, said:

Hi All

It's time to change my lamps and have been looking at these.

My tank is 24" deep and I plan to stock with mainly sps frags. I do have a few lps corals near the bottom of the tank which includes my stunning catalphyllia.

I realise as I am switching from 20k to 6500k I will have to slowly acclimatise my stock to this by raising the lights and reducing the lighting period.

Will it be too much on a 24" deep tank with LPS corals?

Your SPS should do well with the increase in PAR but ensure you raise the lights right up or you'l get burnt tips!

What are the dimensions of the tank?

Regards,

Tony

[ben]

dont forget it will be a big shock to you as well as the corals. going from a very blue to a very yellow will be something you may not like. and to counteract this you may need to add a lot of blue , in the form of t5 tubes. this will add to the heat as well.

[oops]

Hi Tony

I don't have any sps in there at the moment. I can only afford frags, which is why I want good growth. Tank dimensions are 6 x 2 x 2. I have 2 400 watt lights.

[oops]

Hi Ben

I realise the colour will be a shock, but I used to have 150watt 10k on there so I know what to expect. I am going to get an 80watt narva tube aswell.

[oops]

Does anyone know if my LPS will be okay with these lamps before I decide whether to order them.

The other alternative is XM 10k but they are very expensive.

Thanks

Anita

[Si Clark]

Your lps will be fine as long you aclimatize your stock to new lamps. Are you planning having actinics with them also 6500k's are very yellow looking IMO

[oops]

Hi Si

I am planning on having a 80watt narva blue as I already have an Arcadia T5 starter. It will be placed on the front bracing bar. I plan on having my lps at the front near the bottom, so the blue will be almost above them.

I know it may not look to good for a while but with having frags, growth is more important.

Thanks

[oops]

Hi Andrew

If I get them I will put some pics up for you. I can't afford to buy lamps then decide I don't like them, so I am going to have to live with them for a year whatever.

[ben]

there are other brands of 10k you could go for, like coralvue or marinelux. you should still get good growth and good colour

[Norvern Rob]

ben, on May 28 2008, 05:53 PM, said:

there are other brands of 10k you could go for, like coralvue or marinelux. you should still get good growth and good colour

I like the 10k Marine Lux lamps, i've had them in 250w DE and now 400w SE (both run in Arcadia pendants with magnetic ballasts) and both have been a very bright white with no noticeable yellow (to my eyes anyway). I do sometimes think the 400w have a hint of pink about them (they definitely do when starting up) but the 250w were the brightest, whitest 250w lamps i've used.

I am tempted to try the 6500k next time though, as I have a tank full of frags growth is my main aim. TBH though i'd probably be better off replacing the arcadia unit with lumenarcs for better spread and reflection.

[reefclown]

2 x 400W is extremely excessive over a 6x2x2. Have you considered selling your current unit and running a single 400w on a light mover using a lumenarc or other decent pendant? Running a single lamp has considerable benefits both in terms of cost, heat reduction and optimal light usage.

I run a single 400W over a 6x4x4 SPS system with reasonably decent growth and good coloration. With the 6500K I used a 80W actinic which took away the yellow adequately from my perspective.

Switching over to a more eco system, should pay for itself in a short period, whilst also providing reduced long term costs

As per others comments, ensure you raise or filter the lighting from a 6500K during the changeover period.

have fun
N

[Si Clark]

I always think this is a good site to compare lights from an eye site point of veiw

http://www.cnidarianreef.com/lamps.cfm

[oops]

Oh I wish I was good at making decisions. I really can't make up my mind what to get. It has got to be something that works with magnetic ballasts.

Reefclown, a light mover sounds like a good Idea, but I don't think hubby will like it. He made enough fuss about removing my original six foot lighting pendant and putting up my 2 sunlight replicators. I am also happy with what I have now, so they will be staying.

Si thanks for the link, I already have that one stored in my favourites.

Thanks everyone for your help.

[chriss]

reefclown, on May 28 2008, 07:56 PM, said:

2 x 400W is extremely excessive over a 6x2x2. Have you considered selling your current unit and running a single 400w on a light mover using a lumenarc or other decent pendant? Running a single lamp has considerable benefits both in terms of cost, heat reduction and optimal light usage.

I run a single 400W over a 6x4x4 SPS system with reasonably decent growth and good coloration. With the 6500K I used a 80W actinic which took away the yellow adequately from my perspective.

Switching over to a more eco system, should pay for itself in a short period, whilst also providing reduced long term costs

As per others comments, ensure you raise or filter the lighting from a 6500K during the changeover period.

have fun
N

Don't forget, you also have natural sunlight thru your roof light that is not always possible for most people.

Chris

[reefclown]

Quote

Don't forget, you also have natural sunlight thru your roof light that is not always possible for most people.

Very good point, something I often overlook

[jason@jasonsaquatics]

Looking at the link Si posted ,i like the look of the 6500k i lamp with added blue .

Got mine ready and new system will be installed soon ,soon as i get time that is lol .Will run a thread on the system and also how im going with the 6500s


jas